WIND ENERGY

INTRODUCTION
Wind is essentially air in motion. Hence, air has wind energy because air is in motion. The
amount of energy available in the wind at any instant is proportional to cube power of the wind
speed.
Wind energy is in fact an indirect form of solar energy. A small part of solar radiation reaching
the earth is converted into wind energy. Air motion or wind is generated owing to the differential
heating of earth (and its atmosphere) by the sun. Wind energy is harnessed as mechanical energy
with the help of windmill or turbine. The mechanical energy obtained from wind can be used to
operate either mechanical devices such as water pumps and farm appliances or electric
generators to generate electricity.
Slow and strong winds cannot be utilized. Moderate to high speed winds having speed about 5–
25 m/s are suitable to operate wind turbines. Hence, some storage device of wind energy is
needed to meet the power requirement when wind turbine cannot operate during unfavorable
wind conditions.
The idea of harnessing wind energy is not new. It was one of the first natural energy sources to
be used by mankind. Wind energy was even used to run water pumps, grind grains and sail ships
about 5000 years ago.

ORIGIN OF WINDs
The winds can be classified as:
➢ Global winds
➢ Local winds

Global Winds
The primary force for global winds is produced due to differential heating of the earth surface at
equator (0° longitudes) and polar regions (about ± 90° longitude). More heating takes place near
the regions of equator and less heating occurs at polar regions, and so cold winds move from
polar to equatorial regions. The air in touch with ocean water is much colder than air in the plain
areas, and so cold winds generated from ocean areas move towards plain areas.
The rotation of the earth on its axis produces Coriolis force and this force is responsible for
forcing the global winds towards westernly direction. These air currents are also called trade
winds as sailing ships in the past used these air currents for ship movement and trading. The
global winds and circulations are shown in Figure

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Local Winds

Local winds are generated due to uneven heating. Uneven heating occurs on land surface and
water bodies due to solar radiation. As a result, cool and heavy air currents move from water
bodies to land surface. At night, the direction of wind is reversed as land surface cools more
rapidly than water bodies. The same conditions also prevail in hilly areas where hill slope heats
up during the day and cools down during the night more rapidly than the low land. This
temperature difference causes air currents to move to the hill slope during the day and to the low-
lying land during night.

Distribution of Wind Energy

The factors affecting the distribution of wind energy are as follows:

(i) The chain of mountains channelise the air currents
(ii) The hills, trees and building act as obstructions and change the direction of airflow
(iii) The frictional effect of the surface determines the wind speed. This is the reason why
wind speed is quite high at seashore as frictional effect is less on smooth surface or sea surface.
(iv) Climatic disturbances resulting from rains affect wind speed.
(v) Topography of an area also affects wind speed, for example, wind can speed up when
passing through narrow gap such as mountains gaps.

Nature of Wind

Before installation of a wind turbine, it is essential to have full knowledge of the behaviour and
structure of wind. The winds vary from place to place. The nature of wind at a site depends upon
general climate of the region, physical geometry of the locality and terrain around the site.

Meterological Data about Wind Speed

Every country has its meteorological department to record and publish weather data along with
wind speed and direction prevalent at all places in the country. The wind speeds are recorded at
three heights which are l0, 50 and l50 m during strong winds. These records are used to specify
the nature of winds in these regions. The wind speed are measured using an instrument called
anemometer and wind direction is measured using a wind vane or cock.

A typical anemograph consisting of wind speeds recorded at three heights during strong winds is

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shown in Figure Following are the conclusions which can be drawn from this anemograph:
● Wind speeds are more at greater heights
● Wind speeds at all heights fluctuate or change with time
● The fluctuation of wind speeds can be high.

WIND TURBINE SITING

The main considerations for selecting a site for wind generator are as follows:
(i) High annual mean wind speed. A basic requirement for a successful use of a windmill or
farm is an adequate supply of wind and good wind speeds. The wind power is proportional to the
cubic power of wind speed.
(ii) No obstruction. There should not be any high structure to obstruct wind for a distance of
S km to the windmilll.
(iii) Open plain. The site should be the open plain such as open sea shoreline where strong
winds prevail.
(iv) Height. The wind speed increases with height, which can be obtained when the windmill
is located on a hill or a ridge with gentle slope.
(v) Near lake or ocean. Differential heating of water and land generates wind of sufficient
speeds.
(vi) Topography. Topography such as mountain gap helps to channelise and speed up winds.
(vii) Favourable land cost. It helps in restriction or reducing the cost of project.
(viii) Nearness to load centre. It reduces the cost of transmission of the generated power.
(ix) Nearness to road or rail link. It helps in installation of windmill.
(x) Availability of wind rose. It helps in designing of windmill as wind data of the site can be
determined.

CLASSIFICATION OF WIND TURBINES

The windmills can be mainly classified as horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT) and vertical axis
wind turbine (VAWT). When the axis of rotation is parallel to the airstream, the turbine is called
HAWT and when it is perpendicular to the airstream, it is called VAWT. Horizontal axis
windmills are the most commonly used machines and these have rotors similar to aircraft rotors.
Vertical axis windmills have eggbeater type of rotors.

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Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine

Main Components
The constructional details of a three-bladed, horizontal axis wind turbine are shown in Figure.
The components or main subsystems include turbine blades, hub, nacelle, yaw control
mechanism, generator and tower.
(a) Turbine Blades
Turbine blades are made of high-density wood or glass fiber and epoxy composites. They have
airfoil type cross-section. The blades are slightly twisted from the outer tip to the root to reduce
the tendency to stall. In addition to centrifugal force and fatigue due to continuous vibrations
there are many extraneous forces arising from wind turbulence, gust, gravitational forces and
directional changes in the wind, etc. All these factors are to be taken care off at the designing
stage. Diameter of a typical, MW range, modern rotor may be of the order of 100 m.
Modern wind turbines have two or three blades. Two/three blade rotor HAWT are also known as
propeller type wind turbines owing to their similarity with propellers of old aero planes.
However, the rotor rpm in case of wind turbine is very low as compared to that for propellers.
The relative merits and demerits of two and three blade rotors are as follows:
(i) Compared to two-blade design, the three-blade machine has smoother power output and
balanced gyroscopic force.
(ii) There is no need to teeter (to be discussed later in this section) the rotor, allowing the use of
simple rigid hub. The blades may be cross-linked for greater rigidity.
(iii) Adding third blade increases the power output by about 5 per cent only, while the weight

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and cost of rotor increases by 50 per cent, thus giving a diminished rate of return for additional
50 per cent weight and cost.
(iv) The two-blade rotor is also simpler to erect, since it can be assembled on ground and lifted to
the shaft without complicated maneuvers during the lift.
(b) Hub
The central solid portion of the rotor wheel is known as hub. All blades are attached to the hub.
Mechanism for pitch angle control is also provided inside the hub.
(c) Nacelle The term nacelle is derived from the name for housing containing the engines of an
aircraft. The rotor is attached to nacelle, mounted at the top of a tower. It contains rotor brakes,
gearbox, generator and electrical switchgear and control. Brakes are used to stop the rotor when
power generation is not desired. Gearbox steps up the shaft rpm to suit the generator. Protection
and control functions are provided by switchgear and control block. The generated electrical
power is conducted to ground terminals through a cable.
(d) Yaw Control Mechanism
The mechanism to adjust the nacelle around vertical axis to keep it facing the wind is provided at
the base of nacelle.
(e) Tower
Tower supports nacelle and rotor. For medium and large sized turbines, the tower is slightly
taller than the rotor diameter. In case of small sized turbine, the tower is much larger than the
rotor diameter as the air is erratic at lower heights. Both steel and concrete towers are being used.
The construction can be either tubular or lattice type. The tower vibrations and resulting fatigue
cycles under wind speed fluctuations are avoided by careful design. This requires avoidance of
all resonance frequencies of tower, the rotor and the nacelle from the wind fluctuation
frequencies.

Types of Rotors
Depending on the number of blades, wind speed and nature of applications, rotors have been
developed in various types of shapes and sizes. These are shown in Fig. The types of rotors
shown in (a) to (e) are relatively high-speed ones, suitable for applications such as electrical
power generation. Large HAWTs have been manufactured with two and three blades. A single-
blade rotor, with a balancing counterweight is economical, has simple controls but it is noisier
and produces unbalanced forces. It is used for low-power applications. Those given in Fig. (f)
and (g) are low-speed rotors and most suited for water lifting applications, which require high
starting torque. They can capture power even from very slow winds.

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Upwind and Downwind Machines
In upwind machine, rotor is located upwind (in front) of the tower whereas in downwind
machine, the rotor is located downwind of (behind) the tower as shown in Fig. Both types have
certain benefits. Downwind machine allows the use of free yaw system (in low rating machines).
It also allows the blades to deflect away from the tower when loaded. However, it suffers from
wind shadow effects of the tower on the blades as they pass through tower’s wake, in a region of
separated flow. For a high solidity tower with limited rotor overhang, the wind speed might be
effectively reduced to zero causing severe impulsive load of periodic nature. This may be very
dangerous as it may excite any natural mode of the systems if that lies near a rotor harmonics.

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Upwind machine on the other hand produces higher power as it eliminates the tower shadow on
the blades. This also results in lower noise, low blade fatigue and smoother power output.

.
Yaw Control System
Adjusting the nacelle about vertical axis to bring the rotor facing the wind is known as yaw
control. The yaw control system continuously orients the rotor in the direction of wind. For
localities with prevailing wind in one direction only, the rotor can be in a fixed orientation. Such
a machine is said to be yaw fixed. Most wind turbines however, are yaw active. In small wind
turbines, a tail vane is used for passive yaw control. In large turbines however, an active yaw
control with power steering and wind direction sensor is used to maintain the orientation
Pitch Control System
Pitch of a blade is controlled by rotating it from its root, where it is connected to the hub as
shown in Fig.. Pitch control mechanism is provided through the hub using hydraulic jack in the
nacelle. The control system continuously adjusts the pitch to obtain optimal performance. In
modern machines, pitch control is incorporated by controlling only outer 20 per cent length of
the blade (i.e. tip), keeping remaining part of the blade as fixed.

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Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT)
VAWTs are in the development stage and many models are undergoing field trial. Main
attractions of a VAWT are:
(i) it can accept wind from any direction, eliminating the need of yaw control.
(ii) gearbox, generator etc. are located at the ground, thus eliminating the heavy nacelle at the top
of the tower. This simplifies the design and installation of the whole structure, including tower.
(iii) the inspection and maintenance also gets easier and
(iv) it also reduces the overall cost.

1. Main Components
The constructional details of a vertical axis wind turbine (Darrieus type rotor) are shown in
Fig.The details of main components are as follows:

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(a) Tower (or Rotor Shaft)
The tower is a hollow vertical rotor shaft, which rotates freely about vertical axis between top
and bottom bearings. It is installed above a support structure. In the absence of any load at the
top, a very strong tower is not required, which greatly simplifies its design. The upper part of the
tower is supported by guy ropes. The height of the tower of a large turbine is around 100 m.
(c) Blades
It has two or three thin, curved blades shaped like an eggbeater in profile, with blades curved in
a form that minimizes the bending stress caused by centrifugal forces-the so-called ‘Troposkien’
profile. The blades have airfoil crosssection with constant chord length. The pitch of the blades
cannot be changed. The diameter of the rotor is slightly less than the tower height. The first
large (3.8 MW), Darrieus type, Canadian machine has rotor height as 94 m and diameter as 65
m with a chord of 2.4 m.
(d) Support Structure
Support structure is provided at the ground to support the weight of the rotor. Gearbox,
generator, brakes, electrical switchgear and controls are housed within this structure.
Types of Rotors
Various types or rotors for VAWTs are shown in Fig. The simplest being three or four cups
structure attached symmetrically to a vertical shaft. Drag force on concave surface of the cup
facing the wind is more than that on convex surface. As a result, the structure starts rotating.
Some lift force also helps rotation. However, it cannot carry a load and is, therefore, not used as
power source. Main characteristic of this rotor is that its rotational frequency is linearly related to
wind speed. Therefore, it is used as a transducer for measuring the wind speed and the apparatus
is known as cup anemometer.
The Savonius or S-rotor consists of two half cylinders attached to a vertical axis and facing in
opposite directions to form a two-vaned rotor. It has high starting torque, low speed and low
efficiency. It can extract power even from very slow wind, making it working most of the time.
These are used for low power applications. High starting torque particularly makes it suitable for
pumping applications, using positive displacement pumps.
Darrieus rotor is used for large-scale power generation. Power coefficient is considerably better
than S-rotor. It runs at a large tip-speed ratio. The aerodynamic force on the blade reverses in
every revolution causing fatigue. This along with centrifugal force complicates the design of the
blade. One of the drawbacks of this rotor is that it is usually not self-starting. Movement may be
initiated by using electrical generator as motor. As the pitch of the blade cannot change, the rotor
frequency and thus the output power cannot be controlled. Rotor frequency increases with wind
speed and power output keeps on increasing till the blades stall. Hence at high wind speed it
becomes difficult to control the output. For better performance and safety of the blades, gearbox
and generator, etc., it is desirable to limit the output to a level much below its maximum possible
value.
Musgrove suggested H shaped rotor where blades with fixed pitch are attached vertically to a
horizontal cross arm. Power control is achieved by controlled folding of blades. Inclining the

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blades to the vertical provides an effective means of altering the blades angle of attack and hence
controlling the power output.
Evans rotor, also known as Gyromill is an improvement over H shaped rotor. Here, the rotor
geometry remains fixed (blades remain straight), but the blades are hinged on a vertical axis and
the blade pitch is varied cyclically (as the blade rotates about vertical axis) to regulate the power
output. But the need to vary the pitch cyclically through every rotor revolution introduces
considerable mechanical complexity. However, this enables it to self-start.

Comparison of HAWT and VAWT

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine Vertical Axis Wind Turbine

Axis of rotation is parallel to the air stream Axis of rotation is perpendicular to the air
stream.
Yaw control mechanism is required to adjust the No orientation of rotor is required; these turbines
rotor around a vertical axis to keep it facing the can generate power with the wind coming from
wind. any direction.
The heavy nacelle containing the gearbox, The nacelle is not required because the gearbox,
generator, etc. is mounted at the top of the tower, generator, etc., are located at the ground, thus the
thus the design and installation is complex. design and installation are simple.
The power coefficient and tip speed ratio are The power coefficient and tip speed ratio are
high. considerably low.

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WIND TURBINE AERODYNAMICS

Wind carries with it kinetic energy. This wind energy is extracted when the direction of motion
of wind is changed in accordance with the Newton²s second law of motion; that is, the change of
momentum of any body is equal to the force acting on it. The amount of energy extracted
depends the amount of energy available in the wind on account of its speed.

Energy Available in Wind

The wind has kinetic on account of its motion. This kinetic energy can be given by the following
equation:
If 𝑢0 is the speed of free wind in unperturbed state, the volume of air column passing through an
area A per unit time is given by A𝑢0. If ρ is the density of air, the air mass flow rate, through area
A, is given as, ρA𝑢0. Power (Po) available in wind, is equal to kinetic energy rate associated
𝟏
with the mass of moving air, i.e. 𝑷𝟎 =𝟐 ρA𝒖𝟎 𝒖𝟎𝟐
𝟏
𝑷𝟎 =𝟐 ρA𝒖𝟎 𝟑………….(a)
Power available in wind per unit area is
𝑷𝟎 𝟏
=𝟐 ρ𝒖𝟎 𝟑 … … … … …(b)
𝑨
This indicates that power available in wind is proportional to the cube of wind speed. The air
density ρ varies in direct proportion with air pressure and inverse proportion with temperature as:
𝑷
ρ= 𝑹𝑻
where P is air pressure in Pa, T is air temperature in Kelvin and R is the gas constant, (=287
J/kgK). At the standard value of air pressure, 1.0132×105Pa(i.e.1atmosphere), and at 15°C, the
𝟏.𝟎𝟏𝟑𝟐×𝟏𝟎𝟓
value of air density, ρ= = 1.226 J/kg-K/𝒎𝟑
𝟐𝟖𝟕×𝟐𝟖𝟖
Assuming the above value of wind density, ρ at 15 °C and at sea level, the power available in
moderate wind of 10 m/s is 613 W/𝑚2 .

Terms and Definitions of Fluid Mechanics (Wind Motion)

Rotor
The wind turbine extracts energy from the wind streams by transforming the kinetic energy of
the wind into the rotational motion of the rotor of the wind turbine. The wind energy is extracted
by the rotor of wind turbine as it has one, two or three blades having aerofoil shape and these
blades are attached to hub. The wind moving over the surface of blades (aerofoils) attached to
the rotor generates the requisite forces to turn the rotor.

Solidity
It is defined as the ratio of the projected area of the rotor blades on the rotor plane to the swept
area of the rotor. High-solidity rotors use drag force for rotation and these rotors turn slower.

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Low-solidity rotors have slender aerofoil blades and these rotors use lift force for rotation. They
turn faster. Lift devices usually have solidity in the range of 0.01 to 0.1. When solidity is less
than 0.1, the device will usually not start up without first being rotated to generate lift.
Thus solidity = nC/πD, where n is the number of blades, C is average breadth of a blade and D is
the diameter of the rotor.
Blade Element
Incremental cross-section of the rotor blade as shown in Fig. (a)
Chord
Width of the blade or distance from one edge (fore) of the blade to the other (aft) (i.e. length of
blade element as shown in Fig. (b))

Wind Velocity, uo
Velocity of free air in the neighbourhood of wind turbine (at a distance where the disturbances
due to rotation of turbine does not reach)
Incident Wind Velocity, u1
Velocity of air passing through the rotor, i.e. the velocity at which the wind strikes the blade,
which is slightly less than uo
Blade Element Linear Velocity, V
Linear circumferential velocity of the blade element due to rotation of blade
Relative Wind Velocity, Vr
Velocity of air relative to the blade element as both the air and blade elements move
Angular Speed, Ꞷ
Angular speed of rotor in rad/s
Angle of Attack (or Angle of Incidence), α
Angle between central line of the blade element and relative wind velocity vr as shown in Fig.
(c)

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Blade Setting Angle (or Pitch Angle), γ
Angle between central line of the blade element and direction of linear motion of the blade
element or angle between relative wind velocity vr and normal to the plane of blade
Drag Force, ΔFD
Incremental force acting on the blade element in the direction of relative velocity of wind
Lift Force, ΔFL
Incremental force acting on the blade element in a direction perpendicular to the relative velocity
of wind
Axial Force, ΔFA
Incremental force acting on the blade element along the axis of rotation of blade
Tangential Force, ΔFT
Incremental force acting on the blade element tangential to circular path of rotation.

The incremental axial and tangential forces acting on the blade element are given by:
ΔFA = ΔFL Cosϕ + ΔFD Sinϕ
ΔFT = ΔFL Sinϕ - ΔFD Cosϕ where ϕ = α+γ

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Tip speed ratio (λ)
The tip speed ratio is defined as the ratio of the speed of tip of the rotor blade to the speed of on
𝝎𝑹
coming air. Hence, tip speed ratio is: λ =
𝒖𝟎
For a particular wind speed, there exists an optimum turbine tip speed to produce the maximum
output. It is important to match the rotation of wind turbine to the corresponding wind speed. The
greater is the solidity of a rotor, the slower it needs to turn to intercept the wind. When windwill
has a lesser number of blades, it needs to rotate fast to intercept the wind so that wind should not
be lost through the large gap existing between two blades without importing a part of wind
power.

The windmill rotating fast has tip speed ratio greater than l. Two or three-bladed rotors rotate
faster, thereby having tip speed ratio ranging from 5 to l0. More bladed rotors rotate move
slowly, thereby having tip speed ratio between l and 2.

Principle of Power Generation

Wind turbine is used to extract useful energy from wind. The energy can be extracted by
partially decelerating and expanding the airstream (reduction of pressure) using wind turbine.
The rotor of the wind turbine collects wind from the whole area swept by the rotor. The area
swept can be considered as airstream tube which is continuously expanding as shown in figure
below. This airstream tube model is also called Betz model of expanding air. As air mass flow
rate should be the same everywhere within the stream tube according to the Law of Continuity,
the wind speed must decrease as air expands. As shown, airstream tube has area of A0 at
upstream, area of A1while passing through rotor blade (aerofoil) and area A2 downstream.

Consider that uo and u2 are wind speeds at upstream and downstream. The velocity reduction
from uo to u2 means that there is a reduction in momentum of the wind as it passes through the
wind turbine resulting in a force being exerted on the blade of rotor which is given by the
following equation:

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The force or thrust on the rotor is equal to the reduction in momentum per unit time from the air
mass flow rate 𝑚 ̇ : The air mass flow rate remains same throughout the stream tube, therefore
𝑚̇ = 𝜌𝐴0 𝑢0 = 𝜌𝐴1 𝑢1 = 𝜌𝐴2 𝑢2 …….. (1)
F= 𝑚̇𝑢0 -𝑚̇𝑢2…………………….. (2)
The above force is exerted at a uniform rate when airflow moves over the rotor blade with
velocity 𝑢1 . Therefore the power extracted is equal to the work done by the airstream in moving
for a distance of 𝑢1 against force of F which is given by,
𝑃𝑇 =F𝑢1 = 𝑚̇(𝑢0 -𝑢2 ) 𝑢1 ………… (3)
The power extracted by the wind turbine from wind is also equal to the change or loss of kinetic
energy of the wind
1
ΔKE=𝑃𝑊 = 𝑚̇(𝑢0 2 -𝑢2 2 )……………….. (4)
2
Now the energy extracted is equal to the energy lost by wind
PT = P W
1
𝑚̇(𝑢0 -𝑢2 ) 𝑢1 = 2 𝑚̇(𝑢0 2 -𝑢2 2 )
𝑢0 +𝑢2
𝑢1 = ………………… (5)
2

The above relation indicates that the turbine velocity 𝑢1 is the average of entrance and exit
velocities of streamtube. Putting the value of u1 in equation (3) , we get,
𝑢0 +𝑢2
𝑃𝑇 = 𝑚̇(𝑢0 -𝑢2 )
2
1
= 2 𝑚̇(𝑢0 2 -𝑢2 2 )……………………. (6)
The mass flow 𝑚̇ can be given as the product of area density and velocity. Hence,
𝑢0 +𝑢2
𝑚̇ = 𝜌𝐴1 𝑢1 = 𝜌𝐴1 ……………………. (7)
2

From equations (6) and (7), we have,

1
PT=4 × 𝐴1 × 𝜌 ×(𝑢0 2 − 𝑢2 2 )(𝑢0 + 𝑢2 )

Now interference factor ‘a’ is given by,

𝑢0 −𝑢1
a= 𝑢0

𝑢1 = (1-a)× 𝑢0
𝑢1 𝑢0 +𝑢2 𝑢0 −𝑢2
Also = 1− = 1− =
𝑢0 2𝑢0 2𝑢0

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𝑢2 = (1−2a)× 𝑢0

Then we have extracted turbine power as,

1
PT = 4 × 𝐴1 × 𝜌 × (2×a× 𝑢0)[𝑢0 + (1 − 2a) × 𝑢0 ]2

1
PT = 2 × 𝐴1 × 𝜌 ×a× 𝑢0 × 𝑢0 2 × 4(1 − 𝑎)2

PT = 2 × 𝐴1 × 𝜌 ×a× (1 − 𝑎)2 × 𝑢0 3

1
PT = 4 ×a× (1 − 𝑎)2 × 2 × 𝐴1 × 𝜌 × 𝑢0 3…….. (8)

But wind power is given by,

1
PW = 2 × 𝐴1 × 𝜌 × 𝑢0 3……. (9)

From equations (8) and (9), we have

PT = 4a(1 − a)2 × PW

= CP× PW

Where CP is the power coefficient and is given by

CP = 4a(1 − a)2

The power coefficient CP indicates the portion or fraction of wind power which can be extracted
from wing turbine. The following conditions may result,

1. When a=0, 𝒖𝟏 = 𝒖𝟎 and 𝒖𝟐 = 𝒖𝟎 and no power generation takes place.

𝟏 𝟐 𝟏
2. When a= 𝟑 and then, 𝒖𝟏 = 𝟑 𝒖𝟎 and 𝒖𝟐 = 𝟑 𝒖𝟎 and maximum power generation
takes place.
𝟏 𝟏
3. When a= and then, 𝒖𝟏 = 𝒖𝟎 and 𝒖𝟐 = 𝟎 and only turbulence occurs at
𝟐 𝟐
downstream.
4. When a=1, 𝒖𝟏 = 𝟎 and 𝒖𝟐 = 𝒖𝟎 and it results in stalling of the turbine.

The variation of power coefficient, CP with interference factor ‘a’ is shown graphically in Fig.
Physical significance of the curve is discussed below:

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The pwer output fron the wind turbine is given as
1
PT=4 × 𝐴 × 𝜌 ×(𝑢0 2 − 𝑢2 2 )(𝑢0 + 𝑢2 )…….(10)
The power output depends on outlet velocity 𝑢2 . Hence for maximum power output,
dP𝑇
=0
du2
−2 × 𝑢2 × (𝑢0 + 𝑢2 ) + (𝑢0 2 − 𝑢2 2 )× 1 = 0
3𝑢2 2 + 2 𝑢2 𝑢0 −𝑢0 2 = 0
3 𝑢2 (𝑢0 + 𝑢2 ) − 𝑢0 (𝑢0 + 𝑢2 ) = 0
(𝑢0 + 𝑢2 )(3 𝑢2 − 𝑢0 ) = 0

𝑢2 = −𝑢0 , Which is impossible

𝑢0
𝑢2 =
3
Hence putting value of 𝑢2 in equation (10), We have,
1 𝑢 2 𝑢0
PT=4 × 𝐴 × 𝜌 × [𝑢0 2 − ( 30 ) ] [𝑢0 + ]
3

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 1 8 4
PT = 4 𝐴𝜌 [𝑢0 2 × 9] [3 𝑢0 ]
8 16 1
PT = 𝐴𝜌𝑢0 3 , PT = [ 𝐴𝜌𝑢0 3 ]
27 27 2
16
PT = PW , PT =59.3% PW
27

The power output of a wind turbine cannot be more than 59.3% of the wind energy.

Speed Control Strategies for Wind Turbine

Various options are available for speed control of a turbine. The particular control strategy
depends on the size of the turbine. Small machines use simple, low cost methods while large
machines use more sophisticated methods incorporating pitch control along with power
electronic circuit. These methods may be grouped in the following categories:

(i) No speed control at all. Various components of the entire system are designed to withstand
extreme speed under gusty wind.
(ii) Yaw and tilt control, in which the rotor axis is shifted out of wind direction, either by yaw
control or by tilting the rotor plane with respect to normal vertical plane when the wind exceeds
the design limit.
(iii) Pitch control, in which the pitch of the rotor blades is controlled to regulate the speed.
(iv) Stall control, in which the blades are shifted to a position such that they stall when wind
speed exceeds the safe limit.

Wind Turbine Operation and Power versus Wind Speed Characteristics

The power-speed characteristics of a wind turbine have four separate regions as shown in Fig.

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(a) Low Speed Region (Zero to Cut-in Speed) In this region, the turbine is kept in braked
position till minimum wind speed (about 5 m/s), known as cut-in speed becomes available.
Below this speed the operation of the turbine is not efficient.

(b) Maximum Power Coefficient Region In this region, rotor speed is varied with wind speed
so as to operate it at constant tip-speed ratio, corresponding to maximum power coefficient, CP
max. In this range the nature of characteristics is close to that of maximum power available in the
wind .The turbine is operated at maximum power output point using pitch control.

(c) Constant Power Region (Constant Turbine Speed Region) During highspeed winds
(above 12 m/s), the rotor speed is limited to upper permissible value based on the design limits of
system components. In this region the power coefficient is lower than CPmax. Large machines use
pitch control to maintain turbine speed as constant. Such a machine is known as pitch regulated.
In case of fixed blades rotor, the flow over the blade stalls. The stall performance depends on the
twist of blade tip from the root and thickness of blade sections. The lift and drag coefficients
change so as to flatten out the peak of the power curve. Thus the power output of the wind
turbine is limited as shown in Fig.. Stall regulation can be used without much problem up to
about 25 m diameter rotor. Above this size severe vibration problems, associated with the stalled
flow in high wind speeds, have been encountered. Thus large HAWTs always have variable pitch
control. At still higher wind speeds, such as gusts, constant speed operation is maintained by
employing additional means such as some kind of braking (e.g. eddy current braking).

Fig: Power Vs wind speed characteristics with stall regulation

(d) Furling Speed Region (Cut-out Speed and Above) Beyond certain maximum value of wind
speed (around 25 m/s) rotor is shut down and power generation is stopped to protect the blades,
generator and other components of the system.

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WIND ENERGY CONVERSION SYSTEMS (WECS)

A wind energy conversion system converts wind energy into some form of electrical energy. In
particular, medium and large scale WECS are designed to operate in parallel with a public or
local ac grid. This is known as grid-connected system. A small system, isolated from grid,
feeding only to local load is known as autonomous, remote, decentralized, stand alone or isolated
power system. A general block diagram of a grid connected WECS is shown in Fig. The turbine
shaft speed is stepped up with the help of gears, with fixed gear ratio, to suit the electrical
generator and fine-tuning of speed is incorporated by pitch control. This block acts as drive for
the generator. Use of variable gear ratio has been considered in the past and was found to add
more problems than benefits. DC, synchronous or induction generators are used for mechanical
to electrical power conversion depending on the design of the system. The interface conditions
the generated power to grid quality power. It may consist of power electronic converter,
transformer and filter, etc. The control unit monitors and controls the interaction among various
blocks. It derives the reference voltage and frequency signals from the grid and receives wind
speed, wind direction, wind turbine speed, etc., processes them and accordingly controls various
blocks for optimal energy balance.

Wind Energy Conversion System with Energy Storage

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Operation of wind turbine is not feasible at low and high wind speeds. Some from of energy
storage is required, if other sources such as electric utility power is not available. When power
generation exceeds the demand, excess energy would be stored for use at other times. Storage
can be done in several ways-as heat , mechanical, electrical chemical, magnetic etc.

Classification of WECS
Based on axis
(a) Horizontal axis machines
(b) Vertical axis machines
According to size
(a)Small size machines (upto 2kW)
(b)Medium size machines (2 to 100kW)
(c)Large size machines (100kW and above)
(i)Single generator at single site
(ii) Multiple generators
Types of output
(a) DC output
i. DC generator ii. Alternator rectifier
(b) AC output
i.Variable frequency, variable or constant voltage AC.
ii. Constant frequency, variable or constant voltage AC
According to the rotational speed of the area turbines
Constant speed and variable pitch blades
Nearly constant speed with fixed pitch blades
Variable speed with fixed pitch blades
(a)Field modulated system
(b)Double output indication generator
(c)AC-DC-AC link
(d) AC commentator generator
(e)Variable speed constant frequency generating system.
As per utilization of output
(a)Battery storage
(b)Direct conversion to an electro magnetic energy converter
(c)Thermal potential
(d)Inter connection with conventional electric utility grids

MAJOR APPLICATIONS OF WIND POWER

Wind turbines have been built in power output range from a kilowatt to few MW to suit wide
range of applications. Major applications may be grouped in three categories.
1. Applications Requiring Mechanical Power
(i) Wind pumps: Low power turbines are used for producing mechanical power for pumping

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water in remote areas. These are also known as wind pumps. Simple and reliable traditional
reciprocating pumps or centrifugal pumps are used. These wind pumps are used to supply water
for livestock, smallscale irrigation, low head pumping for aquatic breeding and domestic water
supply. Mechanical power is also used to operate farm appliances.
(ii) Heating: The direct dissipation of mechanical power produces heat with 100 per cent
efficiency using paddlewheel and other turbulent fluid systems. The available hot water is used
as such or employed for space heating.
(iii) Sea transport: The old square-rigged sailing ships were inefficient as they were operated by
drag forces (to be discussed later). Modern racing yachts, with a subsurface keel, harness lift
forces and are much more efficient and can sail faster than the wind. Large cargo ships requiring
power in MW range, driven by improved efficient sails are now being designed. Also wind
turbines are installed onboard to power propellers in ferries operating on short routes.
2. As Off Grid Electrical Power Source
(i) Machines of low power with a rotor diameter of about 3 m and 40–1000 W rating can
generate sufficient electrical energy for space heating and cooling of homes, water heating,
battery charging, and for operating domestic appliances such as fan, light and small tools.
(ii) Applications for somewhat more powerful turbines of about 50 kW are: producing electrical
power for navigation signal (e.g. lighthouse), remote communication, weather stations and
offshore oil drilling platforms.
(iii) Intermediate power range, roughly 100 to 250 kW aero-generators can supply power to
isolated populations, farm cooperatives, commercial refrigeration, desalination and to other small
industries. The generator may operate in stand-alone mode or may be connected to a mini-grid
system.
(iv) For lifting water to a hill, aero-generator is installed on the top of hill and electrical energy is
transmitted to a pump fixed at a lower level. Same principle is utilized to store excess generated
power using pumped storage system, to be utilized later during no wind periods.
3. As Grid Connected Electrical Power Source
Large aero-generators in the range of few hundred kW to few MW are planned for supplying
power to a utility grid. Large arrays of aero-generators, known as wind farms are being deployed
in open plains or offshore in shallow water for this purpose.

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