OPTIWIND · Optimum Power Extraction of Wind Energy by Small to Medium Scale Wind Turbines

Each member state in the EU-27 now has a legally binding 2020 target related to the share of renewable energy in their final energy consumption. The most commonly available renewable energy sources are hydro, biomass, PV, CSP, Wind, Geothermal & Wave power. Of these wind is increasingly becoming cost competitive and the cost of wind turbines are dropping as volumes increase. This proposal deals with distributed energy production by small to medium wind turbines in the 10kW-100kW range, used immediately close to the point of power productionWind energy conversion is a long standing process that has been employed for hundreds of years, but it is complicated and difficult to capture the maximum possible amount of power at any given point in time. The amount of power output from a WECS depends upon the accuracy with which the peak power points are tracked by the MPPT controller of the WECS control system regardless of the generator type.For any wind turbine the maximum point of the power curve occurs at a particular rotor speed for a given wind speed. Even a small variation from this rotor speed will cause a significant decrease in the power extracted from the wind. Rotor speed, for a given wind speed, is dependent upon generator loading as well as the fluctuation in the wind speed. Power extraction strategies assess the wind conditions and then introduce control actions to adjust the turbine’s rotational speed so that it will operate at the turbine’s highest aerodynamic efficiency. Conversion strategies that have not been optimised can lead to significant wasted wind energy.There have been many attempts to achieve maximum power point tracking (MPPT) algorithms but these have not been successfully translated from academic studies to reliable working industrial implementations in our power range. The focus of this project is to produce an industrial solution that works reliably and can be employed without needing expert users.