4/7/2014 Selecting a Wind Turbine Site

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Selecting a Wind Turbine Site
Photograph
Soren Krohn
1997 DWIA
Wind Conditions
Looking at nat ure it self is usually an excellent guide
t o finding a suit able wind t urbine sit e.
If t here are t rees and shrubs in t he area, you may
get a good clue about t he prevailing wind direct ion ,
as you do in t he pict ure t o t he left .
If you move along a rugged coast line, you may
also not ice t hat cent uries of erosion have worked in
one part icular direct ion.
Met eorology dat a, ideally in t erms of a wind rose
calculat ed over 30 years is probably your best guide,
but t hese dat a are rarely collect ed direct ly at your sit e, and here are many reasons t o be
careful about t he use of met eorology dat a, as we explain in t he next sect ion.
If t here are already wind t urbines in t he area, t heir product ion result s are an excellent
guide t o local wind condit ions. In count ries like Denmark and Germany where you oft en
find a large number of t urbines scat t ered around t he count ryside, manufact urers can offer
guarant eed product ion result s on t he basis of wind calculat ions made on t he sit e.
Look for a view
As you have learned from t he previous pages, we would like t o have as wide and open a
view as possible in t he prevailing wind direct ion, and we would like t o have as few
obst acles and as low a roughness as possible in t hat same direct ion. If you can find a
rounded hill t o place t he t urbines, you may even get a speed up effect in t he bargain.
Grid Connection
Obviously, large wind t urbines have t o be connect ed t o t he elect rical grid.
For smaller project s, it is t herefore essent ial t o be reasonably close t o a 10-30
kilovolt power line if t he cost s of ext ending t he elect rical grid are not t o be
prohibit ively high. (It mat t ers a lot who has t o pay for t he power line ext ension, of
course).
The generat ors in large, modern wind t urbines generally produce elect ricit y at 690
volt s. A t ransformer locat ed next t o t he t urbine, or inside t he t urbine t ower, convert s
t he elect ricit y t o high volt age (usually 10-30 kilovolt s).
Grid Reinforcement
The elect rical grid near t he wind t urbine(s) should be able t o receive t he elect ricit y
coming from t he t urbine. If t here are already many t urbines connect ed t o t he grid, t he
grid may need reinforcement , i.e. a larger cable, perhaps connect ed closer t o a higher
volt age t ransformer st at ion. Read t he sect ion on Elect rical Grid Issues for furt her
informat ion.
Soil Conditions
Bot h t he feasibilit y of building foundat ions of t he t urbines, and road const ruct ion t o
reach t he sit e wit h heavy t rucks must be t aken int o account wit h any wind t urbine
project .
Pitfalls in Using Meteorology Data
Met eorologist s already collect wind dat a for weat her forecast s and aviat ion, and t hat
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informat ion is oft en used t o assess t he general wind condit ions for wind energy in an
area.
Precision measurement of wind speeds, and t hus wind energy is not nearly as
import ant for weat her forecast ing as it is for wind energy planning, however.
Wind speeds are heavily influenced by t he surface roughness of t he surrounding area,
of nearby obst acles (such as t rees, light houses or ot her buildings), and by t he cont ours of
t he local t errain.
Unless you make calculat ions which compensat e for t he local condit ions under which
t he met eorology measurement s were made, it is difficult t o est imat e wind condit ions at a
nearby sit e. In most cases using met eorology dat a direct ly will underest imat e t he t rue
wind energy pot ent ial in an area.
We'll ret urn t o how t he professionals do t heir wind speed calculat ions on t he following
pages.
Copyright 1997-2003 Danish Wind Industry Association
Updated 19 September 2003
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Wind energy manual