Exploring influence of air density deviation on power production of wind energy conversion system: Study on correction method

Abstract

Thousands of wind turbines are already installed, providing renewable energy to meet the growing energy demand of consumers. This article investigates the effect of air density deviation, which depends on weather conditions, on power production of operational wind turbines, and examines strategy to mitigate this effect. Throughout the year, the air density in the area where the wind turbines are installed experiences continuous variations. It affects the annual power production of the wind turbine. Therefore, it is essential to discover a method that can reduce the effect of air density changes on power production of the wind turbine without adding extra extender blade. The effect of air density deviation on parameter of the wind turbines is investigated using four years measurement data (with a 10-minute interval) as well as simulation data. To reduce air density effect, the pitch angle and torque gain are readjusted rather than setting it constant based on the air density value. The analysis and simulation study were conducted in Matlab/Simulink® software. The results revealed that the suggested correction in pitch angle and torque gain according air density effectively alleviated the effect of air density variations, and the power production of the wind turbine was increased.