Wind Energy

B.Tech : VIII Semester 2017

 Introduction
• Wind is air in motion
• About 2% of total solar flux that reaches the earth’s surface is
transformed into wind energy due to uneven heating of the
atmosphere
• Daytime: Air over the land heats up faster than the air over
the oceans. Hot air expands and rises while cool air from
oceans rushes to fill the space
• Nighttime: Air cools more rapidly over the land than water
• On a global scale low pressure exists near the Equator due to
greater heating, causing wind to blow from subtropical belts
towards Equator
 Introduction….(cont..)
• Wind is a form of solar energy.
• Winds are caused by the uneven heating of the atmosphere by the
sun, the irregularities of the earth's surface, and rotation of the earth.
• Wind flow patterns are modified by the earth's terrain, bodies of
water, and vegetative cover.
• This wind flow, or motion energy, when "harvested" by modern wind
turbines, can be used to generate electricity.
• Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical
power.
• This mechanical power can be used for specific tasks (such as grinding
grain or pumping water) or a generator can convert this mechanical
power into electricity to power homes
 Wind Turbines

• If the mechanical energy is used directly by

machinery, such as a pump or grinding stones,
the machine is usually called a windmill.
• If the mechanical energy is then converted to
electricity, the machine is called a wind
generator
• Wind turbines are classified into two general
types:
– horizontal axis and vertical axis.
http://teachergeek.org/wind_turbine_types.pdf
 Turbine Components

• Horizontal turbine components include:

– blade or rotor, which converts the energy in the wind to rotational shaft
energy;
– a drive train, usually including a gearbox and a generator;
– a tower that supports the rotor and drive train; and
– other equipment, including controls, electrical cables, ground support
equipment, and interconnection equipment.
• The rotor blades capture wind energy and transfer its power to the
rotor hub.
• The generator converts the mechanical energy of the rotating shaft to
electrical energy
• The gearbox increases the rotational speed of the shaft for the
generator.
 Vertical Axis Wind Turbines

• They are not as common as their horizontal

counterparts.
• The main reason for this is that they do not
take advantage of the higher wind speeds at
higher elevations above the ground as
horizontal axis turbines.
• The axis of blade rotation is perpendicular to
the wind flow
 Savonius Wind Turbine

• The Savonius turbine is S-shaped if

viewed from above.
• This drag-type VAWT turns
relatively slow, but yields a high
torque.
• It is useful for grinding grain,
pumping water, and many other
tasks, but its slow rotational speeds
make it unsuitable for generating
electricity on a large-scale.
 Darrieus Wind Turbine

• It is characterized by its
C-shaped rotor blades
• It is normally built with
two or three blades
• The Darrieus turbine is
not self starting. It
needs to start turbing
before the wind will
begin rotating it
 Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines
• The axis of blade rotation is parallel to the
wind flow
 Up-Wind Turbines
• Some wind turbines are designed to
operate in an upwind mode (with the
blades upwind of the tower).
• Large wind turbines use a motor-driven
mechanism that turns the machine in
response to a wind direction.
• Smaller wind turbines use a tail vane to
keep the blades facing into the wind.
 Upwind HAWT with van Downwind HAWT
Upwind HAWT
 Down-Wind Turbines
• Operate in a downwind mode so that the wind
passes the tower before striking the blades.
• Without a tail vane, the machine rotor
naturally tracks the wind in a downwind
mode.
Wind turbine Speeds
 Various Wind speeds related for power
generation

• Cut-in wind speed - This is the minimum wind speed

at which the machine begins to produce power
• Design wind speed - speed at which the machine
reaches its maximum efficiency
• Cut-out speed - This is the speed at which the
turbine blades are brought to rest to avoid damage
from high winds. Also called as furling speed.
• Survival wind speed - maximum speed the structure
can survive
The Four Forces Acting on an Airplane

http://web.mit.edu/course/2/2.972/OldFiles/www/report
s/airfoil/airfoil.html
 Airfoil
•  When an airfoil is moved
through the air, it is
capable of producing lift.
• The forward part of an
airfoil is rounded and is
called the leading edge.
• The aft part is narrow and
tapered and is called the
trailing edge.
Airfoil: cross-section of a wing

http://www.aviation-history.com/theory/airfoil.htm
 Aerodynamics
• Aerodynamics is the way air moves around
objects.
• Aerodynamic design enables rotor blades to
capture most of the wind's kinetic energy.
• Lift is the force that pushes something
up. Drag is the force that tries to "drag" or
slow down an object.
Cp-λ curve

https://energypedia.info/images/2/21/Wind_tur
bine_limitation.png
 Tip Speed Ratio
The ratio of the speed of the rotor blade tips to the speed of the
wind is called the tip speed ratio.

• If the rotor of the wind turbine spins too slowly, most of the wind will pass
straight through the gap between the blades, therefore giving it no power!

• If the rotor spins too fast, the blades will blur and act like a solid wall to
the wind.

Also, rotor blades create turbulence as they spin through the air. If the next
blade arrives too quickly, it will hit that turbulent air. So, sometimes it is
actually better to slow down your blades!

R
Vtip
  Where, Vtip=speed of the rotor
V V ω=rotor angular speed rad/s
R= blade length (rotor radius)
V= free wind speed
 Yaw-control system

• Adjusting the nacelle about the vertical axis to bring

the rotor facing the wind is known as yaw control
• It continuously orients the rotor in the direction of
wind
• In small wind turbines, a tail van is used for passive
yaw control
• In large turbines, an active yaw control with power
steering and wind direction sensor is used to
maintain the orientation
 Pitch-control system
• The pitch of a blade is controlled by rotating it
from its root, where it is connected to hub.
• The control system continuosly adjusts the
pitch to obtain optimal performance
• In modern machines, pitch control is
incorporated by controlling only the outer
20% length of the blade (i.e. tip), keeping the
remaining part of the blade as fixed
 Stall-regulated system
• When the turbine blade are fixed at an
optimum angle and the machine is stalled
during high winds either by mechanical or
hydraulic systems
Now, you must be wondering why this is important. For a particular
generator, if the blade set spins too slowly then most of the wind will
pass by the rotor without being captured by the blades. If the blades
spin too fast, then the blades will always be traveling through
used/turbulent wind. This is because the blades will always be
traveling through a location that the blade in front of it just traveled
through (and used up all the wind in that location). It is important
that enough time lapses between two blades traveling through the
same location so that new/unused wind can enter this location. Thus,
the next blade that passes through this location will be able to
harness fresh/unused wind. In short, if the blades are too slow they
are not capturing all the wind they could and if they are too fast, then
the blades are spinning through used/turbulent wind. For this reason,
TSR’s are employed when designing wind turbines so that the
maximum amount of energy can be extracted from the wind using a
particular generator.
Wind turbine components (Source: NREL)
BASIC COMPONENTS OF A WIND
ENERGY CONVERSION SYSTEM
Important terms
Important terms
Important terms
Airfoil Nomenclature
Comparison of lift and drag device
An anemometer is a device used for measuring the speed of wind, and is also
a common weather station instrument.