L8Project Proposal

Student Name:A. Student
Contact Email & Tel No.: ; 087123456
Project Title:Optimisation of Wind Turbine Yaw angles in Wind Farms
Description of Project:
This project will involve investigation of optimizing the yaw angles of wind turbines arranged in grid formation in Wind Farms (see Fig. 1). A problem with Wind Farms is that depending on the direction of the wind, the wake from one turbine can obstruct the wind flow to a turbine behind – limiting power output and causing increased mechanical loading (see Fig. 2).
Wind Farms are usually arranged to maximize the power output from the farm in the direction of the prevailing wind but are sub-optimal when the direction of the wind changes.This project will investigate individually controlling the yaw angle (Fig. 3) of each turbine within a grid to minimize the wake effects on other turbines.A simple model will be built to automatically adjust the yaw angle of two ‘turbines’ when wind direction changes.




Aims and Objectives:
  • Be able to calculate power output for a wind turbine given wind speed and directionand calculate wind speed in the ‘wake’ downstream of a turbine.
  • Become familiar with some simple optimisation techniques and how to implement them
  • Develop a computer-based model of a simple wind farm array to calculate the power output of the wind turbine array for different wind scenarios:
  • Where all turbine yaw into the wind
  • Where yaw angles are optimised to minimise WAKE losses
  • Design and build a simple prototype model of a yaw control system for a two to three turbine wind ‘farm’
  • Carry out a cost-benefit analysis for a yaw-control system for a typicalWind Farm

Outline work plan: (What preliminary research will you carry out? What training will you need? Will you build a model/prototype/simulation to test ideas? What experiments/investigations will be required? How will you analyse/use the results?)
Research Phase:
  • Research typical wind farm layout and current wind farm control methodologies
  • Research power output and wake models for turbines
  • Research different optimization techniques
  • Become familiar with MATLAB package for modeling the system
Prototype Design Phase:
  • Research components for sensing wind direction
  • Research motor control options for adjusting yaw angle
  • Plan layout and order parts
Modelling Phase:
  • Use MATLAB to implement a model of a simple wind farm array and calculate the power output of the array for different wind scenarios where all turbines yaw into the wind
  • Incorporate an optimization algorithm into the model to adjust the yaw angle of each turbine individually to maximize the power output of the array for each wind scenario
Prototype Build-Test Phase
  • Assemble the parts ordered in Design Phase and fabricate any additional necessary components
  • Implement control algorithm in LabVIEW to adjust yaw angle of two ‘turbines’ based on wind direction
Final Analysis Phase
  • Use the results of the modeling and the prototype testing to carry out a Cost-Benefit analysis for implementing a wind turbine yaw control system
See Gantt Chart attached.
Resources & Budget Required (Hardware and Software):
-MATLAB – Freely available on IT Sligo PCs
-LabVIEW – Free student version available via IT Sligolicence
-USB DAQ Device (NI USB 6008) – Students own
-2 small dc motors – poss. Stepper or servo motors– insertapprox. cost range here
-Sensor for wind direction – may fabricate using a rotary potentiometer

Signed:______Date:______

(student)

Signed: Date:______

(Supervisor)