Wake anemometry for yaw error correction: feasibility and risk evaluation.

Wind energy is becoming a vital ingredient in the nation's energy mix. Displacing fossil fuels and exploiting our unique natural resource, wind energy seems to be entering a golden age. However, the cost of offshore wind in particular remains relatively high and can begin to hold back uptake of this low carbon option. An important part of the energy costs comes from the maintenance and servicing of large offshore facilities. Reducing wear and downtime and improving individual turbine efficiency is an important goal for the designers of the next generation of wind turbines. Behind every wind turbine there is generated a wake pattern that can give us vital information about the alignment of a turbine. This project will look at the feasibility of low cost advanced anemometry techniques to measure wake patterns as part of a turbine yaw control system, this will enable turbines to always be at optimum yaw angle thus reducing uneven loading on the blades and ensuring optimum efficiency. The expected outcome from the project will be a system level design and route to commercialisation of a low cost yaw control system.