Cantilever wind turbines installation to harvest accelerated wind in dams (hybrid floating PV – Wind system)

Abstract

Lack of fossil fuel creates a need to search for unique innovations to produce renewable energy within the country. Large inland water bodies, Dams as an example, provides an opportunity to utilize both solar and wind energy for this purpose. The flat, large water surface of dams with high solar radiation in the MENA region makes it a favorable location for a floating PV system. The high temperature in the MENA region causes a high evaporation rate from inland water bodies. Thus, floating PV panels serve dual purposes, power generation and reduction in water evaporation. On the dry side of the water Dam, there is a significant amount of space available to build a wind farm, especially with this area being between two mountains, which creates a wind tunnel effect that increases the wind speed and unifies wind direction. This paper presents a case study to install the wind turbines horizontally hanging over the dry side of dam to determine the ability to utilize dam space to build a hybrid PV wind system in the MENA region. Wadi Al Mujib dam located in Jordan was chosen as a location for this study. Cantilever wind turbines hanging horizontally facing the dry side of the Dam combined with floating PV was found capable of producing up to three GWh per year.