Wake Anemometry for Yaw control: laboratory Demonstration, Ruggedisation and Field Testing

Wind energy is becoming a key ingredient in the UK's energy mix. However, the cost of offshore wind in

particular remains relatively high and can begin to hold back uptake of this low carbon option and with the

installation of new onshore turbines reducing there needs to be greater efficincies and performace shown from

the many thousands of installed wind turbines globally. An important part of the energy costs comes from

maintenance and servicing. Reducing wear and downtime and improving 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. A control system based on

such measurements requires a low cost laser based wind measurement system to be viable. This project will

construct such a wake monitoring system and then after ruggedisation take it to the field to test it alongside

much more expensive and bulky commercial laser based measurement systems. The expected outcome from

the project will be a field demonstrator that is able to show the feasibility and benefits of wake anemometry