Wind Farm Term Project:
Team Windbreakers
Members:
Ross Belkofer
James Rayo
Natalie Sample
Alex Styborski
Garrett Brown
Dylan Warner
Executive Summary
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Statement of the Problem
Background
Method of Solution
Results
Discussion and Conclusions
Background
Introduction

History of Development of the
Wind Turbine in this Project

Choices in Wind Farm Design

What the future holds…
Introduction
 An off-shore wind farm could have benefits but also many
issues related to the planning and building of it. The
General Electric 4.0-110 is the turbine used in this
presentation.
Issues to address:
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Where will this wind turbine be located and what is its
purpose?
Obtaining consent for construction and other legal issues
concerning the project.
Is safety a concern in the building and use of this wind
turbine?
History
Introduced in 2010
Relatively new wind turbine
General Electric is a global leader
[Figure 1: GE symbol(2012)]
of wind turbines around the world
Choice in Wind Turbine
General Electric’s proven technology
The 4.0 MW offshore wind turbine delivers a reliable,
cost-effective, high-performance solution
Offshore capability to generate a multitude of energy
Permanent magnet generator delivers high efficiency
even at low wind speeds
Replaces gearboxes with reliable components
designed for offshore turbines
What the Future Holds
 The offshore wind industry is maturing and growing
 From a 1.5 GW base in 2008 to a forecasted 30 GW
base in 2020
 Wind power will be more dependent
 “Powering the world… responsibly.”
Statement of the Problem
 To construct the offshore wind turbine within the
constraints of:
o The Construction Schedule
o The Budget
o The Environment (Oceanic Surface)
o Abiding to safety regulations
Why solve the problem?
 Quality of Life
o Cheaper for local people
o Healthier more responsible
alternative
 Construction
o Material measurements
precise i.e. concrete,
machine use
o Stick to construction
schedule
 Protection of Environment
o No emission of carbon dioxide
o Not burning fossil fuels
o Animal life - no chance of oil
spills
o Alternative energy
o Ozone layer
o Clean
Mission and Objectives
Mission:
“Our General Electric 4.0-110
Offshore Wind Turbine will
efficiently produce and store
clean energy to power various
sources off the coast of
Maine.”
Key Factors:
o Location
o Turbine Type / Amount
o Cost
o Time
Iterative design
Observe and evaluate
design
Implement and test
the solutions
Develop the
Solutions
Define the
problems
Design
 Location in relation to environment
 Type of turbine
 Distance from shore
 Codes zoning
 Wave patterns and depth of
water (Nautical Chart)
 Weather
Construction Planning
 Weather
 Materials/transportation
 Workers
 Legal consideration
permits/consent
 Equipment rental
 Budget
 Timeline
Scope
• Surrounding environment
• Marine life
• Weather
• Wave patterns
• Properties of water
• Cost
• Energy
About the GE 4.0-110
OFFSHORE TURBINE
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•
•
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Horizontal Axis Turbine
For cost efficiency gearboxes were
replaced with slow speed
components for the offshore
environment
Safety and Maintenance
Advantages
Open nacelle and easy access to
the core hub
Automatic Lubrication Process
Self generated and has redundant
operation systems
Low operating cost
Efficient power to energy ratio
[Figure 1: GE 4.0-110 Offshore Turbine (2008)]
Power Curve
• Rated Power Capacity : 4 MW
• Rated Power produced in 1 hour = 4 MWh
• Rated Power produced in 1 year = 35,040 MWh
• Rated Power produced in 1 year for 20 turbines =
700,800 MWh
• Cut-In (Start-Up) Wind Speed: 3 m/s
• Rated (Nominal) Wind Speed: 14 m/s
• Cut-Out (Maximum) Wind Speed: 25 m/s
Efficiency
• There is a range of wind speeds close to the rated wind speed in
which the turbine performs optimally
• After this range, performance decreases drastically
• On average, if wind speed decreases by half, power production
decreases by a factor of 8
• Industry estimates an annual output of 30-40% of the rated
capacity
• Mean output in U.S.: 26.9% of rated capacity
• General Electric claims a 52% capacity factor (in wind speed of
10 m/s)
Efficiency cont’d
• This is called capacity factor: actual
output/maximum output
• 26.9% capacity factor: 700,800 * 0.269 =
188,515 MWh in 1 year
• 52% capacity factor: 700,800 * 0.52 =
364,416 MWh in 1 year
How many homes can a
wind turbine power?
• Average household power consumption: 11.496 MWh per
year
• Maine: 6.252 MWh per year
• 52% capacity factor: 31,699 homes, 58,287 in Maine
• 26.9% capacity factor: 16,398 homes, 30,153 in Maine
• ** This does not mean, however that our power is
going straight to housing. Instead, it is being sold to a
power distribution company where housing accounts
for only about one third of power in the grid.
Max Power Calculation
 Max Rated Power:
o
Minimum Wind Speed =
o
Maximum Wind Speeds = 25 M/S*
3 M/S*
* Calculations included the
use of MatLab™
[Figure 2: Screen Shot of MATLAB]
Offshore Location
o Offshore of Maine in the United States
o Known to have high wind speeds year-round
o The coast is not overwhelmed with turbines with a
comfortable distance away from the shore line
o 20 turbines on water platforms
o Google Earth map representation…
Site Map
•
Atlantic Coastline
[Figure 3: Google Maps Image]
Google Sketch-Up Design
---- Electrical connections
Layout of Generator
and Electrical Connections
 Generator
High above water
ensure water protection
 Worker’s Platform
easy accessibility
storage of the generator and
electrical connections
[Figure 4: Turbine Internals]
Layout of Generator cont.
Direct Drive Generator:
• Transferring DC power through the sea water
• High inductance of salt water allows the DC
power to flow
• DC power will move through the connections and
be converted at substation
25
Method of solution
• Work Breakdown and Structure:
• Labor
• Contractors
o Transportation of equipment
• Barges
o Platform constructor
o General Electric (GE) for Wind Turbines
Construction Schedule
o Hiring Period of personnel: 1 month
o Site prep and law/license registration and
processing: 2-3 months
o Equipment Ordering/Delivering: 3 weeks
o Construction: 5-8 months
o Testing Period: 2 weeks
Gantt Schedule View
Cost Analysis
 The total budget will be anywhere from
$220-$230 million dollars
 Categories:
•Safety
•Wind Turbines
•Labor Costs
•Transportation
•Equipment/Miscellaneous
Gantt Cost Analysis
Team Windbreakers Group
Roles
 In our research we found that each of us had roles
that helped to propel us and keep us going on the
right track. Through this collaboration our project was
completed.
o
Natalie – Harmonizer and encourager
o
Alex – Clarifier and information seeker
o
Ross – Initiator and option generator
o
Dylan – Summarizer
o
Garrett – Information giver
o
James – Initiator and option generator
Evaluation of Preliminary
Design
Team 5 Ratings of
Preliminary Presentation:
Criteria:
Addresses time
3.6
Address cost
1.8
Addresses safety
3.2
Addresses environmental impact.
3.8
Address quality.
How well are technical issues evaluated?
Is the preliminary site made using Google
Earth adequate?
4.6
Is the wind farm design suited to its intended
application?
Is the design well suited to site and
surrounding community?
Site map included that shows connection to
grid or other power consuming facility
Has the wind turbine that you are using been
proven effective in wind farms that are now in
operation?
Id the construction schedule adequate? Are
all the tasks included in logical order?
4.6
4.8
5
5
2.2
4
4.8
Off-shore location
3.6
Usefulness and user-friendly
4.2
Operation
[Fiigure 5: GE 40-110 (2012)]
Average
Rating
4
Evaluation of Preliminary
Design
Team 5 Brainstorming:
• The group needs to go into more detail about each of
the tasks necessary to complete the project
• We need to find the cost of each turbine
• We need to discuss safety more in depth
• Consider environmental impacts more thoroughly
• We need to research the electrical workings of the
turbine
Discussion and
Conclusions
 Very Bright Future
 Future challenges:
• environmental impacts
• cost constraints
 Turnover Rate
• approximately 10-15 years
 The major challenges of wind farms:
• Space
• Time
• Weather/Environment
• Legal Regulations
• Costs
 These challenges can be overcome with careful planning and research
Resources
• http://www.windpoweringamerica.gov/windmaps/offshore.
asp
• http://site.geenergy.com/prod_serv/products/wind_turbines/en/offshore
/index.htm
• http://www.thewindpower.net/turbine_en_9_geenergy_4.0-110.php
• http://www.4coffshRatore.com/windfarms/turbine-GEEnergy-GE-4.0-110--tid21.html
• http://www.windpowerengineering.com/featured/buisnessnews-projects/4-mw-direct-drive-headed-offshore/
• http://www.wind-watch.org/faq-output.php