Statistical Analysis of Wind Speed Data and Assessment of Wind Power Density Using Weibull Distribution Function (Case Study: Four Regions in Iraq)

Abstract

Assessment of accurate wind power potential is very essential before planning to implement wind power conversion system in a particular site. In order to determine the wind power potential, a statistical analysis of wind speed measurements is required. The main objective of this paper is to analyse the daily measured wind speed data at the height of 10 m and 50 m over the ground for four regions (Al-Rutba, Sinjar, Al-Qa’im and Al-Bayji) in Iraq using the Weibull distribution function. The wind data that is used in this research is collected from NASA surface meteorology. The Weibull parameters for the individual month have also been computed. This statistical analysis is programmed in MATLAB environment to evaluate the monthly and yearly wind power density of the selected areas. In addition, the wind power classes for the four locations will be determined. The results explain the months that have maximum power wind generation in the four regions. According to the calculated yearly wind power density, it can be concluded that the selected areas are between marginal to fair for wind power generation.