WIND ENERGY

INTRODUCTION
Wind energy, the world's fastest growing energy source, is
a clean and renewable source of energy that has been in
use for centuries in Europe and more recently in the
United States and other nations .
And todays world, wind is one of the cheapest and
cleanest energy source.
 HISTORY of WIND MACHINES
 Throughout history people have harnessed the wind.
Over 5,000 years ago, the ancient Egyptians used
wind power to sail their ships on the Nile River. Later
people built windmills to grind their grain. The
earliest known windmills were in Persia (the area now
occupied by Iran). The early windmills looked like
large paddle wheels.
 Centuries later, the people in Holland improved the
windmill. They gave it propeller-type blades and
made it so it could be turned to face the wind.
Windmills helped Holland become one of the world's
most industrialized countries by the 17th century.
HISTORY of WIND MACHINES
 American colonists used windmills to grind wheat and
corn, to pump water, and to cut wood at sawmills.
 Last century, people used windmills to generate
electricity in rural areas that did not have electric
service. When power lines began to transport
electricity to rural areas in the 1930s, the electric
windmills were used less and less.
 Then in the early 1970s, oil shortages created an
environment eager for alternative energy sources,
paving the way for the re-entry of the electric
windmill on the world landscape .
WIND RESOURCE
Where Wind Energy Comes From
All renewable energy (except tidal and geothermal
power), and even the energy in fossil fuels, ultimately
17
comes from the sun. The sun radiates of 1.74 x 10
watts energy to the earth per hour.
About 1 to 2 per cent of the energy coming from the
sun is converted into wind energy. That is about 50 to
100 times more than the energy converted into
biomass by all plants on earth.
What Wind Is
Wind is simply air in motion. It is caused by the uneven
heating of the earth's surface by the sun. Since the
earth's surface is made up of land, desert, water, and
forest areas, the surface absorbs the sun's radiation
differently.
Wind Resources
 Global winds
 Local Winds
 Land Breezes and Sea Breezes
 Mountain Breezes and Valley Breezes
Global Winds
The wind rises from the equator and moves north and
south in the higher layers of the atmosphere.

As the wind rises from the equator there will be a low

pressure area close to ground level attracting winds
from the North and South.

At the Poles, there will be high pressure due to the

cooling of the air .
Local Winds
 Land Breezes and Sea Breezes
Land masses are heated by the sun more quickly than
the sea in the daytime. The air rises, flows out to the
sea, and creates a low pressure at ground level which
attracts the cool air from the sea. This is called a sea
breeze. At nightfall there is often a period of calm
when land and sea temperatures are equal.
At night the wind blows in the opposite direction. The
land breeze at night generally has lower wind speeds,
because the temperature difference between land
and sea is smaller at night .
 Mountain Breezes and Valley Breezes
Mountain breezes and valley breezes are due to a
combination of differential heating and geometry. When
the sun rises, it is the tops of the mountain peaks which
receive first light, and as the day progresses, the
mountain slopes take on a greater heat load than the
valleys. This results in a temperature inequity between
the two, and as warm air rises off the slopes, cool air
moves up out of the valleys to replace it. This upslope
wind is called a valley breeze. The opposite effect takes
place in the afternoon, as the valley radiates heat. The
peaks, long since cooled, transport air into the valley in a
process that is partly gravitational and partly convective
and is called a mountain breeze .
Wind Energy - constraints
 Winds vary in speed, and hence in incident energy flux, during
the day and from season to season, and not necessarily in concert
with demand for electricity.
 Its nondispatchable nature limits the portion of wind power in a
utility’s generator mix; hence, provision for spinning and standby
reserve (e.g., capacity for auxiliary gas- turbine-powered
generation) and grid stability are important concerns.
 Other than the fortuitous proximity of pumped storage hydro
installations, there is no sufficiently inexpensive or ubiquitous
way, at present, to store energy for future use on a large scale.
(Using natural gas turbines as dispatchable backup electricity is
expensive and adds some GHG emissions.)
Wind Energy - constraints
 The best wind fields may not be in reasonable proximity
to large population centers, which necessitates the
construction of expensive high-voltage transmission
systems and results in large line losses of the input energy.
 The noise pollution from commercial wind turbines is
sometimes similar to a small jet engine. This is fine if you
live miles away, where you will hardly notice the noise,
but what if you live within a few hundred meters of a
turbine. This is a major disadvantage.
Wind Energy - ADVANTAGES
 Wind energy is friendly to the surrounding environment,
as no fossil fuels are burnt to generate electricity from
wind energy.
 Wind turbines take up less space than the average power
station. windmills only have to occupy a few square
meters for the base, this allows the land around the turbine
to be used for many purposes, for example agriculture.
 Newer technologies are making the extraction of wind
energy much more efficient. the wind is free, and we are
able to cash in on this free source of energy.
Wind Energy - ADVANTAGES
 Wind turbines are a great resource to generate energy in
remote locations, such as mountain communities and
remote countryside. wind turbines can be a range of
different sizes in order to support varying population
levels.
 Wind energy is that when combined with solar electricity,
this energy source is great for developed and developing
countries to provide a steady, reliable supply of electricity
Wind Speed
Power of the wind α Cube of velocity
High velocity wind is found on
a) Hill Tops
b) Exposed cost
c) out at the sea

Wind Energy : Parameters

 mean wind speed
 directional data,
 variations about the mean in the short-term (drafts), daily, seasonal and
annual variations
 variations with height
These parameters are highly site specific and they can only be determined with
sufficient accuracy by measurements at a particular site over a sufficiently long
period. They are used to assess the performance and economics of a wind energy-
conversion system.
WIND DATA
Include
 Wind speed
 Wind Direction

Wind Data Flow Chart

Principle of Wind Energy Conversion
The wind energy can be extracted from lift force alone or drag force
alone or combination of lift and drag forces.
 The basic features which characterize lift and drag are as follows:
(i) Drag is in the direction of airflow.
(ii) Lift is perpendicular to the direction of airflow.
The lift is produced by the change in velocity of air stream which speeds up the
air flow thereby creating a pressure drop. So, the pressure drop forces the lift surface from
high pressure side to low pressure side of an aerofoil.
(iii) With a good aerofoil the lift produced can be thirty times greater than the drag.
Aerodynamics of Wind Turbine
 The aerofoil is the cross section of the blade of the wind
turbine. It is the shape designed to create maximum lift
force when air flows over it.
 In the wind turbine, linear kinetic energy associated with
the wind is converted into the rotational motion that is
required to turn the electrical generator for power
generation

Wind turbine consist of

i. rotor
ii. two or three blades or aerofoils
iii. hub
Aerodynamics of Wind Turbine
Wind passes more rapidly over the longer (upper) path of
the aerofoil in comparison to the shorter (lower) path as
shown in Figure. High and low pressure regions can be
identified by using Bernoulli’s equation. The pressure is low
at locations where the flow velocity is high and the pressure
is high at locations where the flow velocity is low.
Therefore, low pressure is created in the upper
surface of the aerofoil and high pressure in its lower surface.
The pressure difference between top and bottom surfaces of
the aerofoil results a force called aerodynamic lift as air
moves from high-pressure region to low pressure region.
The upward force due to aerodynamic lift pushes the blades
to move up
Construction of Wind Turbine
Construction of Wind Turbine
Parts of a wind turbine
1. Wind turbine
 Nacelle
 Rotor, i.e. the assembly of blades
 Hub and shaft
2. Transmission system
3. Electric generator
4. Yaw control system
5. Storage
6. Energy converters
7. Tower to support the rotor system.
Construction of Wind Turbine
Parts of a wind turbine
1) Wind turbine or windmill:
The main component of a wind energy conversion system is the
windmill or wind turbines alone. A system of blades fixed on a tower
is rotated by the wind to either produce mechanical work or
electrical energy. Various components of the wind turbine are as
follows:
(i) Nacelle:
It includes gearbox, low- and high-speed shafts, generator controller
and brake. It is placed on the top of the tower and it is connected to
the rotor.
(ii) Rotor:
The hub and the blades together compose the rotor. Most of the
horizontal-axis wind turbines use two or three blades. Blades are
manufactured from Fibreglass-Reinforced Polyester (FRP), wood
laminates, steel or aluminium.
Construction of Wind Turbine
Parts of a wind turbine
1) Wind turbine or windmill:
(iii) Hub and Shaft:
Rotors of the wind turbine are attached with the shaft and hub
assembly. The hub is front portion of the shaft which faces the wind
direction. It is normally of conical shape. The other end of the shaft
is attached to the transmission system of the wind turbine.
(iv) Anemometer:
This device is used for the measurement of speed. The wind speed is
also fed to the controller as it is one of the variables for controlling
pitch angle and yaw. Wind turbines are available in various sizes
according to the potential to generate electricity in ideal wind
conditions. It is called “rated capacity.” Wind turbines capacity ratìng
ranges from 250 W to 1.65 MW.
Construction of Wind Turbine
Parts of a wind turbine

2) Transmission system:
The mechanical power generated by the wind turbine (rotor blades) is
transmitted to the electric generator by a transmission system located in
the nacelle. The transmission system contains a gearbox, clutch and
braking system to stop the rotor in an emergency. The purpose of the
gearbox is to increase the speed of the rotor .

3) Electric generator:
There are two main options for the generator used in constant- speed
wind turbines namely asynchronous (induction) or synchronous
generators. Most of the grid-connected wind turbines installed so far use
induction generators.
Wind turbines driving electrical generators operate at either variable or
constant speed. In variable-speed operations, rotor speed varies with
wind speed. In constant speed machines, rotor speed remains constant
despite changes in the wind speed.
Construction of Wind Turbine
Parts of a wind turbine
4) Yaw control system:
It is used to continuously orient the rotor in the direction of the
wind. The horizontal axis wind turbine has a yaw control system that
turns the nacelle according to the actual wind direction.
5) Storage:
Storage systems are used to store energy when there is excess
power developed and to discharge it when there is a lack in power.
The most common storage device is the lead-acid battery.
6) Energy converters:
Usually, the electricity produced from wind energy is direct current
(DC). So, it should be converted into alternating current (AC) using
an alternator before supplying it to the transmission grid for
industrial and household appliances.
Construction of Wind Turbine
Parts of a wind turbine
7) Towers:
Mainly, wind turbines are kept on high towers due to light in weight.
In addition, wind turbines use light-weight towers than conventional
mechanical windmills. Towers are basically made up of tubular steel
or steel lattice. There are two types of towers such as guyed (lattice
or pole) towers and free-standing self-supporting towers.
TYPES OF WIND TURBÌNES
(i) Lift type wind turbine
(ii) Drag type wind turbine

1. Horizontal-axis wind machines

In horizontal axis turbines, the axis of rotation is
horizontal with respect to the ground. In this case, the rotating
shaft is parallel to the ground and the blades are perpendicular to
the ground. Horizontal-axis or propeller-type turbines arc more
common and highly developed than vertical-axis turbines.
Horizontal axis wind turbines (HAW) have the main rotor
shaft and electrical generator at the top of a tower and it must be
pointed into the wind. Small turbines are pointed by a simple
wind vane while large turbines generally use a wind sensor
coupled with a servo motor. Most of them have a gearbox which
turns the blades slowly into a quicker rotation which is more
suitable to drive an electrical generator.
Horizontal-axis wind machines
Horizontal-axis wind machines
Advantages:
1. Variable blade pitch which gives the turbine blades
the optimum angle of attack.
2. The tall tower base allows access to stronger wind
in sites with wind shear.
3. Efficiency is high in receiving power through the
whole rotation since the blades always move
perpendicularly to the wind.
4. The face of a horizontal axis blade is struck by the
wind at a consistent angle regardless of the position
in its rotation.
Horizontal-axis wind machines
Disadvantages:
1. HAWTs have difficulty operating in near ground, turbulent winds.
Therefore, tall towers are required.
2. The tall towers and blades up to 90 m long are difficult to transport.
3. Tall l-IAWTs are difficult to install and it needs very tall and
expensive cranes and skilled operators.
4. Massive tower construction is required to support the heavy blades,
gearbox and generator.
5. Reflections on tall HAWTs may affect side lobes of radar
installations creating signal clutter, although filtering can suppress it.
6. Their height makes them visible across large areas, disrupting the
appearance of the landscape and sometimes, creating local opposition.
7. Downwind variants suffer from fatigue and structural failure caused
by turbulence when a blade passes through the tower’s wind shadow.
8. HAWTS require an additional yaw control mechanism to turn (he
blades towards wind.
TYPES OF WIND TURBINES
2. Vertical axis wind machines
In Vertical-axis wind turbines (or VAWTs), the main rotor shaft arranged vertically
and the axis of rotation is vertical with respect to the ground.

The key advantage of this arrangement is that the turbine does not need to be
pointed into the wind streams to be effective because their operation is independent
of wind direction and these vertical axis machines are called panernones. It is an
advantage on sites where the wind direction is highly variable. With a vertical axis
turbine, the generator and gearbox can be placed near the ground so the tower does
not need to support it and it is more accessible for maintenance, Drawbacks are that
some designs produce pulsating torque.
2. Vertical axis wind machines
Types of Rotors
(i) Darrieus rotor:
This rotator is shaped such as an egg
beater and it consists of two or three curved
blades shaped such as aero foils. The
driving forces are lifting forces. This wind
mill needs much less surface area.
(b) Savonius rotor:
This type of windmill has hollow circular
cylinder sliced in half and the halves are
mounted on a vertical shaft with a gap in
between them. There is a complicated
motion of wind though and around the two
curved sheet aerofoils rotates by drag force.
Torque is produced by the pressure difference
between two sides of the half facing the
wind
Types of Rotors
(iii) Multiple blade type

(iv) Musgrove rotor: In this rotor, the blades

are vertical for normal power generation.
This rotor has an advantage of fail-safe shut
down in strong winds.

(v) Evans rotor:

Vertical blades twist about a vertical axis
speed for control and a fail-safe shut down
2. Vertical axis wind machines
Advantages:
1. A massive tower structure is less frequently used as VAWTs are more
frequently mounted with lower bearing mounted near the ground.
2. Designs without yaw mechanisms are possible with fixed pitch rotor
designs.
3. the generator of a VAWT can be located near the ground making it easy
to maintain moving parts.
4. VAWTs have lower wind startup speeds than HAWTs. Typically, they start
to generate electricity at 6 mph (10 km/h).
5. VAWTs may be built at locations where taller structures are prohibited.
6. VAWTs situated close to the ground can take the advantage of locations
where mesas, hilltops and ridgelines. They pass funnel the wind and
increase the wind velocity.
7. VAWTs may have a lower noise signature.
2. Vertical axis wind machines
Disadvantages:
1. A VAWT which uses guy-wires to hold it in place puts stress at the
bottom bearing as the whole weight of the rotor is on the bearing.
2. The stress in each blade due to wind loading changes sign twice
during each
revolution as the apparent wind direction moves through 3600. This
reversal of the stress increases the chance of failure by fatigue.
3. While VAWTs’ parts are located on the ground, they are also
located under the weight of the structure above it which can make
changing of parts nearly impossible without dismantling the
structure if it is not designed properly.
4. Having rotors located close to the ground where wind speed is
low due to the ground’s surface drag, VAWTs may not produce as
much energy at a given site as a HAWT with the same footprint or
height.
WIND ENERGY ESTIMATE
Wind Power and Wind Power Density
The theoretical wind energy or wind power is the energy available in wind for
the
extraction. It is calculated as follows:
Wind power available = Pm = Kinetic energy of the wind =
where, m = Mass flow rate of air (kg/s) = ρ A Vi
 Vi = Incoming velocity of wind (m/s)
 Substituting the value m in the above equation , it becomes
WIND ENERGY ESTIMATE
Wind Power and Wind Power Density
The wind energy is indirectly the output of wind turbine estimated by aerodynamic
principle. Therefore, the total power output, is affected by the overall conversion
efficiency of the wind turbine. By taking this efficiency is into account, the equation can be
rewritten as

 η = Fraction of power extracted by a wind turbine or the overall conversion efficiency of

the machine.
Wind power density or wind energy density is
another important factor used in wind
energy calculation. It is the ratio of wind
power to the cross sectional area of the wind
stream.
PERFORMANCE OF WIND
TURBINE ROTORS
1) Solidity: Solidity is defined as the percentage of the
circumference of the rotor which contains the material instead of air.
If the machine has high-solidity machines, it will contain more
material and have coarse blade angles. So, high-solidity machines
need more starting torque than low-solidity machines. At the same
time, high-solidity machines are less efficient than low-solidity
machines. The cost of components will increase due to the use of
extra materials. To avoid it, low-solidity machines should be
manufactured with high precision by reducing the cost. Solidity is
calculated by
Percentage of solidity = 31.8 x Number of blades X Blade width X
Rotor diameter
PERFORMANCE OF WIND
TURBINE ROTORS
2) Tip speed ratio: It is defined as the ratio of the speed of the blade
tip of a windmill rotor to the speed of the free wind. It is a measure
to know the ‘gearing ratio’ of the rotor.
Tip speed ratio = . Blade tip speed .
Wind speed
Usually, a drag device has tip-speed ratio less than one. So, it rotates
slowly. At the same time, a lift device has high tip-speed ratio and
hence, it rotates relatively faster than the wind.
The tip speed of the rotor is given by
Tip-speed = 0.052 x Rotor diameter x Rotation speed x Wind Speed
PERFORMANCE OF WIND TURBINE ROTORS
3) Performance Coefficient
The proportion of the power in the wind that the rotor can extract is termed as
coefficient of performance (Kp). It is a function of tip speed ratio which is normally
used to classify the type of rotor.
PERFORMANCE OF WIND
TURBINE ROTORS
4) Torque:
It is the turning moment produced by the rotor. it does
mainly depend on solidity and tip speed ratio of the rotor. Usually,
the rotors with high solidity and low tip-speed ratio produce more
torque than rotors with low solidity and high tip-speed ratio. At the
same time, high speed machines produce maximum performance
coefficient but they have low starting torque.
PERFORMANCE OF WIND TURBINE
ROTORS
5) Rotor power control:

While designing, one of the important issues in a wind turbine is to limit

the power output at high wind speed. There are two options for constant
speed machines.
(i) stall regulation
(ii) pitch regulation.
(i) Stall-regulated wind turbines: The pitch angle distribution along the
blades is constant for all wind speeds. The angle of attack of the aerofoil
over blades increases until the flow separation (stall) occurs at high wind
speeds, It results a loss of lift but the drag force rises. The effect of this
process can be influenced by an appropriate choice of blade profile, the
thickness and chord distribution and the blade twist.
(ii) Pitch-regulated wind turbines: The blades can be rotated about their
radial axis during operation as the wind speed changes. It is therefore
possible to have an optimum pitch angle at all wind speed and a relatively
low cut-in wind velocity.
Control of Turbine Blades
The pitch angle changes in order to decrease the angle of attack at high wind
speed. It ensures that the power output from the rotor is limited to the rated
power of the generator.
(a)Mechanical control of Turbine Blades
With change of wind speed, the pitch
of the blades is adjusted to control the
frequency of wind-turbine rotation. In a
spring operated mechanism, the higher
rotational speed of the rotor generated a
centrifugal force on a regulating balancing
weight which compresses a spring as shown
in Fig. The force of the weight rotates the
blade about a pivot decreasing the angle
of attack of the aerofoil to the wind stream
and reducing its speed. The compressed
spring tends to restore the aerofoil to its
original angle of attack once the wind speed
decreases.
Control of Turbine Blades
(b) Pitch power control of the turbine blades: In a pitch power controlled wind turbine, an
electrical controller senses the power output of the turbine several times per second. If the
power level exceeds a prescribed safe level, an electronic signal is generated which turns or
pitches the blades out of the wind. When the power level is lower, they are pitched back to
catch the wind at the optimal angle of attack of the blade’s aerofoil.
Control of Turbine Blades
(c) Flap Power Control of Wind Turbines
Some wind machines have their rotors equipped with ailerons of flaps such as
aircraft. In this case, the geometry of the wing airfoil is altered to provide
increased or decreased air lift.
(d) Yaw Power Control of Wind Turbines
It is possible to yaw or rotate the whole rotor mechanism out of the wind to
decrease its rotational speed and power output.
TYPES OF WIND ENERGY SYSTEMS / POWER PLANTS
I. Remote or Off-grid wind power plants
II. Small scale or Stand-alone wind turbines plants
TYPES OF WIND ENERGY SYSTEMS / POWER PLANTS
III. Medium scale wind turbines plants
(a) Single-mode electricity supply distribution:

(b) Multiple-mode distribution:

TYPES OF WIND ENERGY SYSTEMS / POWER PLANTS
(c) Hybrid wind power plants
(d) Grid connected wind power plants:

(e) Wind Farms

(f) Wind powered battery chargers
WIND ENERGY STORAGE

Various types of wind energy storage systems are as foIIows:

1) Pumped storage
2) Compressed air storage
3) Flywheel storage
4) Battery storage
5) Hydrogen storage.
WIND ENERGY STORAGE
Combined wind Hydrogen storage system
WIND ENERGY ECONOMICS
1.Cost Trends
2. Incentives
3. Wind Economics determining factor
(i) Wind resource.
(ii) Financing and ownership structure.
(iii) Taxes and policy incentives by the
Government.
(iv) Plant Size: equipment, installation,
operation and maintenance economies scale.
(y) Turbine size, model and tower height.
(vi) Land, transmission and ancillary services.
(vii) Economic depreciation of the capital equipment
(viii) Interest paid on the borrowed capital
(ix) The operation and maintenance costs
(x) Royalties paid to land owners
(xi) Payment for electricity used on a standby mode
(xii) Energy storage components used.
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Wind hybrid power systems combine wind turbines with other storage or
generation sources. It is mainly due to intermittent nature of wind energy.
Solar-Wind Hybrid Energy Systems
This hybrid energy system couples a photovoltaic array with a wind turbine. It produces
more output from the wind turbine during winter and the solar panels produce the
maximum output during summer.
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Solar-Wind Hybrid Energy Systems
The wind power is converted into electricity in DC form by controller circuits
consisting of converter and rectifier. Then, it is stored in batteries. Similarly, the
solar power produced by photovoltaic panels is converted into DC power and it is
stored in batteries which are already connected with the wind system. The stored
power is again changed into AC power by an inverter to supply to connected
loads.
(i) 24-hour power production capability
(ii) Higher power density per square foot
(iii) Scalable power generation
(iv) Mechanical braking at high-speed winds beyond 18.5 mIs
(v) It minimizes backup battery storage requirements
(vi) Power generation starting at 2 m/s wind speed
(vii) Easy to mount on any rooftop; no complicated masts, guy wires or towers
(viii) Environment-friendly, silent operation
(ix) Cost effective.
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Wind-Steam Hybrid Energy Systems
Figure shows the pumped storage wind power plant in combination with steam
power plant. The main components in this system are as follows:
1. Upper basin
2. Pressure conduit
3. Base load steam plant
4. Turbine
5. Motor or generator
6. Pump.
Working:
During off-peak period, the water from the lower basin is pumped by a pump to
the upper
basin. The pumping power is taken from the wind power plant. During peak load
period, the water from the upper basin is fed to the turbine and it produces
power. It is combined with wind and steam power and it goes to the consumer.
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Wind-Steam Hybrid Energy Systems
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Wind-Diesel Hybrid Energy Systems
The electricity generated by wind turbines are synchronized by a synchronous machine and
sent to the rectifier. The rectified output in the rectifier is fed into the inverter to change
direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC). Then, it is sent to the controllable rectifier.
At the same time, the power produced by a diesel engine is converted into electricity
through suitable means. Both output power of wind system and conventional diesel system
are connected to the main grid to supply energy to connecting loads. If diesel and wind
generators are used in conjunction with a grid, the diesel generator should be only used
when the wind energy is absent.
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Biomass-Wind-Fuel Cell Hybrid Energy Systems
A load of 100% power supply and there is no renewable system to
fulfill this need. Two or more renewable energy system can be
combined in order to increase the power output to meet the
demand. For example, 60% from biomass system, 20% from wind
energy system and remaining from fuel cells could be combined in
some cases based on the availability of other energy sources. So, this
hybrid system may provide l00% power and energy required by the
load.
HYBRID SYSTEMS
Environmental Aspects
i) impact on land use
ii) Impact on wild life
iii) Impact on weather & climate changes
iv) impact on people
v) Landscape and visual impact
vi) Public acceptance