1 GEG 124: Energy Resources Name
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GEG 124: Energy Resources Name: _________________________________ Lab #10: Wind Day: ________ Recommended Textbook Reading Prior to Lab: Chapter 8: Wind. Energy Resources by Theodore Erski o Wind’s Capacity Growth o Air Pressure, Wind & Power o Wind Farms o Wind’s Virtues and Vices Goals: after completing this lab, you will be able to: Create a sketch of how various components are wired together on the dedicated Rutland 503 Windcharger turbine cart. Measure and record wind speed using a Kestrel 3500 Weather Meter. Evaluate the charge entering a 12 volt battery from the Rutland 503 Windcharger. Create a wind rose that illustrates wind direction and frequency using selected and compiled data of a theoretical site in the American Midwest. Calculate wind power density using the standard formula used across the wind industry. Graph wind power density with increasing wind speed. Differentiate between linear and exponential growth. Evaluate sites for a wind farm, and judge them based on wind power density calculations. Calculate and compare the average wind power within various wind power classes. Compose a descriptive narrative of the average wind speeds across the United States after examining a national wind map illustrating wind speeds 80 meters above the ground. Draw isotachs across Illinois using wind speed data provided by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, and classify wind speed areas across the state using colored pencils. Analyze a wind speed map of the state of Texas, and describe the likely locations for wind farms. Calculate wind turbine capacity using the standard formula used across the wind industry. Calculate the annual power production from the Twin Groves wind farm, and compare this production to that produced by the Duck Creek coal-fired power plant. Reflect upon why, even with lower power production, the people of Illinois (and other states) encourage the construction and expansion of wind farms. Key Terms and Concepts: Betz Limit Wind maps capacity Wind power class Capacity factor Wind power density Isotachs Wind rose Required Materials: Calculator Colored pencils Color printing for this lab High-speed internet connection (for Module #3) Kestrel 3500 Weather Meter (for Module #1 only) Rutland 503 Windcharger turbine (for Module #1 only) 1 Problem Solving Module #1: Examining, Diagraming and Using a Wind Turbine The Rutland 503 Windcharger is assembled, fully functional, and is built into its own dedicated rolling cart. It demonstrates how an off-grid site can generate and store electricity. The major components are: Windcharger generator: Six blades capture the power of the wind and spin ceramic magnets in close proximity to wound copper coils (the magnets and copper coils are inside the nacelle). Alternating Current (AC) electricity is generated when the turbine’s rotor spins. The nacelle contains an AC-to-DC converter (rectifier) which converts the electricity into Direct Current (DC). Regulator: This regulates the current entering the battery and thus prevents the battery from becoming overcharged. There are two LEDs on the regulator. The LED on the top is the “charging” LED, and it indicates if current is flowing into the battery. When this LED is green, the regulator is allowing current to enter the battery. When it is red, the regulator is shunting excess current, thereby slowing the generator, and preventing current from entering the battery. The LED on the bottom indicates the battery’s charge. A 12-volt, 40 amp hour battery: This stores electricity for use-on-demand. Power inverter: Converts direct current (DC) electricity from the battery into alternating current (AC) electricity. Most appliances in a home run on AC. Lamp: An appliance running on AC. 1. Closely examine the wind charger and all its components, paying especially close attention to the wiring. In Figure 1, sketch how all the components are electrically connected. You do not need to include the cart in your sketch. Instead, concentrate on the various components on the cart and how the wiring flows to and from these components. Figure 1 2 2. Roll the windcharger cart outside and have the turbine capture the wind. Measure the wind speed in knots using the Kestrel 3500 Weather Meter. How fast is the wind blowing in knots? Answer: will vary with each class. Figure 2 illustrates the power curve for the Rutland 503 Windcharger in ideal, non-turbulent conditions. Notice that as wind speed increases, the current entering the 12 volt battery also increases. Figure 2 3. According to your measured wind speed and Figure 2, how much charge is flowing into the battery? Answer: Will vary with each class depending on wind speed. 4. Examine the regulator. What does the “charging” LED tell you is happening to the battery, and why is this happening? Answer: Will vary with each class. Depending on the battery’s charge, it could be charging or regulating. If the regulator’s “charging” LED is green, it is allowing current to flow into the battery. If the “charging” LED is red, it is shunting current, thereby slowing the generator, and preventing current from entering the battery. 5. Speculate about some locations where having this sort of setup might be useful. Answer: Will vary with each student. Look for comments about off-grid sites, such as cabins, utility sheds, boats, RV campers, etc. 3 Problem Solving Module #2: Wind Frequency, Speed and Power Density Wind roses are graphic renditions of the frequency of wind blowing from particular directions at a particular site. They are constructed after a meteorological tower (a “met” tower) records wind speed and direction every ten minutes, for an entire year, at 10, 32, 40, and 58 meters above the ground (some met towers can be hundreds of meters tall, but for practical purposes most are between 60-80 meters tall). Wind roses are constructed on a circular layout, where the circle’s center illustrates “zero frequency” and subsequent concentric circles illustrate increasing frequency. Spokes are drawn along the sixteen cardinal directions (N, NNE, NE…etc.) to designate direction from which the wind blows. Table 1 is shows wind direction and frequency from a hypothetical met tower placed somewhere in the American Midwest. The information in Table 1 is a compilation of thousands of lines of data collected over a year. Wind Direction Frequency (%) at 58 Meters High 0° (N) 7 22.5° (NNE) 3 45° (NE) 3 67.5° (ENE) 1 90° (E) 0 112.5° (ESE) 0 135° (SE) 1 157.5° (SSE) 1 180° (S) 12 202.5° (SSW) 11 225° (SW) 10 247.5° (WSW) 14 270° (W) 26 292.5° (WNW) 4 315° (NW) 5 337.5° (NNW) 2 Table 1 4 6. Use the data in Table 1 to complete the wind frequency rose illustrated in Figure 3. One spoke is already done for you. Figure 3 5 7. Write a descriptive narration of Figure 3. Be sure to include comments about cardinal directions, as well as about the frequency of wind from specific cardinal directions. Suggested Answer: Figure 3 is a wind rose that illustrates the direction and frequency of wind at a particular site. The site has 270° (western) winds blowing 26% of the time. Higher-frequency winds also blow from 180°, 202.5°, 225°, and 247.5°. The overall impression is of south, southwest, and western prevailing winds. This impression is verified by the graphic in Figure 1, as well as the tabular data in Table 1 where we see that a full 73% of the wind comes from between the cardinal directions of 180° (south) and 270° (west). 8. In the United States we typically measure speed in miles per hour (mph). In the wind industry, however, speed is measured in meters per second (m/s). Complete Table 2 using the provided relationship between mph and m/s. Miles per Hour (mph) Meters per Second (m/s) 1 0.45 5 2.25 10 4.50 15 6.75 20 9.00 25 11.25 Table 2 Wind power density (the power contained in the wind) is calculated in Watts/m2. The formula is: W/m2 = 1.91 x 0.5 x ρ x V3 Where: 1.91 = A multiplier used in this lab to account for the fact that wind never blows constantly, at an average speed, at any site. Half of the time, winds are faster than the site’s average, and faster winds contain much more power than slower winds because wind power varies with the cube of wind speed.* 0.5 = A constant value derived from the equation used to calculate kinetic energy (K= ½ mv2). ρ = 1.225 (air’s density (kg/m3) at 15 °C, kept constant for this lab). V = Wind’s velocity (m/s). *For more information about wind’s power density, see: The Iowa Energy Center: http://www.iowaenergycenter.org/wind-energy-manual/wind-and- wind-power/wind-speed-and-power/ The Danish Wind Industry Association: http://www.motiva.fi/myllarin_tuulivoima/windpower%20web/en/tour/wres/powdensi.htm 6 9. Use the above formula to complete Table 3. V (m/s) Wind Power Density (W/m2) 1 1 2 9 3 32 4 75 5 146 6 253 7 401 8 599 9 853 10 1,170 11 1,557 Table 3 10. Graph the data in Table 3 onto Figure 4. To begin, place the wind velocity values (V) on the “X” (horizontal) axis. Then, place the wind power density values (W/m2) on the “Y” (vertical) axis. Finally, place the data from Table 3 into your graph and connect the data points with a smooth solid line. Figure 4 7 11. Complete the following paragraph by filling in the blanks: A 1 m/s increase in wind velocity, from 2 m/s to 3 m/s, increases wind-power density by 23 W/m2.