Document Type : Article
Authors
Department of Mechanical Engineering\nIsfahan University of Technolog
Abstract
In the present study, wind potentials in three regions; Khash, Lootak, and Nosratabad, are investigated in the province of Sistan and Baluchestan, in Iran. Annual wind measurements, including wind speed and wind direction, were made at three heights of 10, 30, and 40 meters, at 10 minute intervals, by the meteorological organization of Iran. Wind speed distribution is important for evaluating wind potential in certain geological regions. Therefore, the widely accepted Weibull distribution function is adopted here to model the wind measurement data. eibull arameters include shape factor, k, and scale factor, c, which are calculated together with standard deviation for each three regions at different heights. Higher values of shape factor, k, leads to sharper peaks, which show less variation in wind speed. The scale factor, c, is a measure for windy regions. The root mean square (RMSE) is used to assess the quality of fitting the Weibull function into the wind measurement data. The average wind speeds are calculated over the months of the years 2008 to 2010. It is observed that average annual wind speed in Khash station is 3.8, 4.32, and 4.57 m/s for the heights of 10, 30, and 40 meters, respectively. In Lootak station, these values are 4.56, 6.28, and 6.54 m/s, respectively. Nosratabad station possesses an annual average wind speed of 4.82 and 5 m/s for heights of 30 and 40 meters, respectively. Average monthly wind power density is also evaluated for the three stations at different heights. In Khash station, this shows an annual average wind power density of 86 W/m2 for a height of 10 meters, 114 W/m2 for a height of 30 meters, and 132 W/m2 for a height of 40 meters. Similarly, it is observed for Nosratabad that the annual averaged wind power density of 125 W/m2 at 30 meters height and 144 W/m2 at 40 meters height can be achieved. These stations are thus categorized as weak sites for in-grid wind power generation
and are recommended for off-grid local use for electricity or mechanical power generation. Further study reveals that Lootak station, with an annual average wind power density of 157 W/m2 at 10 meters height, 344 W/m2 at 30 meters height, and 388 W/m2 at 40 meters height, possesses good potential for in-grid electrical power generation. Finally, a wind rose diagram, which indicates wind direction distribution, is plotted for the three stations to obtain the
dominant wind direction for installing wind turbines.
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