Wind Energy Deployment Research Articles

Mineral import demand and wind energy deployment in the USA: Co-integration and counterfactual analysis approaches

Mineral import demand and wind energy deployment in the USA: Co-integration and counterfactual analysis approaches

Economic and environmental factors of wind energy deployment in the United States

Among the most promising clean energy sources in the electricity market, wind energy has substantially increased its share in the global energy portfolio. Since 2000, the installed wind energy generation capacity in the United States has been multiplied by 50, from 2,377 megawatts to 117,744 megawatts in 2020. We investigate the economic and environmental factors that have relationships with the wind energy generation capacity growth in the United States between 2000 and 2020 using fixed-effects panel data analysis. Economic factors include gross state product, the value of the agricultural sector, and the unemployment rate. Environmental factors include carbon dioxide emissions, nitrogen oxide emissions, and water use. The empirical findings provide strong evidence that in the United States, an increase in economic factors (except unemployment) is related to a significant increase in the installed wind energy capacity. In contrast, the relationship between the air emissions and installed wind capacity is negative. The results for water use are not reported in the current study as these data did not satisfy all fixed-effects panel data analysis assumptions. These findings are expected to contribute to understanding how states might best stimulate and support wind energy deployment.

Exploring the Efficacy and Feasibility of Wind Energy as A Panacea for Eskom’s Sustainable Generation with Energy Security and Energy Poverty

There is ample proof that South Africa's ongoing reliance on fossil fuels as its primary source of energy consumption. It has contributed to the release of greenhouse gases that have exacerbated ecosystem disruption causing global warming and climate change. The study investigated and evaluated the effectiveness and feasibility of wind energy as a magic bullet to improve energy security, sustainable energy production, and alleviate energy poverty in South Africa. This is in order to improve sustainable energy generation, energy security, and the elimination of these problems. A thorough literature review of papers published between 2015 and 2022 was done in this study. SWOT analysis method (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) is also used in the study. According to the analysis, Eskom's deployment of wind energy at a large scale can enhance South Africa's energy security and sustainably provide power while also lowering the country's present level of energy poverty. The systematic literature review indicates that South Africa, particularly in the Eastern and Western Cape regions, offers significant potential for and capacity for renewable wind energy. In order to incorporate renewable sources into its energy mix and achieve energy sustainability, Eskom should use macro-level strategies that discourage carbon-based energy.

A roadmap for required technological advancements to further reduce onshore wind turbine noise impact on the environment

AbstractThe noise emission of wind turbines and farms can be an important and limiting factor for future cost reductions and growth of wind energy. Closing scientific and technological gaps on wind turbine noise is thus directly supporting the further development of renewable energy while reducing adverse reactions toward wind farms. The present article is providing guidance on the most relevant research directions from an engineering perspective, namely: simulation methods, wind tunnel testing, and wind turbine design. Each topic is addressed separately and specific scientific challenges are identified. Future research directions that may improve our physical understanding of wind turbine noise, as well as facilitate the deployment of wind energy, are outlined. It is concluded that future scientific research on the topic of wind turbine noise should be conducted in a multidisciplinary context to maximize its impact. The suggested topics shall be seen as a collection of what is seen as the most relevant topics across research and product development but shall not be seen as exclusive or interlinked with specific development plans.This article is categorized under: Sustainable Energy > Wind Energy Human and Social Dimensions > Social Acceptance

Gebotskostenförderung in Windenergie-Auktionen

Abstract Germany faces the challenge of rapidly breaking free from its dependence on fossil fuels. This requires a comprehensive transformation of the energy system. Onshore wind energy is one of the most important generation sources that must be developed on a large scale in order to decarbonise the energy sector. While the expansion targets were raised significantly with the Renewable Energy Law (Erneuerbare-Energien-Gesetz) 2023, the actual deployment of onshore wind energy remains in crisis. To accelerate the expansion, much has been discussed about providing land and simplifying the approval process. However, this article emphasises that reimbursing bid preparation costs can also contribute to driving the expansion of onshore wind energy.

An analysis of the factors affecting Irish citizens’ willingness to invest in wind energy projects

Wind energy has a pivotal role to play in the transition to renewable energy. However, social opposition to developer-owned wind farms is a key barrier to its deployment. While research suggests that co-ownership arrangements between developers and communities could help to alleviate opposition, such arrangements are subject to market acceptance issues related to citizens’ appetite for investing. This paper explores the issue of market acceptance of citizen investment opportunities in wind farms by examining citizens’ willingness to invest in projects. Based on a survey of 2,023 Irish citizens, we find that 56% of citizens would invest in a local project, 41% would invest in a portfolio of projects, and 29% would invest in a non-local project. Our empirical analysis reveals a number of socio-demographic, locational, community and attitudinal variables that affect both the decisions of citizens to invest in projects and the monetary amount that they are willing to invest. The findings of the paper provide insights into policy measures that could help to strengthen the market acceptance of citizen investment opportunities and will be useful for policymakers who are seeking to mobilise citizen investment with a view to enhancing the deployment of wind energy.

The transmission ramifications of social and environmental siting considerations on wind energy deployment

Increasing the capacity of wind power is critical to achieving climate goals, however its continued deployment faces environmental and social siting challenges. For example, the United States government is increasingly emphasizing the importance of a just energy transition by considering the social impacts of energy and environmental justice (EEJ). In this study, we investigate the impact of considering available EEJ metrics and environmental impacts into siting wind power and transmission by applying SimWINDPRO. SimWINDPRO is an infrastructure optimization tool that can site wind energy technologies and transmission by concurrently considering wind resource potential, transmission costs, EEJ, and environmental impacts. We demonstrate the impacts of considering EEJ and environmental factors in the context of Midcontinent Independent System Operator’s (MISO) western region, which includes some of the best wind energy potential in the United States. We show that prioritizing EEJ and environmental considerations in wind deployment can result in exponentially more transmission deployment for the same amount of wind power delivered, and results in selecting different wind farm sites. Our results also show that, depending on how it is considered, it is possible that constraining sites based on EEJ and environmental factors can reduce the available capacity of wind energy enough that energy transition capacity targets cannot be met.

Offshore wind power in China: A potential solution to electricity transformation and carbon neutrality

China is likely to lead global offshore wind power development, in the hope of transforming the coal-based electricity system and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. However, the potential of power generation and emissions mitigation is largely unknown, and the contribution of offshore wind utilization to regional carbon neutrality needs to be further clarified. Here, we reveal that offshore wind energy resources are abundant in China, with an estimated power generation potential of about 17.5 PWh, more than doubling the current power consumption nationwide. Although current utilization of offshore wind energy in China accounts for 21% of global overall capacity, the total share is still limited, supplying just 0.4% of national electricity needs (2019). With the increasing use of offshore wind, by 2050, the planned installation along China coast would be nearly five times as much as current (2019) global capacity, or 25 times of current national offshore wind power generation. The total CO2 emissions reduction in 2050 due to the decrease in coal use is projected to be 294.3 Tg CO2-eq yr–1, equivalent to 20% of current emissions from coal-fired power in the coastal region. The size of reduced emissions is higher than current CO2 emissions in about 90% of countries. Our results highlight the important role of offshore wind power in upgrading the energy system and achieving carbon neutrality. Future studies are encouraged to further explore technological, economic and institutional challenges facing offshore wind energy deployment and low-carbon energy system development.

Wind farm flow control: prospects and challenges

Abstract. Wind farm control has been a topic of research for more than two decades. It has been identified as a core component of grand challenges in wind energy science to support accelerated wind energy deployment and to transition to a clean and sustainable energy system for the 21st century. The prospect of collective control of wind turbines in an array, to increase energy extraction, reduce structural loads, improve the balance of systems, reduce operation and maintenance costs, etc. has inspired many researchers over the years to propose innovative ideas and solutions. However, practical demonstration and commercialization of some of the more advanced concepts has been limited by a wide range of challenges, which include the complex physics of turbulent flows in wind farms and the atmosphere, uncertainties related to predicting structural load and failure statistics, and the highly multi-disciplinary nature of the overall design optimization problem, among others. In the current work, we aim at providing a comprehensive overview of the state of the art and outstanding challenges, thus identifying the key research areas that could further enable commercial uptake and success of wind farm control solutions. To this end, we have structured the discussion on challenges and opportunities into four main areas: (1) insight in control flow physics, (2) algorithms and AI, (3) validation and industry implementation, and (4) integrating control with system design (co-design).

Research challenges and needs for the deployment of wind energy in hilly and mountainous regions

Abstract. The continuing transition to renewable energy will require more wind turbines to be installed and operated on land and offshore. On land, wind turbines will increasingly be deployed in hilly or mountainous regions, which are often described together as “complex terrain” in the wind energy industry. These areas can experience complex flows that are hard to model, as well as cold climate conditions that lead to instrument and blade icing and can further impact wind turbine operation. This paper – a collaboration between several International Energy Agency (IEA) Wind Tasks and research groups based in mountainous countries – sets out the research and development needed to improve the financial competitiveness and ease of integration of wind energy in hilly or mountainous regions. The focus of the paper is on the interaction between the atmosphere, terrain, land cover, and wind turbines, during all stages of a project life cycle. The key needs include collaborative research and development facilities, improved wind and weather models that can cope with mountainous terrain, frameworks for sharing data, and a common, quantitative definition of site complexity. Addressing these needs will be essential for the affordable and reliable large-scale deployment of wind energy in many countries across the globe. Because of the widespread nature of complex flow and icing conditions, addressing these challenges will have positive impacts on the risk and cost of energy from wind energy globally.

Impacts of accelerating deployment of offshore windfarms on near-surface climate

The European Union has set the ambitious goal of becoming climate neutral by 2050, which has stimulated renewable energy production and accelerated the deployment of offshore wind energy in the North Sea. Here, a high-resolution regional climate model was used to investigate the impact on the sea surface climate of large-scale offshore wind farms that are proposed for the North Sea. The results show a significant reduction in the air-sea heat fluxes and a local, annual mean net cooling of the lower atmosphere in the wind farm areas down to more than 2.0 Wm−2, due to a decrease in 10 m wind speed and turbulent kinetic energy and an increase in low-level clouds. Mean surface winds decreased by approximately 1 ms−1 downstream of wind farms. Furthermore, an increase of approximately 5% in mean precipitation was found over the wind farm areas. At a seasonal timescale, these differences are higher during winter and autumn than in other seasons. Although the offshore wind farms reduce the heat transport from the ocean to the atmosphere in the region of large wind farms, the atmospheric layers below the hub height show an increase in temperature, which is on the order of up to 10% of the climate change signal at the end of the century, but it is much smaller than the interannual climate variability. In contrast, wind speed changes are larger than projected mean wind speed changes due to climate change. Our results suggest that the impacts of large clustered offshore wind farms should be considered in climate change impact studies. Moreover, the identified offshore windfarm impacts on the sea surface climate and the introduced spatial pattern in atmospheric conditions, in particular the modeled wind speed changes, suggest potential impacts on local ocean dynamics and the structure of the marine ecosystem. This should be considered in future scenarios for the North Sea marine environment and taken into account as a structuring influence in the offshore environment.

The 15-year operational experiences of an 850 kW peri-urban wind turbine: Lessons learned from a behind-the-meter installation in Ireland

As wind energy continues to expand in the transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy based economies, new markets are expected in behind-the-meter distributed wind applications that are consumer owned. Unlike at traditional wind farms, medium- and large-scale wind turbines deployed in distributed wind applications are more likely to be located near denser populated areas have more complex wind regimes. This can bring additional challenges with respect to wind turbine siting, energy performance, operational life longevity, utility electricity billing and general public acceptance. This research case study outlines the real-world experiences over a fifteen-year timeframe of an operating 850 kW wind turbine, connected behind-the-meter, in the peri-urban environment of a university campus. Experiences and lessons learned from the project development, energy performance, operation and maintenance, economics and social benefits are detailed, including recommendations to future prospective behind-the-meter wind projects and future research suggestions in this area. The learnings from this case study may be of benefit to variety of prospective stakeholders, such as end-users, project developers and government agencies, engaged with distributed wind and behind-the-meter wind energy deployment.

Cost, footprint, and reliability implications of deploying hydrogen in off-grid electric vehicle charging stations: A GIS-assisted study for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

For the first time, we quantify cost, footprint, and reliability implications of deploying hydrogen-based generation in off-grid electric vehicle charging stations (CS) using an optimization model coupled with a geographic information system (GIS) analysis for the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We also account for the challenges associated with wind energy deployment as a candidate generation technology within city centers. The analysis was restricted to carbon-free technologies: photovoltaics (PV), wind, battery, and hydrogen fuel-cells. At current prevailing technology costs, hydrogen can reduce the required footprint of off-grid CSs by 25% at a small incremental cost increase without impacting the charging reliability. By 2030, however, hydrogen will simultaneously provide the footprint and cost advantages. If we allow as little as 5% of the annual load to be unmet, the required footprint of the CS decreases by 60%. The levelized cost of energy values for the CS by 2030 can range between 0.13 and 0.20 $/kWh depending on learning-curve assumptions. The footprints calculated are then mapped to five land parcel categories in Riyadh: gas station, hospital, mall, school, and university. Incorporating hydrogen in CS design increases the number of parcels that could accommodate CSs by 15–45% via reducing the required PV array (i.e., footprint).

Categorizing distributed wind energy installations in the United States to inform research and stakeholder priorities

BackgroundDistributed wind energy adoption in the United States can contribute to the diverse portfolio of energy technologies needed to achieve ambitious decarbonization goals. However, with limited deployment to date, the current distributed wind market must be better understood; these efforts will support the range of stakeholders who will drive successful deployment. This article first distinguishes three categories of distributed wind from existing literature: (1) behind the meter, (2) intended for explicit local load, and (3) physically distributed. A novel methodology to classify individual wind installations into each of these categories is then presented and applied to two data sets of wind installations in the United States to categorize and illuminate distinct segments in the distributed wind market.ResultsPhysically distributed installations, constituted by small to moderately sized projects serving local loads on distribution systems solely because of their proximity to them, account for the highest amount of capacity but the lowest number of installations out of the three categories. The inverse is true for behind-the-meter installations, which are used to serve on-site loads. Installations intended for explicit local load, which are interconnected on the utility side of the distribution system and intentionally built to provide energy to loads on the same distribution system, rank in the middle for both installed capacity and number of installations.ConclusionsDistributed wind energy deployment in the United States is geographically widespread, but the extent to which a single category is developed in each state varies. Policies, wind resources, and broad energy technology trends contribute to these deployment patterns. By identifying the extent to which each category of installations exists, decision-makers are empowered with data necessary to tailor research and development programs and address stakeholder priorities through policy and other means, ultimately supporting future deployment.

Wind energy in the city: Hong Kong’s offshore wind energy generation potential, deployment plans, and ecological pitfalls

Hong Kong seeks to achieve a low carbon future by investing in renewable energy solutions. With almost all its energy demand met by imported supply, primarily from Mainland China, developing Hong Kong’s indigenous renewable energy from offshore wind offers the potential to meet the city’s low carbon ambition and, at the same time, pursue energy reliance and resilience. This paper reviews the potential for harvesting Hong Kong’s offshore wind energy to show that the territory possesses significant wind resources that can be converted into useful energy. It also discusses extant plans from its two power providers, Hong Kong Electric and China Light and Power, which signified intentions to build offshore wind farms in Hong Kong’s southern and southeastern waters, respectively. The paper also examines the impacts these infrastructures pose to marine species and ecosystems in the proposed sites. It finds that, although construction-related effects can detriment marine life in the short term, these impacts can be mitigated with careful planning and can even increase biodiversity in the site over time. The paper ends by calling for policy to be strengthened to ensure that Hong Kong’s local wind resources are exploited. Wind power development can accelerate the city’s low-carbon ambition.

National‐scale impacts on wind energy production under curtailment scenarios to reduce bat fatalities

AbstractWind energy often plays a major role in meeting renewable energy policy objectives; however, increased deployment can raise concerns regarding the impacts of wind plants on certain wildlife. Particularly, estimates suggest hundreds of thousands of bat fatalities occur annually at wind plants across North America, with potential implications for the viability of several bat species. One approach to reducing bat fatalities is shutting down (or curtailing) turbines when bats are most at risk, such as at night during relatively low wind speed periods throughout summer and early autumn. While curtailment has consistently been shown to reduce bat fatalities, the lost power production reduces revenues for wind plants. This study conducted simulations with a range of curtailment scenarios across the contiguous United States to examine sensitivities of annual energy production (AEP) loss and potential impacts on economic metrics for future wind energy deployment. We found that AEP reduction can vary across the country from less than 1% to more than 10% for different curtailment scenarios. From an estimated 2891 gigawatts (GW) of simulated economically viable wind capacity (measured by a positive net present value), we found the mid curtailment scenario (6.0 m/s wind speed cut‐in from July 1 through October 31) reduced the quantity of economic wind capacity by 274 GW or 9.5%. Our results indicate that high levels of curtailment could substantially reduce the future footprint of financially viable wind energy. In this context, future work that illuminates cost‐effective strategies to minimize curtailment while reducing bat fatalities would be of value.

Barriers for Large Integration of PV and Onshore Wind Energy in the Distribution Network on the Selected European Union Electricity Markets

The European Union (EU) has adopted ambitious and wide-ranging binding targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, energy systems’ transformation, and becoming climate neutral. The transformation of the energy sector towards more sustainable electricity production increases the importance of distributed generation from renewable sources, such as solar photovoltaics (PV) and wind energy. Large integration of PV and onshore wind energy in the EU distribution network is key to success in the energy transition. Despite significant progress in the field of renewable energies’ regulations, in particular, due to the implementation of the RES Directive, several barriers remain, and still, the development of photovoltaics and wind energy are being slowed by various types of market, regulatory barriers, as well as technological and social obstacles. The aim of this article is to investigate the main barriers to the development of distributed generation from renewable sources, such as solar photovoltaics and wind energy, in order to increase their share in the EU electricity market. This paper is focused on the most common regulatory, technological, administrative, financial, social, and environmental barriers, which slow down the large-scale deployment of PV and wind energy into the distribution networks in 5 EU countries: Austria, Greece, France, Poland and Spain and also in Norway.

“After the leases are signed, it's a done deal”: Exploring procedural injustices for utility-scale wind energy planning in the United States

Expanding wind energy deployment to meet climate and policy goals requires willing communities to host wind projects. Wind power acceptance is inextricably linked to perceptions of projects' planning process, but it is less understood what makes wind planning processes more or less fair. Using a mixed-methods case study research design, this paper evaluates the planning process for two state-approved wind farms in Ohio and Minnesota using four analytical themes relating to procedural justice: participation, information, decision-making, and local context. In doing so, we provide one of the few detailed mappings of a United States wind farm planning process. Our findings confirm other results in the wind planning literature, particularly with respect to the limited opportunities for participation and decision-making input afforded to the public. However, our study also argues that to realize procedural justice in utility-scale wind project planning, planning processes need to evolve to: (1) afford non-compensated neighbors of wind projects similar information and participation opportunities as compensated landowners, (2) provide additional resources for and knowledge-sharing opportunities among local (county and township) governments, (3) create structures for participation, information provision, and decision-making surrounding wind farm construction, operation, and decommissioning (not just siting), and (4) consider local contexts of historical power generation and resident connections to the land.

Local residents’ attitudes about wind farms and associated noise annoyance in South Korea

Although the deployment of wind energy has gradually increased in South Korea, local opposition to the development of wind projects has frequently been reported; this could retard the deployment of wind power in South Korea. Noise from the operation of wind turbines is claimed to be the major reason for opposition. This study explored factors related to local residents’ attitudes toward adjacent wind farms and the noise annoyance associated with them. Multivariate linear regression models were adopted to analyze a survey conducted in three counties in South Korea. In the analysis of attitudes, the perceived fairness of the development process was the most influential independent variable, followed by visual evaluation of wind farms and thoughts on whether more wind energy should be installed within the country. In the analysis of noise annoyance, current attitude toward existing wind farms was the most influential factor, followed by factors related to the visibility of wind farms and visual evaluation of them. These findings suggest that planning processes that engage local residents from the start of project development and empower them to influence wind farm layout designs are effective in securing community acceptance and even in alleviating the perceived annoyance of wind turbine noise.

A predictive flight-altitude model for avoiding future conflicts between an emblematic raptor and wind energy development in the Swiss Alps.

Deployment of wind energy is proposed as a mechanism to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, wind energy and large birds, notably soaring raptors, both depend on suitable wind conditions. Conflicts in airspace use may thus arise due to the risks of collisions of birds with the blades of wind turbines. Using locations of GPS-tagged bearded vultures, a rare scavenging raptor reintroduced into the Alps, we built a spatially explicit model to predict potential areas of conflict with future wind turbine deployments in the Swiss Alps. We modelled the probability of bearded vultures flying within or below the rotor-swept zone of wind turbines as a function of wind and environmental conditions, including food supply. Seventy-four per cent of the GPS positions were collected below 200 m above ground level, i.e. where collisions could occur if wind turbines were present. Flight activity at potential risk of collision is concentrated on south-exposed mountainsides, especially in areas where ibex carcasses have a high occurrence probability, with critical areas covering vast expanses throughout the Swiss Alps. Our model provides a spatially explicit decision tool that will guide authorities and energy companies for planning the deployment of wind farms in a proactive manner to reduce risk to emblematic Alpine wildlife.