Millward-Hopkins, JT, Tomlin, AS, Ma, L et al. (2 more authors) (2013) Mapping the wind resource over UK cities. Renewable Energy, 55. 202 - 211. ISSN 0960-1481
Abstract
Decentralised energy sources, such as small-scale-wind energy, have a number of well-known advantages. However, within urban areas, the potential for energy generation from the wind is not currently fully utilised. One of the most significant reasons for this is that the complexity of air flows within the urban boundary layer makes accurate predictions of the wind resource difficult to achieve. Without sufficiently accurate methods of predicting this resource, there is a danger that wind turbines will either be installed at unsuitable locations or that many viable sites will be overlooked. In this paper, we compare the accuracy of three different analytical methodologies for predicting above-roof mean wind speeds across a number of UK cities. The first is based upon a methodology developed by the UK Meteorological Office. We then implement two more complex methods which utilise maps of surface aerodynamic parameters derived from detailed building data. The predictions are compared with measured mean wind speeds from a wide variety of UK urban locations. The results show that the methodologies are generally more accurate when more complexity is used in the approach, particularly for the sites which are well exposed to the wind. The best agreement with measured data is achieved when the influence of wind direction is thoroughly considered and aerodynamic parameters are derived from detailed building data. However, some uncertainties in the building data add to the errors inherent within the methodologies. Consequently, it is suggested that a detailed description of both the shapes and heights of the local building roofs is required to maximise the accuracy of wind speed predictions.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | (c) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. NOTICE: this is the author’s version of a work that was accepted for publication in Renewable Energy. Changes resulting from the publishing process, such as peer review, editing, corrections, structural formatting, and other quality control mechanisms may not be reflected in this document. Changes may have been made to this work since it was submitted for publication. A definitive version was subsequently published in Renewable Energy, [VOL 55, (2013)] DOI 10.1016/j.renene.2012.12.039 |
Keywords: | Building mounted wind turbine; Micro-generation; Wind resource assessment; Small-scale-wind; Urban wind energy |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Leeds |
Academic Units: | The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Chemical & Process Engineering (Leeds) > Energy Research Institute (Leeds) The University of Leeds > Faculty of Engineering & Physical Sciences (Leeds) > School of Chemical & Process Engineering (Leeds) > Energy Tech & Innovation Initiative (Leeds) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Publications |
Date Deposited: | 19 Mar 2014 12:02 |
Last Modified: | 23 Jun 2023 21:38 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2012.12.039 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Elsevier |
Identification Number: | 10.1016/j.renene.2012.12.039 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:78161 |