RE MOOC W5 Wind Energy

Wind energy market
Global wind energy capacity

Dr. Ir. C. J. Simão-Ferreira (Carlos)
Energy use and installation
1. Wind in power – 2015 statistics, EWEA, Belgium (2016).

3,62
Wind
6,4
Data1 presented as percentage of
Solar PV total installation in Europe in 2015
(28950 MW).
16,3
44,2
Coal
Gas
29,4 Others
Energy use and installation
4
Conventional thermal
1. Source: www.ec.europa.eu (June, 2016).

10 Data1 presented as percentage of
Nuclear total electricity production in
Europe in 2015 (3056 TWh).
12
48 Hydro
Wind
26 Others
306 TWh of wind-generated electricity in 2015
• 120 TWh – electricity used by the Netherlands in 2015
• 306 TWh can power 102,000,000 households in the Netherlands

• 3 MWh per annum per household
• Requires 14000, 5 MW turbines operating at 50% capacity.

Wind energy market
• Growth of wind energy

• Onshore and Offshore wind energy
• Scenarios and potential for development
Megawatt (MW)
0
10.000
20.000
30.000
40.000
50.000
60.000
Year
Global annual installed wind capacity
1. Global Wind 2014 Report, Global Wind Energy Council, Belgium (2015).
Global cumulative installed wind capacity
Global Wind 2014 Report, Global Wind Energy Council, Belgium (2015).
400.000
350.000
300.000
Megawatt (MW)
250.000
200.000
150.000
100.000
50.000
0
Year
1.
Contributions to global cumulative capacity
1,6 China
13,3 USA
2,3
Germany
2,5 31
Spain Data1 presented as percentage
India of the global capacity in 2014
2,6 (369,597 MW).
UK
3,4 Canada
6,1 France
6,2 Italy
17,8 Brazil
10,6
Rest of the World
1.
Percentage of energy from wind (2013)
Data has changed for 2014 and 2015. Please refer to other literature.
US Energy Information Administration, www.eia.gov (April 2016).
Denmark 35,3
Portugal 25,0
Spain 20,2
Ireland 18,8
Germany 9,0
United Kingdom 8,4
Greece 7,8
Sweden, Poland 6,8
Austria 5,9
Italy, Netherlands 5,5
Belgium 4,7
Australia, USA 4,0
India, France, Canada 3,0
China 2,7
1.
2.
0 10 20 30 40
Market forecast for annual installed capacity
40
35
30 Europe
25 North America
GW
20 Asia
15 Latin America
10 Pacific
5 Middle East and Africa
0
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
1.
Year
Market forecast for cumulative capacity
350
300
250 Europe
200
GW
150 North America
100
Asia
50
0
2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
1.
Year
Offshore wind energy
Offshore wind energy
• Faster wind offshore
• Distance to coastal cities
• ‘Not in my backyard!’
Megawatt (MW)
0
2000
4000
6000
8000
10000
12000
2011
2012
Year
2013
2014
2015
Global cumulative offshore wind capacity
1. Global Wind 2015 Report, Global Wind Energy Council, Belgium (2016).
2. The European offshore wind industry- key trends and statistics 2015, EWEA (2016).
Global cumulative offshore wind capacity
5000
4000 Global capacity1 in 2014 was

Megawatt (MW)
8728 MW, which increased to

12105 MW in 2015.
3000
Wind energy scenarios for 2030, EWEA (2015).

2014
2000
2015
1000
1.
2.
Next
• How many turbines does one need?

• Employment in wind energy.
The wind resource
Origin and characteristics
Dr. Ir. Axelle Viré, Assistant Professor
Learning objectives
After watching this video, you will be able to:
• enumerate the main sources of wind,

• explain the differences in wind velocity profile between onshore and
offshore wind,
• explain how to characterise the wind through a probability density
function
The wind energy resource
Solar Energy
2850 Times
Data from the German Advisory Council on Global Change

All renewable sources
of energy provide
Wind Wind Energy 3078 times the current
40 x 200 Times global energy needs
Biomass Energy
20 Times
Realistically: 25% Hydropower
1 Times Geothermal Energy
5 Times
Wave-Tidal Energy
2 Times
Where does the wind come from?
Air heats up Air cools down

Hotter Colder
Effect of the terrain on the wind speed
Wind speed
Onshore Offshore
Wind variability
Length scale: 100 – 1000 km < 1 km < 10 m

Time scale: Month Day Mins
Wind characteristics
Velocity
10’ Time
Frequency
Probability
Weibull distribution
Velocity Velocity
Summary
In this video:
• we enumerated different sources of wind with various length and time

scales
• we qualitatively saw how the wind velocity profile differs onshore and
offshore,
• we learned that probability density functions are used to characterise
variations in the wind speed.
Wind energy conversion
Aerodynamics
Learning objectives
• explain the basic principles of wind power generation when the turbine is
replaced by a thin disk,
• quantify the maximum power produced,
• explain one reason why a turbine with a large number of blades does not
necessarily produce more power,
• explain one reason why a turbine rotating faster does not necessarily
produce more power
Effect of a plate on a wind flow
u
u T
P= T ⋅ ur
ur = max ur = 0
P=0 P=0
T =0 T = max
Optimum power extracted
Betz limit
u
2 2 8
ur = u C P= 0.59= ×
3 3 9
P = max
Wind turbine components
• Blades
• Rotor hub and nacelle
• Tower
• Foundation
Why 2 or 3 blades?
3 blades 4 blades 5 blades 6More?

blades
Effect of the rotation speed
Rotational speed vs. rotor size
Ω⋅r
TSR =
u
Ω
u r ÷2
r Ω×2
Ω
r
Ω⋅r
Ω⋅r
Summary
In this video:
• we explained the basic principles of wind power generation based on a

thin disk,
• we explained the maximum power produced,
• we learnt that wind turbines with a large number of blades do not
necessarily produce more power,
• we learnt that large rotational speeds do not necessarily yield more
power
Power production
Power curve and capacity factor
Learning objectives
• explain the different operational regions of a wind turbine,

• quantify the dependency of the power produced with wind speed in
these regions,
• define and explain the capacity factor
Power produced by a wind turbine
u T P= T ⋅ ur  ur3
T= m ⋅ ur  ur
 2
Power produced by a wind turbine
3
Cut-in speed u Cut-out speed
Rated power
Power
0 3 6 9 12 15 18 21 24
Wind velocity (ms-1)
Wind turbine control
• Control in normal conditions
• Control in off-design conditions

Pitch control
P (kW)
2500 Max power
(at variable speed)
2000
u = 12 ms-1
1500
1000 u = 9 ms-1
u = 3 ms-1
500
u = 6 ms-1
0 10 20 30 Ω
Capacity factor
Tequivalent
cf =
Tactual
Tactual = actual time to achieve production

(e.g. 1 year for the yearly production)
Tequivalent = equivalent time to achieve the same production

if running constantly at full power
Capacity factor
Full power all year Switched off all year

cf = 1 cf = 0
Capacity factor c f = 0.45
c f = 0.30
c f = 0.23
c f = 0.18
The capacity factor changes with the location
Capacity factor
Wind speeds between 10 m/s and 20 m/s
cf = 1 cf < 1
Power Power
kW kW
1MW 6MW
The capacity factor
V changes with the location V
Summary
In this video:
• we examined how the power produced vary with the wind speed in the
different operational conditions,
• we explained the notion of capacity factor and its interpretation for wind
power production
Power production
Energy yield of a wind turbine and farms
Learning objectives
• compute the energy yield of a wind turbine based on its power curve and
the wind characteristics or the capacity factor,
• explain the concept of velocity deficit and its impact on wind farm layout
Prerequisites
• Wind characteristics through probability density functions

(histograms)
• Power curve
• Capacity factor
Energy yield of one wind turbine
Power (kW)
Energy (kWh)
Velocity X
Frequency
Velocity
Velocity Cut-in ~ V3 Rated Cut-out
Energy yield calculation
Do you have turbine data?

Power (kW)
Do you have wind data?
Frequency
X
Velocity
Energy yield calculation
Or do you have ‘nothing’?
Energy yield = hours/year * installed power * cf
Estimate: capacity factor (cf) ≈ 0.25 onshore

≈ 0.35-0.45 offshore
Energy yield of a farm
10 turbines
1MW
Does this farm produce 10 MW?
Wake effects
T Velocity
deficit
Wake effects
D 7 - 15 D
Shear layers
Wake effects
Wind aligned
with the turbines
Wind misaligned
with the turbines
Summary
In this video:
• we learnt how to compute the energy yield of a wind turbine based on its
power curve and the wind characteristics or the capacity factor
• we discussed the concept of velocity deficit, its impact on wind farm
layout and its dependence on the wind direction
Wind turbine design
Components, materials and cost
Wind turbine
• Components of wind turbines.

• Costs of the components.
• Materials, basic dimensions and weight.
Visible components
• Tower.
• Blades.
• Foundation.
• Rotor hub and nacelle.
Turbines at the Mill Creek wind farm, New Zealand, www.paul-langrock.de (May, 2016).
Blades
Image from www.cleanenergybrands.com (May, 2016).

• The cross-section varies in shape
to maximise lift and reduce drag.
• A lift-to-drag ratio of nearly 100.
• Light-weight materials to reduce

rotational inertia.
Blades - materials
• Resin and fibreglass laminate shell.
• Balsa wood core panels.
• Fibre-cased balsa wood spar-webs.
• Carbon fibre spar-caps.
• Adhesive and reinforcement.

Blades – size over the years
Source: www.windenergy.org.nz (May, 2016).

1
Vestas V164-8MW
The longest wind turbine blade
140 m
80 m
2
1. Source: www.offshorewindindustry.com (May, 2016), courtesy MHI Vestas.

2. Source: www.mhivestasoffshore.com (May, 2016).
Rotor hub
Enercon E-126 7.6 MW
Source: www.enercon.de (May, 2016)

• Hub ~ 270 tonnes.
• Hub with blades ~ 364 tonnes.
• Steel and aluminium.
• Blade pitch assembly.

• Composite aerodynamic cover.
Nacelle
Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.

Nordex N117/3000 3 MW
• Nacelle with generator and gearbox ~

100 tonnes.
• Steel, aluminium, copper and magnetic
metals (for the generator)
1.
Nacelle
Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.

• Nacelle with generator and gearbox ~
Source: www.nordex-online.com (May, 2016).

100 tonnes.
• Steel, aluminium, copper and magnetic
metals (for the generator)
• Rotor shaft.
• Gearbox.
• Generator shaft (high speed).
• Generator.
2
1.
2.
Nacelle
3
•
Generator and generator shaft.
1. Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.

2. Source: www.nordex-online.com (May, 2016).
Nacelle
4
•
Rotor hub and gearbox.
1. Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.

Main shaft and bearing
Source: www.schaeffler-fairs.de (May, 2016).

Main shaft and bearing

A. www.schaeffler.de (May, 2016).
Generator shaft and bearing

Gearbox

Gearbox
Planetary gear system
• Rotor shaft
• Compact

• High power
A. www.schaeffler.de (May, 2016).

Parallel gear system
• Generator shaft
• Stable at high speed
• Simple design
A
Generator

N
S
High speed generator
Source: www.abb.com (May, 2016).

High speed generator
ABB 3MW
• Compact design and easy serviceability.
Source: www.abb.com (May, 2016).

• Low cost of permanent magnet.
Generator

Direct-drive generator

• Low wear due to slow rotation.
• Low stress so less damage.
• Less losses by eliminating gearbox.
• Compact design.
• Offshore.
• Needs a bigger nacelle.

• Permanent magnets in larger quantity.
Wind tracking

Yaw gear

Yaw gear
Planetary gear

• Withstand higher torque from the
nacelle’s weight.
• Compact design.
• Electricity from generator.
• Needs a bigger nacelle.

• Permanent magnets in larger
quantity.
Tower & foundation
• Tower

• Foundation (onshore)
Tower
• Height ~ 135 m.

• Weight ~ 2800 tonnes.
• Tubular steel continuous or parts.

• Precast concrete.
Tower
Siemens
• Installation of wind turbine tower.
Source: www.siemens.com (May, 2016)

Foundation – onshore
• ~ 2500 tonnes.

Foundation – onshore
Source: www.astroman.com.pl (May, 2016).

• ~ 2500 tonnes.
• Steel and concrete.
Courtesy: www.enercon.de
Foundation – offshore
• Fixed.
• Floating.
Monopile foundations
• 0 – 30 m .
• 1 -2 MW.
• Steel.
Source: www.londonarray.com (May, 2016)

Jacket foundations
•
•
•
Steel.
25-50 m
2-5 MW.
Source: www.offshorewind.biz (May, 2016)

Location: Alpha Ventus wind farm, Germany, www.4coffshore.com (May, 2016).
Tension-leg platform
• 50 – 100 m
• 5 -10 MW.
• Concrete-steel.
Semi-submerged and spar floating platforms
• > 100 m
• 5 -10 MW.
• Concrete-steel, stabilised ballast.
Platforms by number
1. The European offshore wind energy industry, EWEA (2016) .

4% 2%
5%
European waters (2015)
Monopiles
• 3313 offshore platforms.
• Only 4 floating and experimental platforms. 9% Gravity
Jacket
• Triples use 3 monopiles.
• Tripods are monopiles with a tripod-shaped
bottom.
Tripods
• Gravity platforms use monopiles with a disc
like base. Tripiles
80%
Cost distribution
1% 2% 1% 1% Tower
4%
Blades
6% Rotor hub
1. The economics of wind energy, EWEA (2009) .

3% Bearings
29%
1% Main shaft
4% Main frame
Gearbox
Source: Wind directions (2007).

Generator
Yaw system
14% Pitch system
Power converter
Transformer
3%
Brake system
2% Nacelle
Cables
2% Screws
1% 25%
Next
• Wind turbines and wakes.

• Wind farm aerodynamics.
Wind farms
Wake effects and turbine placement
Wind turbine
• Wind turbine wakes.

• Velocity deficit and added turbulence.
• Wind turbine deployment.
Recap – actuator disk theory
Ur
Ue
Ui Thrust
Ai
Power Wake
U r U i (1 − a )
= Ae
1
Ue =U i (1 − 2a ), a <
3
Recap – atmospheric boundary layer
1200
u   Z 
U =  *  ln   1000
 κ   zo 
Height (m)
800
U Velocity at height Z 600

Z Height.
400
𝒖𝒖∗ Friction velocity.
𝒛𝒛𝒐𝒐 Roughness length. Surface layer 200

Variation in wind speed
κ von Kármán constant. 0
8 9 10 11 12 13
Velocity (ms-1)
Wind turbine within the boundary layer
Wake
Wake properties – velocity deficit
• Velocity deficit. U Uw
• Reduced power downstream turbine.
• Placement of turbines?
Velocity deficit
Turbulence
• Chaotic flow.
• Rapid changes in velocity.
• Swirling.
• Mixing (slower and faster).
• Transport mass, momentum and
energy.
• Boundary layer also has turbulence.

• Maximum near the surface.
Wake properties – added turbulence
σ σw
Added
Turbulence
• Added turbulence.
• Increased load on downstream turbines.
• Turbine longevity reduced.

Combined wake effects
• Turbine creates.
• Velocity deficit.
• Increased turbulence mixes the air.

• Faster with slower.
• What results?
Wake recovery – velocity deficit
U Uw 6- 10 D
...
D
Wake recovery – added turbulence
σ σw 8- 12 D
...
D
Short summary . . .
• A wind turbine creates:

• Velocity deficit.
• Turbulence reduces over distance while helping velocity deficit recover.
• Multiple turbines?
Turbines > 8D
U
σ
Modern wind farms nearly 7D
11
Modern wind farms nearly 7D
11
Thus,
• The velocity deficit

• Increases drastically the second turbine but recovers thereafter.
• Affects power generation, recall 𝑃𝑃 ∝ 𝑈𝑈 3 .
• The added turbulence

• Increases immediately behind the first turbine and gradually thereon.
• No changes beyond the third turbine.
• Affects loading and damage.
Power (velocity deficit) nearly 7D separation
1
𝑃𝑃
0,8
𝑃𝑃1
0,6
0,4
1 2 3 4 5 6
Loading (added turbulence) nearly 7D separation
Loading
1 2 3 4 5 6
Aligned or staggered
7D 14D
• Increase distance between turbines.

• Increase area and cost of land!
Partially staggered
Source: Stevens, R.J.A.M. et al., Effect of turbine alignment on the average power
• Common configuration
• Horns Rev (Denmark).
• Nysted (Denmark).
output of wind farms, ICOWES, Denmark (2013).

• Simulations show (for ~ 7D): >7D
• Power maximum, θ~11°.
• Minimum wake interaction.
7D
θ
Summary
• Wake effects affect power generation and loading.

• Strategic placement of turbines required.
• Area vs. Power generation.
• GO OFFSHORE!
Transmission of electricity
For future offshore wind farms
Electricity
• Managing the generated electricity.

• Transmission strategies future far offshore
wind farms.
• Cost of transmission.
Turbine operation
Blade
Wind
Gear box
Generator
Rotor shaft
Generator shaft
Electricity usage
Voltage generated may not match the voltage used at home.
ν, V The frequency of the voltage may not match the one at home.
50 HZ, 230 V
Treatment
Transfer losses
Treatment
P = VI R Loss = RI
The basics of transmission
P = VU IU
VU ~ 25000 V
Step-down transformer
Step-up transformer VU >> V
IU << I VD = 230 V
ID > IU
P = VD I D
P = VI
VD = 230 V
Offshore examples of collection & transmission voltages
Wind farm Power Collection Transmission Distance
Utgrunden (Sweden) 7 x 1.4 MW 20 kV 20 kV 8 km
Middelgrunden (Denmark) 20 x 2 MW 30 kV 30 kV 3 km
Horns Rev (Denmark) 80 x 2 MW 36 kV 150 kV 15 km
Egmond aan Zee (OWEZ) 36 x 3 MW 33 kV 33 kV 8 km
Power Transmission
Collection
Distance
Future
• Offshore wind farms will move away from land.

• Transmission losses will increases.
• Maintenance of transmission will be expensive.
• Cost of offshore electricity will increase!
• The electricity itself! AC?

Transmission as AC - advantages
Source
• Easy to step-up and step-down with transformers.

Transmission as AC - advantages
Source
• Easy to step-up and step-down with transformers.
• Cheaper to collect and manage electricity as generators

produce AC!
Transmission as AC - disadvantages
Source
• Inductive reactance (resistance).
AC
Transmission as AC - disadvantages
Source
• Inductive reactance (resistance).
• Connections between sources should 1

be synchronised. S
2
DC – advantages over AC
Source Load
• Asynchronous connections possible.
2
Source Load
• Less losses to resistance.

DC R AC R L
Source Load

+ -
• Simpler and cheaper poles.

Source Load
ASEA Brown Boveri, www.abb.com (May, 2016).

ASEA Brown Boveri, www.abb.com (May, 2016).
• Simpler and cheaper poles.
• Simpler and cheaper wire.
1.
2.
AC vs. DC cost
Cost Terminal cost
• DC more expensive because one needs to
convert AC to DC and then DC to AC again.
Graph adapted from www.abb.com (May, 2016).

Line cost
• 3 phase AC needs a cable with a more complex
design and extra material than a simple DC
cable.
DC terminal cost
Critical distance
AC terminal costs • Over land ~ 600 to 800 km.
• Subsea ~ 50 km.
Distance
Critical distance
Summary, future offshore wind farms . . .
Offshore windfarm Egmond aan Zee

~ 10 km
(OWEZ)
Prinses Amalia ~ 23 km
OWEZ, www.nordzeewind.com (May, 2016).

Prinses Amalia is the property of Eneco, www.eneco.nl (May, 2016).
Summary, future offshore wind farms . . .
~ 120 km
Operation and maintenance
Strategies, reliability and availability
Operation and maintenance
• Maintenance – basics.
• Reliability and availability.
• Strategies for maintenance.
Contributions to operation and maintenance
3%
23%
24%
Scheduled maintenance
74%
Unscheduled maintenance 34%
Insurance
1. Windstats, 2006.
Rent 6%
Electricity
13%
Miscellaneous 2%
21%
Maintenance
Unscheduled maintenance
(corrective, repair, CM)
(preventive, PM)
Batch-wise
Periodic Condition based On demand
(a few turbines at a time)
Operation time based Calendar based Condition judging
Condition monitoring
Reliability (failures per year)
Data adapted from: Tavner, P. How Are We Going to Make Offshore Wind Farms
Source: WMEP, www.offshorewmep.iwes.fraunhofer.de (May, 2016).

More Reliable?, SUPERGEN Wind General Assembly, UK (2011).
Control
Inverter Total of all components:
Gearbox 2.20 failures per year
Pitch mechanism
Blade tips Other failures:
Yaw system 0.8 failures per year
Blade
Electric
Parking brake
Multi megawatt turbines.

Generator
Brake
Shaft & bearings
0 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4

Failures per year
1.
2.
3.
Down time (time needed for repair)
Data adapted from: Tavner, P. How Are We Going to Make Offshore Wind Farms
Assume site fully accessible.
Source: WMEP, www.offshorewmep.iwes.fraunhofer.de (May, 2016).

Drive train
More Reliable?, SUPERGEN Wind General Assembly, UK (2011).

Support structure
Generator
Gearbox
Rotor hub
Mechanical brake
Rotor blades
Yaw system
Hydraulic system
Multi megawatt turbines.

Sensors
Electronic control
Electrical system
1 0,75 0,5 0,25 0 2 4 6 8
Annual failure frequency Down time per failure (days)
1.
2.
3.
Availability (time operational)
Mean time to failure (MTTF)
Running (available)
State
Failed
Mean time to repair (MTTR)
Time
MTTF
Availability =
MTTR + MTTF
Offshore wind farm Egmond aan Zee (OWEZ)
1. Data obtained from www.noordzeewind.nl (April, 2016).

100
OWEZ average availability 76%.
80
Availability (%)
60
12 gearboxes exchanged.
40
3 weeks per gearbox!
20
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Reliability, accessibility, maintainability & serviceability
Reliability Maintainability Serviceability
(failures per year) (mean time to repair, MTTR) (PM on demand)
Theoretical availability
Accessibility Maintenance strategy

(of the site of failure)
Actual availability
Accessibility options
Image from www.fiberline.com (April, 2016).

Crew transport by helicopter
• Expensive
• Fast
• Requires a landing platform
• Large operating window
WindCat at OWEZ www.nordzeewind.nl (April, 2016).

Crew transport by catamaran
(a twin hull vessel)
• Reasonably fast
• Affordable
• Medium operating window
Image from: www.siemens.co.ukl (April, 2016).

Crew transport by simple boat
• Slow
• Very affordable
• Small operating window
8000
7000
6000
5000
Cost (€)
4000 Vessel
3000 Heli
2000 Vessel with down time
1000 Heli with down time
0
0 20 40 60 80
Distance to offshore site (km)

Image from: www.oceanbreeze.de (April, 2016).

Offshore station
• Cranes, helicopter landing

• Crew of 40
• Spare part storage
• Transformer
Accessibility & availability
100
Horns Rev (North Sea)
90
Availability (%)
80
Highly improved
70 Improved
Onshore
60
50
100 80 60 40 Tuno & Vindeby (Denmark onshore)
Accessibility (%)
Summary
• Reliability reduces failure and improves availability.

• Accessibility reduces down time and improves availability.
• Strategic maintenance reduces costs.
• Improved turbine design.

• Offshore housing.
• Condition monitoring and flexible preventive maintenance.
Economic aspects
Cost of construction and operation
Economic aspects
• Economics of a wind farm.

• Distribution of costs.
• Comparison of onshore and onshore costs.
Cost of wind energy
100
Installation
Lifetim Cost of Turbines,

80 foundations
1. www.ewea.org, April 2016.

e of capital Turbine size, Wind speed
2. Cost shown without risk.

project % p. a. , roads etc. height etc. and site
Gas conditions
60 Coal
€/MWh
€ € Nuclear
40 Capital costs
Operation &
(p.a.)
maintenance Wind onshore
(p.a.)
Wind offshore
20
€ €
Annual energy
Total cost production
0 (p.a.) Cost of energy
per kWh
2010 2020 2030
Why have the costs reduced?
12
Learning Installation
Onshore
10 Turbines, Installation
Risø, Technical University of Denmark, Denmark.

Lifetim Cost of
e of capital foundations
Turbines, Turbine size, Wind speed Offshore
Lifetim
project
Cost of
% p. a. , roads etc.
foundations Location Market height etc. and site
e of 8 capital
, roads etc.
Turbine size, Wind speed
conditions
project % p. a. height etc. and site
c€2/kWh
conditions
6
€ €
4 €
Capital costs €
Operation &
maintenance
(p.a.) Operation &
Capital costs (p.a.)
maintenance
€
(p.a.)
Euro cent.
(p.a.)
2
€ €
€
Annual energy
Total cost production
(p.a.) Annual energy
1.
2.
0 Total cost Cost of energy production
(p.a.)
1985 1987 1990 1993 1996 1999 2001 2004 per
2006kWh
Cost of energy 2010 2015
per kWh
The economics of a wind farm
Installation
Lifetime Cost of Turbines, Wind speed

Turbine size,
of project capital foundations, and site
roads etc.
height etc.
% p. a. conditions
€ €
1. EWEA, 2009.
Capital costs Operation &
(p.a.) maintenance (p.a.)
€ Annual
energy
Total cost
(p.a.) production
Cost of energy
per kWh
Contribution to total cost
3%
Investment
23%
1. EWEA, 2009.
Operation & maintenance
Decommissioning
74%
Contributions to total investment
3%
23% 1% 8%
Wind turbine
74% 9% Consultancy
Foundation
6%
1. EWEA, 2009.
1% Grid connection
Finances
Miscellaneous
75%
Contributions to operation and maintenance
3%
23%
24%
74%
Unscheduled maintenance 34%
Insurance
1. Windstats, 2006.
Rent 6%
Electricity
13%
Miscellaneous 2%
21%
16
11
9
Onshore
64
X2
27
20
2
Offshore
51
Onshore vs. Offshore (capital costs)
Foundation
Transmission
Wind turbines
Miscellaneous
1. Blanco, MI, The economics of wind energy, Renewable and Sustainable Energy
Reviews, vol. 13 (2009).
2. Renewable energy technology: cost analysis series, IRENA (2012).
Influence of location on cost and yield
Capital cost Operation & maintenance Energy yield

Inland Moderate Moderate Low
Coastal Moderate Moderate Moderate
Near shore High High High
Offshore Very high High High
€/kW
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
Location in terms of country (installed costs)
2010
2009
2008
2007
1. IEA WIND, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2001.

2. WWEA/CWEC, 2011.
3. Adapted from: Renewable energy technology: cost analysis series, IRENA (2012).
Wind energy vs. fossil fuels
Wind power plants Fossil fuel powered plants
• High investment costs. • Moderate investment costs.

• Moderate maintenance costs. • Moderate maintenance costs.
• Minimal operational costs. • Higher operational costs (fuel).
 Cost of energy predictable.  Unpredictable cost of energy.

 Periods of high wind speed may  Exhaustible.
reduce the cost of energy.
Optional
• How these costs are evaluated or predicted?

Economic aspects
Levelised production cost and net present value
Wind
• Levelised production cost (LPC).

• Net present value (NPV).
Factors affecting every investment
• Inflation
• Interest
• Real interest (interest after accounting for inflation).

Purchasing power and inflation
How much money do I need in year t to buy something that presently costs c?
c t = (1 + v ) ⋅ c
t
ct Money required at time t.

c Current purchasing power in nominal money (value on the banknote).
ν Inflation rate.
t Time (index of the year).
Interest assuming constant rate and no inflation
How much nominal money is my current debt/investment x worth in year t?
xt = (1 + i ) ⋅ xt
xt Bank balance in the future at time t.

x Current investment (or debt).
i Rate of interest.
Combining the effects of inflation and interest
How much money x would I need to have now for a transaction that will
happen in year t that costs c now?
ct =(1 + v ) ⋅ c xt =(1 + i ) ⋅ x
t t
=
1+ i
1+ r =
1+ v
r Real interest rate.
Combining the effects of inflation and interest
How much money x would I need to have now for a transaction that will
happen in year t that costs c now?
(1 + r )
−t
x= ⋅c
x Investment in the future at time t.

c Current cost.
Net present value (NPV)
What is the present value of the investment over the years 1 to T?
NPV =∑
( St − Ct )
T
t =1 (1 + r )
t
NPV Net present value (in chosen currency)

Ct Cost in year t.
St Savings and benefits in year t.

Levelised production cost (LPC)
What is the cost of one unit of electricity over years 1 to T?
T
∑ (C − Rt )(1 + r )
−t
t
LPC = t =1
T
∑ Et (1 + r )
−t
t =1
LPC Levelised production cost (€/kWh)

Et Energy production (kWh) in year t.
Rt Revenue in year t from subsidies and not the direct sale of electricity.
Future trends
Going to deep water and high altitudes
Learning objectives
• distinguish between the main types of foundations for offshore wind

turbine
• explain the limitations of these foundations in deep sea
• enumerate a few innovative concepts to harness wind energy at a lower
cost
Moving offshore
Wind speed
Moving offshore
Source: www.londonarray.com (May, 2016)

Moving offshore
Source: www.offshorewind.biz (May, 2016)

Location: Alpha Ventus wind farm, Germany, www.4coffshore.com (May, 2016).
Types of offshore foundations
1. The European offshore wind energy industry, EWEA (2016) .

Newly installed foundations in Europe in 2015 3%
• 97% monopiles (385 structures)

• 3% jackets (12 structures)
In 2015, there were 3,313 foundations

installed offshore in Europe 97%
Water depths in Europe
Source: N. Anscombe, Turbines take float, Power Engineer,

• Most seas are deeper than 50 metres
• Existing commercial foundations are not
economically viable in deep seas
Vol. 18, Issue 3 (2004)

Floating wind turbines
Tension leg platform Semi-submersible Spar buoy

Floating wind turbines
Source: http://www.fukushima-forward.jp (Aug. 2016)

Source: http://www.statoil.com (Aug. 2016)
1. Hywind Scotland Pilot Park
2. Fukushima floating offshore wind farm demonstration project
1.
2.
1. Vertical-axis wind turbine
wind
2. Two-blade downwind wind turbine

Innovative wind turbine rotors
3. Segmented Ultralight Morphing Rotor
1. Source: http://floatingwindfarms.com/about.html (Aug. 2016)

2. Source: http://2benergy.com/windturbine/key-features/#prettyPhoto (Aug. 2016)
3. Source: Ichter, Steele, Loth, Moriarty, 42nd AIAA Fluid Dynamics Conference and
Exhibit, New Orleans (2012), http://arc.aiaa.org/doi/pdf/10.2514/6.2012-3270
Airborne wind energy
Source: Airborne Wind Energy, Ahrens, Diehl, Schmehl Eds.,

Springer (2013)
Airborne wind energy
Summary
In this video:
• we discussed the two main types of wind turbine foundations used

offshore
• we explained the current challenges with placing wind turbines in deep
sea
• we considered a few innovative concepts that could yield wind energy at
a lower cost
Good Luck!

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Wind energy market

Global wind energy capacity

1. Wind in power – 2015 statistics, EWEA, Belgium (2016).

1. Source: www.ec.europa.eu (June, 2016).

• 120 TWh – electricity used by the Netherlands in 2015

• 306 TWh can power 102,000,000 households in the Netherlands

• Requires 14000, 5 MW turbines operating at 50% capacity.

• Growth of wind energy

5 Middle East and Africa

150 North America

4000 Global capacity1 in 2014 was

8728 MW, which increased to

Wind energy scenarios for 2030, EWEA (2015).

• How many turbines does one need?

After watching this video, you will be able to:

• enumerate the main sources of wind,

Data from the German Advisory Council on Global Change

Air heats up Air cools down

Length scale: 100 – 1000 km < 1 km < 10 m

• we enumerated different sources of wind with various length and time

After watching this video, you will be able to:

• Rotor hub and nacelle

3 blades 4 blades 5 blades 6More?

• we explained the basic principles of wind power generation based on a

After watching this video, you will be able to:

• explain the different operational regions of a wind turbine,

• Control in normal conditions

• Control in off-design conditions

Tactual = actual time to achieve production

Tequivalent = equivalent time to achieve the same production

Full power all year Switched off all year

After watching this video, you will be able to:

• Wind characteristics through probability density functions

Do you have turbine data?

Or do you have ‘nothing’?

Energy yield = hours/year * installed power * cf

Estimate: capacity factor (cf) ≈ 0.25 onshore

• Components of wind turbines.

Image from www.cleanenergybrands.com (May, 2016).

• A lift-to-drag ratio of nearly 100.

• Light-weight materials to reduce

• Resin and fibreglass laminate shell.

• Balsa wood core panels.

• Fibre-cased balsa wood spar-webs.

• Carbon fibre spar-caps.

• Adhesive and reinforcement.

Source: www.windenergy.org.nz (May, 2016).

1. Source: www.offshorewindindustry.com (May, 2016), courtesy MHI Vestas.

Enercon E-126 7.6 MW

Source: www.enercon.de (May, 2016)

• Blade pitch assembly.

Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.

• Nacelle with generator and gearbox ~

Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.

• Nacelle with generator and gearbox ~

Source: www.nordex-online.com (May, 2016).

Generator and generator shaft.

1. Source: https://www.wind-energy-market.com(May, 2016), courtesy Nordex.