Enhancing Wind Farm Efficiency
Big data is a hot topic in the wind energy sector, as companies around the world are racing to develop solutions to maximize yields and minimize expenses. The wind energy division of Siemens, for example, operates a remote diagnostics center in Denmark that collects data from 10,000 turbines globally to create more precise maintenance plans and reduce downtime.
What’s more, it is developing software to optimize the energy yield from wind farms, for example by precisely adjusting the rotor blades in the second row in order to minimize the impact of turbulence and wake effects.
In another unique project, the Center for Wind Energy Research (ForWind) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) are setting up turbines near the coastline in a deliberately suboptimal manner in order to research how they can negatively influence each other. Packed with multiple sensors, the turbines will generate data that will be collected and analyzed to help enhance the efficiency and durability of turbines as well as the performance of wind farms.