Case Study of Small-Scale Wind Turbine Power Production
Faculty Mentor(s)
Dr. Ruth Douglas Miller, Kansas State University
Document Type
Poster
Event Date
4-13-2012
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to determine the efficiency of a small-scale wind turbine. The turbine, an AIR Breeze©, was installed on the Kansas State University engineering building roof. Its power production was recorded using an Enphase Energy© M190 microinverter which tied the turbine to the grid. Using data from a nearby meteorological tower (MET tower), and adjusting for elevation change, the turbine’s power curve and coefficient of power were determined. This data was then compared to another turbine, a Skystream™, in the area and the published power curves for the turbines. It was found that the turbine has a very low coefficient of power, most likely due to its location and surrounding structures. The coefficient of power found was around 0.1 while that of the nearby turbine was 0.15. It can be concluded that the location of the turbine is not ideal, and the turbulence caused by the surrounding structures has a larger effect on the turbine power production than the altitude adjustment between the MET tower site and the turbine.
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Comments
This research was supported by Earth, Wind, and Fire: Sustainable Energy in the 21st Century REU program at Kansas State University, funded by NSF Award #0851799.