Viability of Airborne Wind Energy in the United Kingdom

Zhihui Ye,Marcus Ross,Harry Lawner,Issa Chaer

doi:10.1115/1.4043387

Abstract

Abstract To meet the worldwide requirements of carbon emission reduction, the European Council has set the UK a 15% energy target to come from renewable energy by 2020. The biggest renewable energy sources in the UK are bioenergy, wind, solar, and hydro. The UK is located in prime geography, considered to be the best in Europe, for harvesting, and over the last three decades, the number of wind farms has increased greatly. However, the interaction of wind speed and structural strength has limited the height of platform-based wind turbines to a maximum height of around 100 m. Airborne wind energy (AWE) systems enable the extraction of more energy from the wind at elevated altitudes beyond 150 m using a device termed a kite. A method is required to determine suitable locations for AWE system implementation. In this work, a regional feasibility study has been conducted to establish an ideal suitable location to implement AWE systems. Extensive research has been carried out to assess the electricity costs, energy savings, area availability, as well as regional airborne wind energy power densities at different regions within the UK. A standardized method has been developed to assess the viability of AWE in various geographical locations. It was found that Scotland was the most suitable location for the implementation of AWE systems due to the high wind power density in this region and existing high costs of electricity, thus greater potentials for energy cost savings.

Highlights

To meet the carbon emissions reduction targets that set by the European Council and UK government, the use of renewable energy has been increased greatly over the last three decades in the UK
In 2016, 83.2 TWh electricity was generated from renewable energy sources and accounted for 24.5% of electricity generated in the UK [1]
Given that the UK government has set overarching renewable goals and the aspiration to improve renewable energy is so important for the economy, environment and energy security of the country, this paper investigates the feasibility of Airborne Wind Energy (AWE) as an alternative renewable energy generation option for satisfying the UK government renewable energy targets and enhancing energy security as well as protecting the environment

Summary

Introduction

To meet the carbon emissions reduction targets that set by the European Council and UK government, the use of renewable energy has been increased greatly over the last three decades in the UK. In 2016, a total of 17.3 million tonnes of oil equivalent of primary energy use was from renewable energy sources Of these total renewable energy usage, bioenergy accounted for 72%, followed by 19% for wind, 5.5% for solar and 2.7% for hydro [1]. Wind power generation increased since 1990s and by mid-June 2017, there are 7,613 wind turbines with a total installed capacity of over 15.6 gigawatts; 10,275 megawatts of onshore capacity and 5,356 megawatts of offshore capacity [2]. These made the UK as the world's sixth largest producer of wind power and leading country for offshore wind energy [2]

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