Addis Ababa University

Addis Ababa Institute of Technology

Center of Renewable Energy

Wind Energy (CRET 6013)

Chapter One: Introduction to Wind Energy

Mesfin Belayneh (PhD)

November, 2021
 Outline
☺ Introduction;
☺ Fundamental concepts of wind power plant;
☺ Origin of wind;
☺ Wind Energy Potential;
☺ Wind retours demand & climate change, cost of energy;
☺ Challenges facing the wind turbine industry
☺ Wind energy in Ethiopia
Introduction
 Background
1st Wind Energy Systems
– Ancient Civilization in the Near East / Persia
– Vertical-Axis Wind-Mill: sails connected to a vertical shaft
connected to a grinding stone for milling

Wind in the Middle Ages– Post Mill Introduced in

Northern Europe Horizontal-Axis Wind-Mill: sails
connected to a horizontal shaft on a tower encasing gears
and axles for translating horizontal into rotational motion

Wind in 19th century US: Wind-rose horizontal-axis water-

pumping wind-mills found throughout rural America
4 Introduction By Mesfin Belayneh
• 1888: Charles Brush builds first large-size wind
electricity generation turbine (17 m diameter
wind rose configuration, 12 kW generator)
• 1890s: Lewis Electric Company of New York
sells generators to retro-fit onto existing wind
mills.
• 1920s-1950s: Propeller-type 2 & 3-blade
horizontal-axis wind electricity conversion
systems (WECS)
• 1940s – 1960s: Rural Electrification in US and
Europe leads to decline in WECS use
5 Introduction By Mesfin Belayneh
Fundamental concepts of
wind power plant
• In general wind power plants (Wind turbines)
convert the kinetic energy of the wind into
useful energy (i.e. electrical or mechanical
form of energy).
• The energy conversion mechanism and forces
utilized can be different, i.e. different kinds of
wind turbines.

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• An energy conversion system which
convert the kinetic energy of the wind in
to a useful such as electrical energy.

Working force is Working force Working force will create

perpendicular to is parallel to other effects such as
the flow the flow vibration on the structure

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• Lift type wind generators: Working
force is perpendicular to the flow;

• Drag type wind generators: Working

force is parallel to the flow;

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• Other configurations: VIV operated
wind generators;

(M. Bryant & E. Garcia, 2011, “Modeling and

Testing of a Novel Aeroelastic Flutter Energy
Harvester”, Journal of Vibrations and
Acoustics, Vol 133, February 2011)

14 Fundamental concepts of wind P. plant By Mesfin Belayneh

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 Modern age wind turbines
Key attributes of this period:
• Scale increase,
• Commercialization,
• Competitiveness,
• Grid integration

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 Modern age wind turbines
• The most common design of wind turbine is the horizontal axis
wind turbine (HAWT). The axis of rotation is parallel to the
ground, If the rotational axis is perpendicular to the ground it is
called vertical axis wind turbine.

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 Modern age wind turbines
• Vertical axis wind turbine

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 Modern age wind turbines
• Offshore wind energy :Most existing off-shore wind today is in
shallow water.

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 Modern age wind turbines
• Offshore wind energy :Foundation technology for offshore
wind can borrow much from designs of ocean-based oil and gas
wells.

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 Modern age wind turbines
Other efficient trends
• Materials,
• Manufacturing methods,
• Testing and experimental methods,
• Computational tools,
• New and enhanced performance designs

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Origin of wind
 Wind – Atmospheric air in motion,
Wind Energy : it is reliant on Solar radiation
unevenly heating surface, thus creating density
and pressure difference in the air.

Air heats up Air cools down

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Diurnal valley and mountain wind

Time and space scales of atmospheric motion

Global wind circulation

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The direction of the wind is dependent on earth
rotation(trade winds) and topography of the land.

Spatial Scales:

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Wind energy depends on:
• amount of air (the volume of air in consideration),
• speed of air (the magnitude of its velocity),
• mass of air (related to its volume via density).
Wind power quantifies the amount of wind energy
flowing through an area of interest per unit time. Or,
wind power is the flux of wind energy through an area
of interest. Mathematically, the kinetic energy and
power of the wind,

Wind power density (WPD): it is kinetic wind energy flux.

WPD is used to compare wind resources independent of
wind turbine size and is the quantitative basis for the
standard classification.

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 Wind classes

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 Estimated potential

The total global WPP of about 94.5 TW was estimated, the total
energy consumption of about 103,711TWh for 2011, and for 2000
full load hours hence the identified potential could almost cover it
double.

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 Installed capacity

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Top Wind Power generation countries

MW % world
35,195 22%
25,853 16%
25,813 16%
18,784 12%
10,827 7%
4,845 3%
4,775 3%
4,340 3%
3,474 2%
3,408 2%
22,770 14%

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 Ethiopian Resources

Source: Ministry of Water and Energy (2013)

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 Ethiopian Energy Demand

Source: Ministry of Water and Energy (2013)

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 Wind resource atlas

Wind farm Installed Capacity Average energy

(MW) (GWh/yr)
Ashegoda 120 450
Adama I 51
Installed Capacity
Adama II 153 479
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 Candidate Wind Power projects for
investment @ GTP

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 Wind Farm Site Selected in Ethiopia

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 Wind Farm Site Selected …continued

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Wind retours demand &
climate change, cost of
energy
 Global energy demand
2009

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 Global energy demand
2030

Power Required Doubles !

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 Total energy production (2014)

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 Climate change
• Today with the specter of global warming and climate change
looming over us, there is a need for the energy industry to find
energy sources free of carbon dioxide pollution.
• Energy-related carbon dioxide (CO) emissions contribute the
majority of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (66%).
• Fossil fuel was responsible for producing 65% of global electricity
(coal 38%, gas 22%, and oil 5%) .
• Wind and solar energy are at the forefront of the drive to
significantly reduce the GHGs to meet the global agreement to
limit temperature increment.

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 Cost of energy
• The cost of energy from a wind turbine is a function of
many factors, but the primary ones are the cost of the
turbine itself and its annual energy productivity.
• Other costs include installation, operation, and
maintenance. These will be influenced by the turbine
design and must be considered during the design process.
• The productivity of the turbine is a function both of the
turbine’s design and the wind resource. The designer
cannot control the resource, but must consider how best to
utilize it.
• Other factors are loan interest rates, discount rates, and
are largely outside the purview of the designer.

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 Cost of energy
• Need to balance the initial cost of the wind turbine with
the requirement that the turbine have a long, fatigue-
resistant life should be the fundamental concern of the
designer.
 Capital cost Vs maintenance and operational cost

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Case study: Cost Share of 5 MW Turbine Components (source
EWEA, 2009, citing Wind Direction, Jan/Feb, 2007)

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 Costs -- Levelized Comparison

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Merits of wind power

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• Provision for a clean source of energy:
The almost pollution free nature of wind
energy is one of the compelling reasons
for its development.
• Sustainability: Whenever the Sun shines
and the wind blows, energy can be
harnessed and sent to the grid. This
makes wind a sustainable source of
energy and another good reason to invest
in wind farms.
• Location: Wind turbines can be erected
almost anywhere, e.g., on existing farms.
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• Compatibility with other land uses: Wind
turbines can be erected on pastureland
with little disturbance to the animals
and the general farming activities.
• Reduction of costly transport costs of
electricity from far-away power stations.
• National security: The wind is a free
source of energy. Being independent of
foreign sources of fuel (e.g., fossil fuel
and indeed of electricity) is a great
advantage.

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• Conservation of water: Traditional power
stations using coal, oil, gas, or nuclear fuel all
use large volumes of water. Wind farms use no
water.
• Reduction of destructive mining: The pumping
of oil and gas (especially from ocean beds) and
the mining of coal or uranium all have serious
environmental impacts on the sea or land.
• Short commissioning time: Wind farms can be
commissioned over a relatively short time, and
2 or 3 years from conception to electricity
production is not impossible.

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• Cost effectiveness: Over the past decade, the
cost of turbines has decreased significantly as
a result of improved designs and mass
production, so that today the cost of producing
electricity from wind farms is now very
competitive with fossil fuel-derived electricity
• Creation of jobs and local resources
• Source of income for farmers, ranchers and
foresters and grid operators.
• Rapid instigation of power.
• Diversification of power supply
• Stability of cost of electricity

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Challenges facing the wind
turbine industry

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• The intermittency of wind;
• Good sites are often in remote locations.
• Noise pollution;
• Aesthetics;
• Turbine blades can damage wildlife;
• Safety;
• Frequency of light and shadows;
• New and unfamiliar technology;
• Shortage of the rare earth element,
neodymium, needed to manufacture turbine
magnet;
• Initial cost.

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Applications of wind energy

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 Applications

Discussion time
End of the chapter

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