O setor eólico está em processo de consolidação no Brasil desde o início dos anos 2000, e oportunidades de pesquisas e desenvolvimento estão presentes em todas as etapas do processo. Este trabalho apresenta uma relação entre os parâmetros de velocidade do vento, energia, efeito de esteira e intensidade de turbulência com diferentes alturas de turbinas existentes no mercado brasileiro, em três regiões distintas, Triunfo/PE, São João do Cariri/PB e São Martinho da Serra/RS. A finalidade do trabalho é auxiliar os desenvolvedores e os investidores de parques eólicos na tomada de decisão sobre as alturas de aerogeradores a serem consideradas em seus projetos eólicos, antecipando a avaliação criteriosa do recurso eólico local. Para tal, primeiramente são citadas referências de trabalhos similares disponíveis na literatura bem como é realizada a fundamentação teórica do estudo com as principais equações e modelos utilizados na área. A metodologia do cálculo é teórica e aplicada às ferramentas computacionais do WAsP para a modelagem do vento e do WindFarmer para avaliar a produção de energia elétrica, com adaptações específicas para cada projeto. Procedimentos estatísticos são efetuados a fim de se garantir que as análises contenham o menor nível possível de incerteza na identificação do recurso eólico de cada região. Os resultados do trabalho são apresentados comparativamente entre os sete modelos de aerogerador testados e também entre as três áreas estudadas. O comportamento das turbinas é consideravelmente diferente em todas as opções estudadas. Os modelos de aerogerador A e D são os que apresentam o maior ganho energético percentual com o incremento da altura da turbina com valores médios de 0,42% e 0,44% a cada metro. Já os modelos C e D apresentam as melhorias mais consideráveis em termos de redução de intensidade de turbulência e diminuição de perdas por efeito de esteira, conforme se aumenta a altura das turbinas. As áreas apresentam, também, recursos eólicos distintos entre elas. O projeto eólico de Triunfo é o que apresenta a maior geração de energia dentre os estudados, sendo 24,2% maior que em São Martinho da Serra e 45,0% maior que em São João do Cariri. Verifica-se, também, que caso a velocidade média do vento de longo prazo fosse dobrada em Triunfo, a energia líquida teria um acréscimo de 88%. Já em São Martinho da Serra este valor chegaria em 170% e em São João do Cariri em 220%. / The wind energy sector has been under consolidation in Brazil since the early 2000s. Opportunities for researches and developments are present at all stages of the process. This paper presents a link among wind speed, energy, wake effect and turbulence intensity parameters and the height of existing wind turbine models in Brazil, considering three distinct regions as Triunfo/PE, São João do Cariri/PB and São Martinho da Serra/RS. This paper also aims to support developers and investors in the decision making process in the wind turbines height that should be considered in its wind farms. To this end, the references of similar studies as well as the theoretical basis for the study, including the main equations and models, are presented. The calculation methodology is theoretical and it has been applied to the computational tools WAsP (wind modeling) and WindFarmer (evaluate the energy production), considering specific adaptations for each project. Statistical procedures are performed in order to ensure that the analyses contain the lowest possible level of uncertainty in the characterization of the wind resources in each region. The results are presented comparatively among the seven tested turbine models and also among the three studied areas. The turbine models behavior is considerably different for all options. The wind turbine models A and D are those with the highest percentage energy increase with increasing the turbine height. Their average values are 0.42% and 0.44% per meter height. The models C and D present the most considerable improvements in terms of turbulence intensity and wake effect reductions with increasing the turbine height. The different locations also present distinguished wind resources among them. Triunfo wind farm is the one with the highest energy generation, 24.2% higher than in São Martinho da Serra and 45.0% higher than in São João do Cariri. It is also noted that if the long term mean wind speed was doubled in the project locations, the energy would have an increase of 88% in Triunfo, 170% in São Martinho da Serra and 220% in São João do Cariri.

With wind energy becoming a major source of energy, there is a pressing need to reduce all associated costs to be competitive in a market that might be fully subsidy-free in the near future. Before thousands of wind turbines were installed all over the world, research in e.g. understanding aerodynamics, developing new materials, designing better gearboxes, improving power electronics etc., helped to cut down wind turbine manufacturing costs. It might be assumed, that this would be sufficient to reduce the costs of wind energy as the resource, the wind itself, is free of costs. However, it has become clear that the operation and maintenance of wind turbines contributes significantly to the overall cost of energy. Harsh environmental conditions and the frequently remote locations of the turbines makes maintenance of wind turbines challenging. Just recently, the industry realised that a move from reactive and scheduled maintenance towards preventative or condition-based maintenance will be crucial to further reduce costs. Knowing the condition of the wind turbine is key for any optimisation of operation and maintenance. There are various possibilities to install advanced sensors and monitoring systems developed in recent years. However, these will inevitably incur new costs that need to be worthwhile and retro-fits to existing turbines might not always be feasible. In contrast, this work focuses on ways to use operational data as recorded by the turbine's Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition (SCADA) system, which is installed in all modern wind turbines for operating purposes -- without additional costs. SCADA data usually contain information about the environmental conditions (e.g. wind speed, ambient temperature), the operation of the turbine (power production, rotational speed, pitch angle) and potentially the system's health status (temperatures, vibration). These measurements are commonly recorded in ten-minutely averages and might be seen as indirect and top-level information about the turbine's condition. Firstly, this thesis discusses the use of operational data to monitor the power performance to assess the overall efficiency of wind turbines and to analyse and optimise maintenance. In a sensitivity study, the financial consequences of imperfect maintenance are evaluated based on case study data and compared with environmental effects such as blade icing. It is shown how decision-making of wind farm operators could be supported with detailed `what-if' scenario analyses. Secondly, model-based monitoring of SCADA temperatures is investigated. This approach tries to identify hidden changes in the load-dependent fluctuations of drivetrain temperatures that can potentially reveal increased degradation and possible imminent failure. A detailed comparison of machine learning regression techniques and model configurations is conducted based on data from four wind farms with varying properties. The results indicate that the detailed setup of the model is very important while the selection of the modelling technique might be less relevant than expected. Ways to establish reliable failure detection are discussed and a condition index is developed based on an ensemble of different models and anomaly measures. However, the findings also highlight that better documentation of maintenance is required to further improve data-driven condition monitoring approaches. In the next part, the capabilities of operational data are explored in a study with data from both the SCADA system and a Condition Monitoring System (CMS) based on drivetrain vibrations. Analyses of signal similarity and data clusters reveal signal relationships and potential for synergistic effects of the different data sources. An application of machine learning techniques demonstrates that the alarms of the commercial CMS can be predicted in certain cases with SCADA data alone. Finally, the benefits of having wind turbines in farms are investigated in the context of condition monitoring. Several approaches are developed to improve failure detection based on operational statistics, CMS vibrations or SCADA temperatures. It is demonstrated that utilising comparisons with neighbouring turbines might be beneficial to get earlier and more reliable warnings of imminent failures. This work has been part of the Advanced Wind Energy Systems Operation and Maintenance Expertise (AWESOME) project, a European consortium with companies, universities and research centres in the wind energy sector from Spain, Italy, Germany, Denmark, Norway and UK. Parts of this work were developed in collaboration with other fellows in the project (as marked and explained in footnotes).

Over the last decade, wind penetration in the Pacific Northwest has increased rapidly. The variable nature of this massive new resource has increased stress on the hydropower resource to the point where system limits are currently being reached. In order to cultivate continued growth of the wind energy industry both in the Pacific Northwest and the rest of the world, something must be added to help mitigate the effects of the variability of wind power. This research aims to show what can be done by adding energy storage to a wind farm. A novel model predictive control structure has been created with the focus of increasing the dispatchability and reliability of wind farm power output along with allowing participation in frequency regulation. First, the effectiveness of the addition of energy storage with simple control is explored. This is followed by a study on the performance of the system when predictive control is added. Finally, a cost analysis is performed to assess the level of savings and potential profitability of the simulated system. Conclusions support the use of an energy storage resource for more reliable wind farm performance. However, storage technologies are still approaching the price point needed to ensure profitability. / Graduation date: 2012

No description available.

In response to energy crisis and power quality concerns, three different methodologies to integrate the concept of active filtering into the alternators are proposed. Wind energy, due to its free availability and its clean and renewable character, ranks as the most promising renewable energy resource that could play a key role in solving the worldwide energy crisis. An Integrated Doubly-fed Electric Alternator/Active filter (IDEA) for wind energy conversion systems is proposed. The proposed IDEA is capable of simultaneous capturing maximum power of wind energy and improving power quality, which are achieved by canceling the most significant and troublesome harmonics of the utility grid and power factor correction and reactive power compensation in the grid. The back-to-back current regulated power converters are employed to excite the rotor of IDEA. The control strategy of rotor-side power converter is based on position sensoreless field oriented control method with higher power density. Analysis and experimental results are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed IDEA. In next step, an integrated synchronous machine/active filter is discussed. The proposed technology is essentially a rotating synchronous machine with suitable modification to its field excitation circuit to allow dc and ac excitations. It is shown that by controlling the ac excitation, the 5th and 7th harmonics currents of the utility are compensated. The proposed method is cost effective because it can be applied to existing standby generators in commercial and industrial plants with minimal modification to the excitation circuits. To boost the gain of harmonic compensatory, an advanced electric machine is proposed. An Asymmetric Airgap Concentrated Winding Synchronous Machine (AACWSM) with ac and dc excitation was designed and employed. It is shown that the AACWSM with its unique design, in addition to power generation capability, could be used to compensate the most dominant current harmonics of the utility. The proposed AACWSM can compensate for the 5th and 7th harmonics currents in the grid by controlling the ac field excitation. In addition, the 11th and 13th harmonics currents are also significantly reduced. This system can be used at medium and low voltages for generation or motoring mode of operation.

Global environmental concerns associated with conventional energy generation have led to the rapid growth of wind energy applications in electric power systems. Growing demand for electrical energy and concerns associated with limited reserves of fossil fuels are also responsible for the development and increase in wind energy utilization. Many jurisdictions around the world have set high wind penetration targets in their energy generation mix.<p> The contribution of wind farms to the overall system reliability is limited by the uncertainty in power output from the highly variable energy source. High wind penetration can lead to high risk levels in power system reliability and stability. In order to maintain the system stability, wind energy dispatch is usually restricted and energy storage is considered to smooth out the fluctuations and improve supply continuity. The research work presented in this thesis is focused on developing reliability models for evaluating the benefits associated with wind power and energy storage in electric power generating systems. An interactive method using a sequential Monte Carlo simulation technique that incorporates wind farm and energy storage operating strategies is developed and employed in this research. Different operating strategies are compared and the resulting benefits are evaluated. Important system impacts on the reliability benefits from wind power and energy storage are illustrated. Hydro facilities with energy storage capability can alleviate the impact of wind power fluctuations and also contribute to system adequacy. A simulation technique for an energy limited hydro plant and wind farm coordination is developed considering the chronological variation in the wind, water and the energy demand. The IEEE four-state model is incorporated in the developed technique to recognize the intermittent operation of hydro units. Quantitative assessment of reliability benefits from effective utilization of wind and water resources are conducted through a range of sensitivity studies. The information provided and the examples illustrated in this thesis should prove useful to power system planners and wind developers to assess the reliability benefit from utilizing wind energy and energy storage and the coordination between wind and hydro power in electric power systems.

Ontario, as the rest of the world, is moving towards a clean energy sector and green economy and to this effect, the Government of Ontario has set a goal of phasing out all coal-fired generation by the end of the year 2014. Wind energy is one of the most mature renewable energy technologies; it is clean and abundant. With Canada’s wind profile and wind energy potential, Ontario has focused on increasing the wind generation penetration in its electrical grid to compensate for the phasing out of coal-fired generation. In this thesis, long-term statistical trend analysis of wind generation patterns in Ontario is carried out, using wind generation data sets of Ontario wind farms during 2007 – 2010, on hourly, monthly, seasonal, and yearly time-scales. The analysis carried out, includes, long-term total wind generation capacity factor (CF) trends on yearly, seasonal, and monthly scales. To arrive at a better understanding of the wind generation intermittency and variability in Ontario, long term wind generation variability trends are presented. The correlation between the CFs of Ontario’s wind farms is determined using the Pearson Product- Moment Correlation Coefficient and examined against their distances from one another to understand the effect of geographic diversity for wind farms on total wind generation. The electricity system demand for on- and off-peak periods is analyzed to examine the contribution of wind generation during these periods. These analyses provide critical inputs and guidelines to planners and policy makers on the role that wind can play in the supply mix of Ontario when coal-fired generating units are replaced with wind generation. Expansion of wind generation capacity requires a closer examination of the location and quality of wind resources and a detailed understanding of its operational impacts on the transmission grid. A transmission network model is further developed in the thesis, for Ontario, based on the 500 kV and 230 kV transmission corridors with their planned enhancements for the three specific years under study- 2010, 2015 and 2025. The zonal supply mix of generation resources included are, nuclear, wind, hydro, gas-fired and coal-fired generation. An optimal power flow model is developed considering the future years’ demand and generation scenarios, and used in a deterministic case study. Subsequently, Monte Carlo simulations are carried out considering the variability and uncertainty of wind generation. Both case studies examine the effect of different wind generation penetration levels on the Ontario electrical grid and analyze long-term wind generation impacts. Wind generation is characterized by its variability and uncertainty. Hence, wind penetration in the electricity grid presents major challenges to power system operators. Some of these challenges are tackled by this thesis, such as the operating reserves required for different levels of wind penetration to maintain the system’s adequacy, the operating costs as a result of wind generation’s intermittent nature, and the impact on power losses as a result of wind generation’s dependability on its location. Moreover, the associated Green-House-Gas emissions with different penetration level are determined. The results quantify the impact of the different wind generation penetration levels on the Ontario’s power system.

Global environmental concerns associated with conventional energy generation have led to the rapid growth of wind energy applications in electric power systems. Growing demand for electrical energy and concerns associated with limited reserves of fossil fuels are also responsible for the development and increase in wind energy utilization. Many jurisdictions around the world have set high wind penetration targets in their energy generation mix.<p> The contribution of wind farms to the overall system reliability is limited by the uncertainty in power output from the highly variable energy source. High wind penetration can lead to high risk levels in power system reliability and stability. In order to maintain the system stability, wind energy dispatch is usually restricted and energy storage is considered to smooth out the fluctuations and improve supply continuity. The research work presented in this thesis is focused on developing reliability models for evaluating the benefits associated with wind power and energy storage in electric power generating systems. An interactive method using a sequential Monte Carlo simulation technique that incorporates wind farm and energy storage operating strategies is developed and employed in this research. Different operating strategies are compared and the resulting benefits are evaluated. Important system impacts on the reliability benefits from wind power and energy storage are illustrated. Hydro facilities with energy storage capability can alleviate the impact of wind power fluctuations and also contribute to system adequacy. A simulation technique for an energy limited hydro plant and wind farm coordination is developed considering the chronological variation in the wind, water and the energy demand. The IEEE four-state model is incorporated in the developed technique to recognize the intermittent operation of hydro units. Quantitative assessment of reliability benefits from effective utilization of wind and water resources are conducted through a range of sensitivity studies. The information provided and the examples illustrated in this thesis should prove useful to power system planners and wind developers to assess the reliability benefit from utilizing wind energy and energy storage and the coordination between wind and hydro power in electric power systems.

In the past few years, increased penetration of wind energy has made more disturbances into electrical power systems. The proper integration of wind turbine models within power system simulations is of great importance for analysis of wind energy penetration and power system performance. This thesis analyzes the impacts of the connection of wind turbines on the operations of weak electric distribution systems. Using an actual feeder located in a rural area, the effects on the voltage profile caused by variable-speed wind turbines are compared to those caused by fixed-speed wind turbines. Simulations are conducted by using the developed models in Matlab/Simulink Keywords: Wind energy, Variable-speed turbines, Fixed-speed turbines

Although targets for renewable energy exist in Sweden, developing wind energy has proven to be challenging for developers. This is due in part to the demands made by authorities for monetary amounts to be set aside to take care of wind turbine dismantling and site restoration costs at the end of their lifecycle. There has been a large degree of uncertainty surrounding the amounts being demanded and the level to which sites must be restored, partially due to a lack of guidelines. Coupled with ambiguity, there has been a tendency by authorities and developers to use figures from previous high court decisions and previous permit applications to project decommissioning costs for current applications.This thesis evaluates seven different wind farm decommissioning scenarios using a model developed to estimate future costs, with the turbine model and the quantity of turbines being the parameters that vary. The model uses data from numerous sources, including real case decommissioning projects and figures from an existing model that had already been used to forecast costs in Sweden. One of the assumptions of the model developed is that scrap metals in wind turbines will have a residual value when decommissioning occurs; this was not allowed for in a recent decision made by a county administrative board following an environmental high court decision. An argument is made to justify that a minimum scrap value for wind turbines should be considered, based on the findings of the model. A further case is made to allow for the security bonds to be paid over an extended period of time, considering the initial value of wind farms.The results of the model show that the turbine model has an impact on the decommissioning costs and the potential residual value that can be obtained. In addition, the quantity of the wind turbines has a considerable effect on the decommissioning costs. These results suggest that each wind development project should be treated on a case-by-case basis using a calculation-based approach when determining the cost for a security bond. Recommendations for future research include considering wind farm location in the model.