TEXAS TECH UNIVERSITY
Wind Science and Engineering
Research Center
WiSE Annual Report
2011
http://www.depts.ttu.edu/weweb
(Back of cover – do not print)
2
The Wind Science and Engineering (WiSE) Research Center at Texas Tech University is
world-renowned for conducting innovative research in the areas of wind energy, wind hazard
mitigation, wind-induced damage, severe storms, and wind-related economics.
The WiSE Center also offers the only doctoral program in Wind Science and Engineering in
the nation. The WiSE Center’s comprehensive and multidisciplinary program aspires to
exploit useful qualities of wind and to mitigate its detrimental effects. If you are concerned
about wind-related issues, you’ve come to the right place.
WiSE provides an inclusive multi-disciplinary environment which encourages faculty and
students to cross traditional discipline boundaries to conduct wind-related research and
educational activities.
WiSE receives participation from 60 faculty affiliates originating from 17 different academic
departments. Nineteen Ph.D. students were enrolled in the program during 2011, and WiSE
supported numerous other graduate students in other departments.
WiSE also maintains a suite of facilities including a 200 m instrumented tower located on a
67-acre field site, a 64 station regional network of weather stations in 44 counties and a new
regional network of SODARs, and two mobile research radars. These facilities enable a
unique portfolio of research that bridges the gap between the Atmospheric Science and
Engineering communities.
The Center continued to expand its research activities in 2011 with new competitive awards
from various funding agencies including the National Science Foundation and the
Department of Energy. The Center also announced its partnership with Sandia National
Laboratories to create the Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWIFT) facility. Additionally, the
Center has engaged with numerous private industry partners to conduct sponsored research
and partner to pursue competitive funding.
With WiSE located in the heart of the development region, we look forward to continued
opportunities to significantly and positively impact society through innovative research,
education and outreach focused on all things wind.
John L. Schroeder
Director, Wind Science and Engineering Research Center (WiSE)
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I. 2011 HIGHLIGHTS
The Wind Science and Engineering Research Center (WiSE) at Texas Tech University (TTU)
had a successful 2011. Highlights include the following:
•
WiSE had 19 students in the WiSE Ph.D. program during 2011; one student completed his
Ph.D. studies in 2011. Chris Pattison earned his doctoral degree in August. His
dissertation was titled “Firming Wind Energy with Solar Photovolatics” which analyzed
the the ability of wind farm operators to secure higher prices for power by reducing the
uncertainty of production. (See p. 34 for more details.)
•
TTU, Sandia National Laboratories and Group NIRE agreed to develop and to operate the
Scaled Wind Farm Technology (SWIFT) facility that will perform research and
development work on turbine-to-turbine interactions and innovative rotor technologies.
“We have been looking to expand our federal collaborations in wind energy, and this is
the first such opportunity for Texas Tech University. I could not be more proud of our
work to establish this collaborative partnership,” said TTU System Chancellor Kent
Hance. “This adds further value to our recent Emerging Technology Fund award from the
state of Texas in wind energy. Texas Tech is on the move!”
The site, to be located at the Reese Technology Center, includes an initial installation of
three wind turbines and two anemometer towers with the potential for future expansion.
“This is an exciting project for Texas Tech,” said John Schroeder, director of WiSE. “The
combination of capabilities offered by Sandia National Laboratories, Group NIRE, and
Texas Tech provides a powerful partnership for future wind energy research and
technology transfer. We look forward to working closely with our partners to bring the
facility in 2012.”
Figure 1 (left) – Dr. Luciano Castillo joined
Texas Tech University as the Don-Kay-Clay
Cash Foundation Distinguished Engineering
Chair in Wind Energy, the Executive Director
and President of the National Wind Resources
Center, and Professor of Mechanical
Engineering. Dr. Castillo was most recently an
Associate Professor at the Department of
Mechanical,
Aerospace
and
Nuclear
Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic
Institute, an Adjunct Professor at Johns
Hopkins University, and at the Universidad del
Turabo in Puerto Rico.
5
Figure 2 (right) – One of the
participants working on a project
at the 2011 “Run on the Wind”
summer camp. The camp is a
collaborative effort between WiSE
and TTU’s Institute for the
Development and Enrichment of
Advanced Learners (IDEAL). The
camp explores the power of the
wind and the means by which we
harness it.
Figure 3 – Dr. Brian Ancell, Assistant Professor in Atmospheric Sciences and WiSE faculty
affiliate receives a check from State Farm’s James Tate. WiSE Ph.D. student Rich Krupar
III stands on the right hand side.
•
State Farm Insurance donated $25,000 to WiSE in February. The financial support will
be used to assist in making valuable scientific measurements from thunderstorms and
hurricanes, as well as to support outreach activities related to severe storms and wind
hazard mitigation.
6
•
Drs. John Schroeder and Brian Hirth have been working to document the structure and
evolution of wind turbine wakes which is essential to properly plan wind farms and to
estimate wind turbine and farm efficiency. These wakes maintain wind speed deficits from
the free-stream flow, and enhance turbulence capable of providing higher fatigue loads to
downwind turbines. Accurately forecasting the expected total power output of wind farm
requires a full understanding of complex wake interactions and modulated flows within
the farm itself.
Figure 4 – A dual-Doppler synthesis of TTUKa research radar data shows horizontal wind
speed slices at 80 m (the turbine hub height) with wind vectors overlaid. The black dot
indicates the location of the turbine. The two images are separated by approximately 30
minutes, highlighting the variability in the free-stream flow and wake characteristics. In both
images, the wake extends beyond 20 rotor diameters and the wake wind speed deficit exceeds
40% of the free-stream flow.
7
•
Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), project Severe Convective Outflow in
Thunderstorms (SCOUT) completed its field phase to document the engineering-relevant
kinematic structure and evolution of thunderstorm outflows. The community project
provided opportunities for both the TTU ATMO group and WiSE graduate students, and
employed the StickNet fleet and WiSE’s two TTUKa research radars to collect high
resolution data from thunderstorms. Though Project SCOUT’s nomadic phase ended last
summer, local data collection efforts continue.
Figure 5 – TTU students from both WiSE and ATMO gather for a group photo during project
SCOUT last summer.
Figure 6 – Students from both TTU WiSE and the ATMO department share a big smile at
the end of the day after volunteering at the community-wide event, National Severe
Weather Awareness Day 2011.
8
Figure 7 – Dr. Kishor Mehta, Horn Professor and one of the co-founders of WiSE.
•
Dr. Kishor Mehta, one of co-founders of WiSE, announced in July that he accepted a new
position with the prestigious NSF in Washington, D.C. as the Director of Hazard
Mitigation and Structural Engineering (HMSE) which is in the Division of Civil,
Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation (CMMI) in the Engineering Directorate.
Dr. Mehta has spent 47 years at TTU, 15 years as Director of WiSE, and was recognized
as a Distinguished Member of the ASCE in 2011. As Director of the 10-year long, NSFfunded Cooperative Program on Wind Engineering (with Colorado State University) and
the NIST/TTU Cooperative Program for a Windstorm Mitigation Initiative, Dr. Mehta led
a team of faculty and students from civil and mechanical engineering, atmospheric
sciences, architecture, mathematics and economics.
Dr. Mehta is recognized internationally as an authority in the areas of wind loads on
structures and wind engineering. As Chair of the task committee on wind loads of the
American Standards Institute Committee A58 and of the American Society of Civil
Engineers (ASCE) Committee ASCE 7, he played a major role in the development of the
wind load provisions of ANSI A58.1-1982, ASCE 7-88, and ASCE 7-95.
Over the past decade, Dr. Mehta developed a Ph.D. degree program in Wind Science and
Engineering with the assistance of funding from the NSF IGERT program; the degree was
approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board in July 2007. He also helped
in leading an effort in developing the B.Sc. in Wind Energy which was approved by the
TTU Board of Regents in 2011.
9
Figure 8 – The complexity of the
ASCE 7 has grown significantly
over the years, as engineering
techniques and research has
evolved. (The newest edition of the
code is at the bottom of the pile.)
Dr. Mehta has played a leading
role in developing this code.
Figure 9 – Students with the Osher Life-Long Learning Institute attend a class on learning
more about wind power and wind energy. Community outreach plays an important role in
WiSE’s goals.
•
27 funded proposals for wind-related research were active in 2011 totaling more than $1.9
million; 19 proposals totaling over $6.1 million are pending or were not funded.
10
•
The West Texas Mesonet (WTM) expanded to include 64 stations covering 44 counties in
Texas. The WTM also started to deploy a regional network of SODARS in 2011.
www.mesonet.ttu.edu
Figure 10 – Wes Burgett, Operations Manager for the WTM, is shown above completing
routine maintenance on one of the Mesonet stations in the system across the South
Plains. Source: http://www.mesonet.ttu.edu/site_info.html
Figure 11 (left) – The map of
the growing WTM domain.
.
11
Figure 12 – One of the 24 student-designed StickNets
awaits maintenance between deployments. These units are
2.25 m observing platforms designed for rapid deployment
to collect high-resolution meteorological data from
thunderstorms and hurricanes.
•
Dr. Brian Ancell is developing improved date assimilation techniques. This effort includes
support through a Department of Energy (DOE) Weather Forecast Improvement project
(WFIP), and a pilot project with Shell Wind Energy. TTU has made a strategic investment
of more than $500,000 to provide dedicated processor power for this research. The
combination of unique atmospheric observation platforms, processing power, and Dr.
Ancell’s expertise creates a strong foundation to improve wind and wind energy forecasts.
Figure 13 – Dr. Eric Bruning, ATMO
Assistant Professor and WiSE faculty
affiliate, is developing the West Texas
Lightning Mapping Array (WTLMA) which
complements the coverage of the WTM.
Instead of showing just a single ground
strike point, the WTLMA shows the threedimensional shape, extent and development
of branched lightning channels inside the
clouds, and is an essential tool for cuttingedge lightning physics studies and forecast
applications. The equipment shown above
includes VHF sensing antenna, the
communications dish, the GPS and
preamplifier, and electronics and battery
boxes. Other personnel include Jerry
Guynes, Jeff Livingston, and Glenn Allen,
and numerous ATMO and WiSE graduate
students.
12
•
Dr. Ernst Kiesling, Professor in Civil Engineering, WiSE faculty affiliate, and Executive
Director of the National Storm Shelter Association, was given special recognition by the
Texas Board of Professional Engineering for “Outstanding Service to the State of Texas as
Professional Engineer for over 50 years”.
Dr. Kiesling received his original license in July 1961. He has more than 50 years of
teaching, research, administration and public service in his career, and leads the storm
shelter research within WiSE. Dr. Kiesling was instrumental in founding the NSSA.
Additionally, he serves on the International Code Council (ICC) who developed the ICC
500 storm shelter standard.
Figure 14 – Dr. Ernst Kiesling demonstrates his certificate of recognition from the Texas
Board of Professional Engineering.
13
•
Researchers from both WiSE and TTU’s Water Resources Center (WRC) have teamed up
to address the continuing depletion of the Ogalalla aquifer, the current principal source of
potable groundwater for much of West Texas and northward through Kansas. WRC
Director Dr. Ken Rainwater, Mr. Phil Nash (CE/EE) and Dr. John Schroeder, WiSE
Director, are the main collaborators on this project.
Titled “The Seminole Integrated Wind-Water Demonstration System,” this project is
funded by the State Energy Conservation Office, the Texas Department of Agriculture
(formerly Rural Affairs), the Texas Water Development Board, the U.S. Department of
Energy (through TTU), and the City of Seminole.
The City of Seminole is interested in developing new water supply capacity from the
brackish Santa Rosa aquifer in the Dockum formation below the relatively fresh Ogallala,
which is declining and contains arsenic and fluoride above current drinking water
standards. The demonstration project includes an 1800-ft. deep well and pumping system,
along with a reverse osmosis (RO) treatment system. Renewable local electricity from an
on-site 50-kW wind turbine will displace electricity required from the local power grid
when wind conditions are sufficient. Construction of the wind turbine and the site
infrastructure that supports the RO system should be completed by the summer of 2012,
and the demonstration will commence soon afterward. The results are expected to be
applicable to many other arid and semi-arid regions in the future, and have the potential to
address water shortages across the world.
Figure 15 – The foundation being prepared for the 50-kW wind turbine to be used in the
RO water demonstration project in Seminole, Texas. (Photo credit: Llano Estacado
Water District.)
14
Figure 16 – Dr. Kishor Mehta and Dr. Jim McDonald, co-founders of the McDonald-Mehta
Lecture Series.
THE McDONALD-MEHTA LECTURE SERIES 2011
Dr. Greg Kopp,
Professor and Canada
Research Chair in
Wind Engineering,
University of Western
Ontario.
Dr. Jamie Kruse, Chief
Economist and Senior
Advisor for the Social
Sciences, National
Oceanic and
Atmospheric
Administration.
Dr. Timothy
Reinhold, Senior
Vice-President for
Research and Chief
Engineer, Institute
for Business and
Home Safety.
Dr. Mark Powell,
Atmospheric
Scientist, Hurricane
Research Division,
Atlantic
Oceanographic and
Meteorological
Laboratories,
National Oceanic and
Atmospheric
Administration.
.
15
Figure 17 – Dr. Greg Kopp from the University of Western Ontario discusses his
research at the inaugural lecture of the McDonald-Mehta Lecture Series of 2011.
Figure 18 – Dr. Darryl James, WiSE faculty affiliate and Professor in Mechanical
Engineering, gives a media interview with a documentary camera crew from London,
England. The interview is taking place inside VorTECH, the tornado simulator that Dr. James
has designed, and was used in a NOVA program on PBS Television nationwide.
16
Figure 19 – A student from Post High School
listens as some of the WiSE research is explained.
WiSE hosted more than 20 tours of our research
facilities in 2011, and this could not have been
achieved without the help of everyone involved.
RESEARCH ACTIVITY
Grantsmanship
The following is a summary of projects active during all or part of calendar year 2011.
Full-Scale Testing, Characterization, System Optimization &
Demonstration of Grid Connected Wind Turbines & Wind
Powered Water Desalination Project
Sponsor:
U.S. Dept. of Energy
Amount:
$5.8 million
TTU Investigator(s): Multiple Co-PIs
Title:
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Wind Power Forecasting
Shell Renewables
$50,000
B. Ancell
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Alstom – Market Watch
Alstom Winds S. L. U.
$81,509
S. Bayne
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Midsize Wind Turbine Designed and Manufactured In the USA
U.S. Dept. of Energy
$850,000
S. Bayne, S. Ekwaro-Osire, Q. Hui, D. A. Smith
17
Pilot Study: Lesser Prairie-chicken Ecology during Pre- and PostConstruction of Wind Energy Facilities in West Texas
Sponsor:
Texas Parks and Wildlife
Amount:
$31,405
TTU Investigator(s): C. Boal
Title:
Development of a Quantitative Model for Measuring Regional
Economic Resilience to Hurricanes
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$278,726
TTU Investigator(s): B. Ewing, D. Liang, J. Kruse (ECU)
Title:
HI2: A New Measure of Hurricane Impact for Innovation in
Enterprise Risk Management
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$350,398
TTU Investigator(s): B. Ewing, D. Liang
Title:
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Gearbox Design for US-Sourced Next Generation Drivetrains for
Land-based and offshore Wind Turbines
US Dept. of Energy
$49,792
M. Giesselmann
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
Limited Management Services
NSSA
$67,027
E. Kiesling
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
International Sign Association – Phases 2B, 3 and 4
International Sign Association
$43,904
K. Mehta, D. A. Smith, D. Zuo
Title:
Outdoor Advertising Association of America Sign Testing – Phases
2B, 3 and 4
Outdoor Advertising Association of America
$61,714
K. Mehta, D. A. Smith, D. Zuo
TTU Investigator(s):
TTU Investigator(s):
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Documentation of Hurricane Wind Fields – State Farm
State Farm Insurance
$124,000
J. Schroeder
18
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Documenting the Engineering-Relevant Aspects of Extreme
Thunderstorm Winds
National Science Foundation
$279,966
J. Schroeder
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Fash Foundation Research Support
Fash Foundation
$7,500
J. Schroeder
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Weather Forecast Improvement Project
U.S. Dept. of Energy
$481,637
J. Schroeder, B. Ancell
Cost of Energy Reduction for Offshore Wind Turbines with
Tension Leg Platform Floating System through Advanced Control
Strategies for Energy Yield Improvement, Load Mitigation, and
Stabilization
Sponsor:
U.S. Dept. of Energy
Amount:
$474,955
TTU Investigator(s): J. Schroeder, D. Zuo
Title:
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Sandia National Laboratories – TTU Experimental Wind Farm
U.S. Dept. of Energy/Sandia National Labs
$200,000
J. Schroeder
Improving Hurricane Wind Speed Estimates at Landfall
Norman Hackerman Advanced Research Program (NHARP)/
Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB)
Amount:
$102,142
TTU Investigator(s): J. Schroeder
Title:
Sponsor:
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator:
Documentation of Hurricane Wind Fields
Risk Management Solutions
$85,000
J. Schroeder
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
Texas Wind Energy Workforce Assessment
US Dept. of Labor/Texas Workforce Commission
$135,000
A. Swift
TTU Investigator(s):
19
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Investigating the Structure of Tornadoes and the Near-Tornado
Environment using Mobile High-Frequency Ka-Band Doppler
Radar Technology
National Science Foundation
$60,198
C. Weiss
Supplement: Project VORTEX2: Investigation of Storm-Scale
Baroclinity using Fine-scale Observations and Numerical Models
National Science Foundation
$86,581
C. Weiss
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
SECO Renewable Technology
State Energy Conservation Office (SECO)
$162,000
K. Rainwater, J. Schroeder
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
Offshore Structure of the Hurricane Boundary Layer
Applied Research Associates
$55,000
J. Schroeder
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Alstom – Grid Integration
Alstom Power, Inc.
$162,061
S. Bayne
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Characterization and Testing of CAPS Rim-Drive Wind Turbine
Florida State University
$37,685
D. Liang
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
National Mesonet Pilot Project
AWS Convergence Technology
$171,418
J. Schroeder
TTU Investigator(s):
TTU Investigator(s):
Pitch Control Modeling and Analysis for Optimized Wind Turbine
Performance
Sponsor:
Windurance
Amount:
$173,216
TTU Investigator(s): A. Swift
Title:
Note: Other valuable research is ongoing with private industry, but is held confidential due to
contractual agreements.
20
Other projects that were submitted include the following:
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
CAREER: Quantifying Inadvertent Weather Modification and
Education through Museum Programs
National Science Foundation
$800,000
B. Ancell
Documenting the Coastal Wind Regime and Assessing its Impact
on Offshore Wind Turbine Performance and Reliability
US Dept. of Energy
$292,740
B. Ancell, J. Schroeder, D. Zuo
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
Development of Wind Loads for PV Systems
US Dept. of Energy
$1.3 million
X. Chen, K. Mehta, D. Zuo, D. Smith
Title:
The Wind Energy Scholar Program at Texas Tech University:
Training, Mentoring and Guiding the Wind Energy Workforce for
the 21st Century
National Science Foundation
$418,242
S. Ekwaro-Osire, J. Schroeder, A. Swift, L. Castillo
TTU Investigator(s):
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Physical Simulation of Tornado-Like Vortices with Fluid-Structure
Interaction
National Science Foundation
$323,938
D. James
Investigation of Wind-Induced Vibration on a Tubular Guyed-V
Transmission Structure
Sponsor:
LS Power
Amount:
$183,328
TTU Investigator(s): D. A. Smith
Title:
An Exploratory Study for Retrofitting Tilt Towers for PTC
Systems
Sponsor:
Western Towner
Amount:
$65,500
TTU Investigator(s): D. A. Smith
Title:
21
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
Title:
Sponsor:
Amount:
TTU Investigator(s):
The SFC-WIND Project: Effects of Surface Heat Flux
Heterogeneity on Characteristics of Low-Level Horizontal Wind
National Science Foundation
$314,951
S. Kang
Development of Innovative Control Systems for Offshore Wind
Turbine Performance and Reliability
US Dept. of Energy and Alstom
$474,954
J. Schroeder, D. Zuo
Wind Tunnel Comparative Study
National Science Foundation and Colorado State University
$20,000
D. A. Smith, D. Zuo
Energy-Aware Control of an Aerial Cyber-Physical System for
Atmospheric Sampling Applications
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$294,005
TTU Investigator(s): C. Weiss, J. Guynes
Title:
Workshop: Wind Farms’ Underperformance and the National
Wind Resource Center (NWRC)
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$20,000
TTU Investigator(s): L. Castillo
Title:
System Approach and Uncertainty Mitigation and Exploitation in
Wind Farm Design
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation/Syracuse University
Amount:
$179,899
TTU Investigator(s): L. Castillo
Title:
Collaborative Research: Large-Scale Kinetic Energy Entrainment
in the Wind Turbine Industry
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$197,154
TTU Investigator(s): L. Castillo
Title:
Documenting the Wind and Wave Fields of the Coastal Transition
Zone
Sponsor:
WeatherPredict Consulting, Inc.
Amount:
$200,000
TTU Investigator(s): J. Schroeder
Title:
22
Southwestern University Data Acquisition and Learning
Laboratory
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$198,235
TTU Investigator(s): J. Schroeder
Title:
The Multidisciplinary Wind Tunnel at TTU: A National Research
Facility for Boundary Layer Studies
Sponsor:
DOD-Office of Naval Research
Amount:
$362,250
TTU Investigator(s): D. James, L. Castillo, G. Araya
Title:
Physical Simulation of Tornado-Like Vortices with Fluid-Structure
Interaction
Sponsor:
National Science Foundation
Amount:
$323,937
TTU Investigator(s): D. James
Title:
Figure 20 – WiSE welcomes new students entering the WiSE Ph.D. program in 2011:
Hoonill Won, Jianjun Luo, Tomas Quintero, Yuepeng Cui, and Venkatesh Singarao.
23
Figure 21 – WiSE students, faculty and staff enjoy the food at the “Welcome Back” Fall BBQ
held at Reese Technology Center. This is an annual event to kick the school year off with a
good start.
Figure 22 – The WiSE Ph.D. students gather for a group picture at the base of the 200 m
meteorological data tower at Reese. The meteorological data acquisition tower has recently
gone through significant upgrades to improve the reliability and quality of data collected by
this system.
24
Figure 23 – To support the fact that the WiSE Ph.D. program is not all work and no play,
students were encouraged to express their artistic skills at carving pumpkins last fall. For
some foreign students, this was the first time to experience this American tradition.
SCHOLARSHIP
Refereed Journals
Ancell, B., C. F. Mass, and G. J. Haim (2011). Evaluation of Surface Analyses and Forecasts with a
Multiscale Ensemble Kalman Filter in Regions of Complex Terrain. Monthly Weather Review. 139
(6), 2008 - 2024.
Bayne, S., K. Lawson, G. Alvarez, V. Veliadis, H. Ha, D. Urciuoli, and S. Scozzie (2011). HardSwitch Stressing of Vertical-channel implanted-Gate SiC JFETs. IEEE Electron Device letters 33
(1), 86 - 88.
Chen, X., and A. Kareem (2011). Discussion of “Cross Correlations of Modal Responses of Tall
Buildings in Wind-Induced Lateral-Torsional Motion” by M. F. Huang, C. M. Chan, K. C. Kwok,
and P. A. Hitchcock. Journal of Engineering Mechanics, ASCE, 137 (2), 151 - 154.
Datta, S., B. Dikici, M. Pantoya, and S. Ekwaro-Osire (2011). Reaction Dynamics of AluminumViton®-Acetone Droplets. Journal of Propulsion and Power, 27 (2), 396 - 401.
Giammanco, I. M., J. L. Schroeder, and M. D. Powell (2011). Observed Characteristics of Tropical
Cyclone Vertical Wind Profiles and Low-level Wind Maxima. Weather and Forecasting.
Accepted.
25
Hirth, B. M., J. L. Schroeder, C. C. Weiss, D. A. Smith, and M. I. Biggerstaff (2011). Examination
of internal boundary layer mean structure at the coastal interface during the landfall of Hurricane
Frances (2004). Weather and Forecasting. Accepted.
Karhi, R., D. Wetz, M. Giesselmann, J. Mankowski, J. Diehl, and P. Kelley (2011). A 40-.
Stage Synchronous Distributed Energy Railgun. IEEE Transactions on Plasma Science, 39 (5),
1192 - 1197.
Karnjanapiboonwong, A., D. A. Chase, J. Cañas, W. Jackson, J. Maul, A. Morse, and T. Anderson
(2011). Uptake of 17α-ethynylestradiol and triclosan in pinto bean, Phaseolus vulgaris.
Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety, 74, 1336 - 1342.
Kiesling, E. W., and P. Boontheekul (2011). Storm Shelter Standards Compliance Verification
Program of the National Storm Shelter Association (NSSA). Building Safety Journal. Online.
April.
Landes, N., W. Jackson, and A. Morse (2011). Limitations Encountered for the Treatment of a low
C:N Waste Using a Modified Membrane-Aerated Biofilm Reactor. Water Environment Research,
82 (2), 128 - 139.
Lombardo, F., D. Smith, J. L. Schroeder and K. Mehta (2011). Thunderstorm Characteristics of
Importance in Wind Engineering Part I: Temporal Scales and Turbulence. Journal of Wind
Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, submitted.
Lombardo, F., D. Smith, J. L. Schroeder and K. Mehta (2011). Thunderstorm Characteristics of
Importance to Wind Engineering Part II: Profiles, Gust Factors and Other Observations. Journal of
Wind Engineering and Industrial Aerodynamics, submitted.
Skinner, P. S., C. Weiss, J. L. Schroeder, L. J. Wicker, and M. I. Biggerstaff (2011). Observations of
the Surface Boundary Structure within the 23 May, 2007, Perryton, Texas Supercell. Monthly
Weather Review, 139, 3730 - 3749.
Smith, N., S. Ekwaro-Osire, M. Khandaker, and J. Hashemi (2011). Influence of Storage Duration on
Retention of Original Fracture Toughness. Experimental Mechanics, 51 (5), 697 - 705.
Zuo, D., C. W. Letchford, and S. P. Wayne (2011). Wind Tunnel Study of Wind Loading on
Rectangular Louvered Panels. Wind and Structures, 14 (5), 449 - 463.
Presentations and Proceedings
Alemayehu, F., and S. Ekwaro-Osire (2011). Probabilistic Multibody Modeling of Gearboxes for
Wind Turbines. Denver, Colorado: 2011 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress &
Exposition. Nov 11–17. Proceedings.
Albrecht, R. I., S. J. Goodman, W. Petersen, D. Buechler, E. Bruning, R. Blakeslee, and H. Christian
(2011). The 13 years of TRMM Lightning Imaging Sensor: From Individual Flash Characteristics
to Decadal Tendencies. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: XIV International Conference on Atmospheric
Electricity, International Commission on Atmospheric Electricity. August 7-12. Proceedings.
26
Allen, B., E. R. Mansell, and E. Bruning (2011). Fractal Characteristics of Simulated and LMADetected Lightning Flashes. Seattle, WA: Fifth Conference on Meteorological Applications of
Lightning Data, American Meteorological Society. January 22-27. Presentation.
Ancell, B. (2011). Conversations with Professionals. Seattle, WA: American Meterological Society
Annual Meeting Student Conference. January 22. Presentation.
Ancell, B. (2011). Predictability Characteristics of Land-Falling North American Cyclones. San
Francisco, CA: American Geophysical Union Annual Meeting. December 6. Presentation
Ancell, B., L. A. McMurdie, and R. Langland (2011). The Predicability of North American LandFalling Cyclones. Cefalu, Sicily: The 9th International Adjoint Workshop (NASA-GMAO).
October 11. Proceedings.
Ancell, B. (2011). Evaluation of Surface Analyses and Forecasts with a Multiscale Ensemble Kalman
Filter in Regions of Complex Terrain. Lubbock, TX: 27th Annual Faculty Contributions exhibit
(FACE), Texas Tech University. October 5.
Ancell, B., C. F. Mass, P. Regulski, K. Cook, and B. Colman (2011). Comparison of RTMA and an
Ensemble Kalman Filter Surface Analyses. Seattle, WA: Joint Session: 15th Symposium on
Integrated Observing and Assimilation Systems for the Atmosphere, Ocean, and Land
Surface/24th Conference on Weather and Forecasting and 20th Conference on Numerical Weather
Prediction, American Meteorological Society. January 26. Presentation.
Ancell, B., L. McMurdie, and R. Langland (2011). Characteristics of Short-term Predictability of
Land-Falling Cyclones Along the North American West Coast. Seattle, WA: 24th Conference on
Weather and Forecasting/20th Conference on Numerical Weather Prediction (AMS Annual
Meeting), American Meteorological Society. January 24. Proceedings.
Bayne, S., and M. Chamana (2011). Modeling and Control of Directly Connected and Inverter
Interfaced Sources in a Microgrid. Boston, MA: 43rd North American Power symposium. August
4-6. Proceedings.
Bayne, S. (2011). Modeling, Control and Power Management of Inverter Interfaced Sources in a
Micro-grid. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: 33rd International Telecommunication Energy
Conference. October 9. Peer-reviewed/refereed paper.
Bayne, S. (2011). New ASIC Architecture Development for Energy Harvesting. Amsterdam, The
Netherlands: 33rd International Telecommunication Energy Conference. October 9. Paper.
Bruning, E., N.Y. Want, R. Albrecht, and K. Gopalan (2011). A Lightning Mapping Array for West
Texas: Deployment and Research Plans. Seattle, WA: Fifth Conference on Meteorological
Applications of Lightning Data, American Meteorological Society. January 22-27. Presentation.
Bruning, E. (2011). Lightning Flash Size Spectra: Observations and Theory. San Francisco, CA: Eos
Trans. AGU, Fall Meet. Suppl., AE31A-0266, American Geophysical Union. December 5-9.
Presentation.
27
Bruning, E., C. J. Schultz, W. A. Petersen, and L. D. Carey (2011). C-band Dual-Polarimetric
Observations of Snowfall in a Southeastern Thundersnow Event. Pittsburg, PA: 35th Conference
on Radar Meteorology, American Meteorological Society. September 26-30. Presentation.
Bruning, E. (2011). A Python Wrapper for NASA’s Radar Software Library. Seattle, WA: Special
Symposium on Advances in Modeling and Analysis Using Python, American Meteorological
Society. January 22-27. Presentation.
Bruning, E. (2011). West Texas LMA: Deployment and Operations Update. Huntsville, AL: GOES-R
Geostationary Lightning Mapper Science Meeting, NOAA. October 15-20. Presentation.
Bruning, E., S. Weiss, and K. Kuhlman (2011). An Evaluation of Inverted Polarity Terminology and
Electrification Mechanisms. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: XIV International Conference on Atmospheric
Electricity, International Commission on Atmospheric Electricity. August 7-12. Proceedings.
Chamans, M., and S. Bayne (2011). Modeling and Control of a Battery Management System (BMS) in
a Microgrid. Amsterdam, Netherlands: 33rd International Telecommunications Energy
Conference. October 9. Proceedings.
Chen, X. (2011). Estimation of Extreme-Value Distribution of Crosswind Response of Super Tall
Structures From Time History Samples. Amsterdam, Netherlands: 13th International Conference
on Wind Engineering (ICWE 13). July 12-15. Proceedings.
Chen, X. (2011). Estimation of Extreme-Value Distribution of Narrow-Band non-Gaussian Crosswind
Response of Flexible Structures. Amsterdam, Netherlands: 13th International Conference on Wind
Engineering (ICWE 13). July 10-15. Proceedings.
Chen, X. (2011). Estimation of Extreme-Value Distribution of Crosswind Response of Flexible
Structures Based on non-Gaussian Process Theory. Boston, MA: ASCE Engineering Mechanics
Institute (EMI) 2011 Conference. June 2-4. Proceedings.
Carter, R. R., and D. Smith (2011). Parapet Effects on Full Scale Wind-Induced Roof Pressures (pp.
10). Austin, TX: Texas Section ASCE. April 15. Proceedings.
Durukan, I., S. Ekwaro-Osire, and S. Bayne (2011). Flywheel Energy Storage Systems for Wind
Turbine Grid Frequency Stability - A Review. Denver, Colorado: 2011 ASME International
Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition. Nov 11–17. Proceedings.
Ekwaro-Osire, S. (2011). A Comprehensive Approach for Accounting for Uncertainty in Gearbox
Failure of Wind Turbines. Jeju Island, South Korea: 2011 International Conference on Integrated
Design and Process Technology. June 12–16. Proceedings.
Ekwaro-Osire, S., F. Alemayehu, I. Durukan, and J. F. Cárdenas-García (2011). Configurations of
Impact Absorber for Efficient Energy Dissipation. Uncasville, Connecticut: 2011 SEM Annual
Conference & Exposition. June 13–15. Proceedings.
Ekwaro-Osire, S., F. Alemayehu, I. Durukan, and J. F. Cárdenas-García (2011). Energy Dissipation
in Impact Absorber. Uncasville, Connecticut: 2011 SEM Annual Conference & Exposition. June
13–15. Proceedings.
28
Hinojosa, M., S. Bayne, V. Veliadis, and D. Urciouli (2011). Avalanche Breakdown Energy in Silicon
Carbide Junction Field Effect Transistors. Cleveland, OH: International Conference on Silicon
Carbide and Related Materials. September 11-16. Proceedings.
Jackson, W., A. Morse, D. Christenson, K. Kubista, and T. Vercellino (2011). Performance of a TRL
5 Bioreactor for Pretreatment of an Extended Habitation Wastestream. Portland, OR: 41st
International Conference on Environmental Systems. July 17-21. Proceedings.
Jackson, W., J. Bohlke, B. Gu, P. Hatzinger, and N. Sturchio (2011). Isotope Determination of
Perchlorate Sources in the Environment: Role of Indigenous Perchlorate. Reno, NV: Battelle
Bioremediation Symposium. June 10-13. Presentation.
Jackson, W., J. Pardue, and T. Tate (2011). Crude Oil Biodegradation in Spartina alterniflora
Dominated Salt Marshes. Pensacola Beach, FL: SETAC Gulf Oil Spill, SETAC. April 26-28.
Presentation.
Kashawlic, E., and B. Ancell (2011). Comparing Observation Impact on Low-Level Wind Forecasts
Between an Ensemble Kalman Filter and a 3DVAR Data Assimilation Scheme. Cefalu, Sicily,
Italy: 9th International Adjoint Workshop, NASA-GMAO. October 11. Proceedings.
Lacouture, S., K. Lawson, S. Bayne, M. Giesselmann, H. O'Brien, and S. Scozzie (2011). Evaluation
of High Power Experimental SiC SGTO Devices for Pulse Power. Cleveland, OH: International
Conference on Silicon Carbide and Related Materials. September 11-16. Proceedings.
Lacouture, S., K. Lawson, S. Bayne, M. Giesselmann, H. O'Brien, and S. Scozzie (2011). Evaluation
of Experimental Silicon SGTO Devices for Pulsed Power Applications. Chicago, IL: 18th
International Pulse Power Conference. June 19-23. Proceedings.
Lacouture, S., K. Lawson, S. Bayne, M. Giesselmann, H. O'Brien, and S. Scozzie (2011). Unique
High Energy Test Bed for Experimental Thyristors Devices. Chicago, IL: 18th International Pulse
Power Conference. June 19-23. Proceedings.
Liang, D., B. Nutter, C. Lin, K. Mehta (2011). Detection of Residential Regions Using Hyperspectral
Imagery. Atlanta, GA: 2011 NSF Engineering Research and Innovation Conference. January 4-7.
Proceedings.
Lawson, K., S. Bayne, G. Alvarez, V. Veliadis, and D. Uriuoli (2011). Analysis of Silicon Carbide
JFET Devices During Pulsed Operation. Chicago, IL: 18th International Pulse Power
Conference. June 19-23. Proceedings.
Lawson, K., and S. Bayne (2011). Analysis of Silicon Carbide MOSFET Devices During Pulsed
Operation. Chicago, IL: 18th International Pulse Power Conference. June 19-23. Proceedings.
Lawson, K., G. Alvarez, S. Bayne, V. Veliadis, H. Ha, D. Urciouli, and S. Scozzie (2011). Reliable
Operation of 1200-V SiC Vertical Junction-Field-Effect-Transistor Subjected to 16,000 Pulse
Hard Switching Stress. Cleveland, OH: 2011 International Conference on Silicon Carbide and
Related Materials. September 11-16. Proceedings.
29
MacGorman, D. R., K. Kuhlman, E. Bruning, C. Emersic, C. Payne, S. Weiss, W. D. Rust, P. R.
Krehbiel, P. Heinselman, and M. I. Biggerstaff (2011). Lightning and Electrical Structure of
Severe Storms. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: XIV International Conference on Atmospheric Electricity,
International Commission on Atmospheric Electricity. August 7-12. Proceedings.
Mayer, L., and D. James (2011). Thermal Recuperation Modeling of a Solar Thermochemical
Reactor. Washington, D.C.: 2011 Energy Sustainability Conference. August 7-11. In press.
McNeill, J., and D. Zuo (2011). Low-level Jet Characterization and Implications for Wind Turbine
Inflow Simulation. Amsterdam, Netherlands: 13th International Conference on Wind Engineering.
July 10-15. Presentation and proceedings.
Morse, A., W. Jackson, T. Vercellino, D. Christenson, K. Kubista, and D. Wilson (2011). Biological
Pre-Treatment of a Space Based Waste Stream to Improve Distillation Treatment Efficiency.
Portland, OR: 41st International Conference on Environmental Systems. July 17-21. Proceedings.
Reddy, D., N. Beniwal, and S. Bayne (2011). New ASIC Architecture Development for Energy
Harvesting. Amsterdam, Netherlands: 33rd International Telecommunications Energy
Conference. October 3-9. Proceedings.
Schultz, C. J., E. Bruning, W. A. Petersen, L. D. Carey, and S. Heckman (2011). Total Lightning
Within Electrified Snowfall Using LMA, NLDN and WTLN Measurements. San Francisco, CA: Eos
Trans. AGU, Fall Meet. Suppl., AE12A-03, American Geophysical Union. December 5-9.
Presentation.
Shimek, E., S. Ekwaro-Osire, and J. Rasty (2011). Probabilistic Analysis of Steel Roof Damage from
Hail Strike. Denver, Colorado: 2011 ASME International Mechanical Engineering Congress &
Exposition. Nov 11–17. Proceedings.
Vercillino, T., W. Jackson, A. Morse, K. Kubista, and D. Christenson (2011). Biological and
Physical Polishing of a Space Based Waste Stream. Portland, OR: 41st International Conference
on Environmental Systems. July 17-21. Proceedings.
Weiss, C. (2011). A Review of VORTEX2: Goals and Preliminary Results. Ames, IA: 15th Severe
Storms and Doppler Radar Conference, Central Iowa National Weather Association. March 31April 2. Presentation.
Weiss, C. (2011). The Verification of the Origin of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment. Valparaiso,
IN: Great Lakes Meteorology Conference, Northwest Indiana Chapter of the American
Meteorological Society, Valparaiso University. March 26. Presentation.
Weiss, C. (2011). The Verification of the Origin of Rotation in Tornadoes Experiment. California,
PA: California University of Pennsylvania. February 18. Presentation.
Womble, J. A., and D. Smith (2011). Common Misconceptions in Wind and Water Damage
Determination (pp. 16). Austin, Texas: Texas Section ASCE. April 15. Proceedings.
Zuo, D., and J. McNeill (2011). Assessment of Wind Turbine Loading based on Conditionally
Simulated Inflow Wind Field. Boston, MA: International Conference of the Engineering
Mechanics Institute (EMI2011), American Society of Civil Engineers. June 3. Presentation.
30
Book Chapters:
Carbone, J. N. and S. Ekwaro-Osire (2011). A Knowledge Component Framework for Enhancing
Transdisciplinary Knowledge Assimilation. In A. Ertas (Ed.), Transdisciplinarity: Bridging
Natural Science, Social Science, Humanities, and Engineering. Lubbock: The Atlas Press.
Ekwaro-Osire, S. and T. Jang (2011). Probabilistic Techniques in Bioengineering. In S.C. Suh, V.P.
Gurupur, M.M. Tanik (Ed.), Biomedical Engineering: Health Care Systems, Technology and
Techniques. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
Giesselmann, M. (2011). Inverters. The Electric Power Engineering Handbook (3rd ed.). Boca Raton,
FL 33487: CRC Press.
Gu, B., J. K. Böhlke, N. C. Sturchio, P. B. Hatzinger, W. Jackson, A. D. Beloso Jr., L. J. Heraty, Y.
Bian, and G. M. Brown (2011). Applications of Selective Ion Exchange for Perchlorate Removal,
Recovery, and Environmental Forensics.. In SenGupta, AK (Ed.), Ion Exchange and Solvent
Extraction: A Series of Advances, vol. 20. Taylor & Francis.
Hsiang, S., T. Karakostas, C. C. Chang, and S. Ekwaro-Osire (2011). Coherence of Gait and Mental
Workload. In S.C.Suh, V.P. Gurupur, M.M. Tanik (Ed.), Biomedical Engineering: Healthcare
systems, Technology and Techniques. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.
Karpat, F., S. Ekwaro-Osire, and E. Karpat (2011). A Virtual Tool for Computer Aided Analysis of
Spur Gears with Asymmetric Teeth. In T. Michałowski (Ed.), Applications of MATLAB in Science
and Engineering. Rijeka: InTech.
Sturchio, N. C., J. K. Böhlke, B. Gu, P. B. Hatzinger, and W. Jackson (2011). Isotopic tracing of
perchlorate in the environment. In Baskaran M. (Ed.), Handbook of Environmental Isotope
Geochemistry (pp. 437-452). Springer-Verlag.
31
DISSERTATIONS COMPLETED
Firming Wind Energy with Solar Photovoltaics
Chris Pattison, Ph.D. (2011).
ABSTRACT:
A number of research and development groups and several renewable project operators have
examined combining wind power production with on-site solar power production. Past
research has been devoted to small, off-grid applications only. In the absence of actually
building a utility-scale project, short time scale (5 minutes) estimates of combined power
production are difficult to simulate due to the lack of hub-height wind data combined with onsite solar insolation data available in similar time scales. This presentation will present hubheight, high-fidelity, wind data from the Texas Tech University’s 200-meter meteorological
tower combined with a co-located solar pyranometer to estimate short-term (5-minute) power
production data. Recent reduced costs associated with solar-PV may make this option more
attractive in the future. This analysis addresses fixed-plate, single- and dual-axis PV arrays.
This presentation also includes an economic analysis of the wind-only, solar-only, and
combined wind-solar plants. Over the past few years, renewable energy has entered the
electrical grid at an exponential rate. To reduce the uncertainties for the grid operator, wind
power plants “firm” their production under power purchase agreements (PPA’s) paying
penalties when the “firm” production is not met. This puts more risk on the wind power
provider in order to secure a higher sale price. Since wind power is best at night and solar
power is only during the day, by combining their synergies, uncertainty is reduced and higher
PPA’s are possible. This analysis will present economic estimates of the ability of plant
operators to secure higher purchase prices for power by raising the “firm” production level
and reducing the uncertainties.
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Wind Science and Engineering Research Center, Texas Tech University,
Box 41023, Lubbock, Texas 79409
Tel: 806-742-3476 – Web: www.depts.ttu.edu/wewebs