November 2012

Recognized around the world for its research and testing, the Alternative Energy Institute (AEI) at West Texas A&M University is celebrating its 35th anniversary in education, training and development of renewable energy systems.

Formed in 1977, AEI based in Canyon, Texas, conducts turbine and sensor tests at its Nance Ranch Wind Test Center in partnerships with NRG Systems and the Small Wind Certification Council (SWCC). Beyond on-site testing, AEI performs work for private land owners, developers and the state of Texas in wind research.

“In the 70s, some of our physics professors were doing research on wind energy and renewables. It was about the same time of the 1973 oil embargo where prices went through the roof. The public became much more interested in renewable energy at that point and three professors, Vaughn Nelson, Earl Gilmore and Robert Barieau started the institute as an outgrowth of the research they were already doing,” said David Carr, associate director of AEI.

Carr now manages testing, resource assessment and other programs with a staff of full-time workers and undergraduate and graduate students from the institute’s main hub and 40-acre wind test center.

With initial funding from the State of Texas followed by grants and private contracts with communities and businesses, the institute now specializes in wind data collection and analysis, evaluation of wind turbines, research and development, workshops and training programs, consulting and educational programs and classes.

“We have datasets going back to the 80s for wind and solar in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma providing historical data in various areas for wind farm development,” he said. “We took data from various towers across those three states and that data is a big value for our partners in doing predictive assessments for long term wind analysis. We created the first detailed GIS maps for the state of Texas and provided that information to NREL so developers and others in the industry could look at the land and learn the potential for wind farm development.”

The institute also continues to be involved in GIS and WAsP data analysis for developers regionally as well as along the east coast and as far away as Kenya. Carr was involved in working with the group in Kenya as it installed its first site.

Carr says turbine testing is another major part of the work conducted by AEI. “We test turbines up to 50 kW and we test to AWEA standards,” he said. “We also do custom testing on our site for small-to-large-scale turbine models. Between 2009 and 2010, we installed 14 test pads that are ready to go at any time. Test pads are available with 480 volt three phase and 240 volt setups to accommodate many different types of turbines. Manufacturers ship their turbines to us. We can set it up, or their personnel can, and we test to the standards or custom requirements.”

The site is also capable of conducting small wind and custom prototype testing and enjoys Class 4+ winds, which Carr says generate faster results for users, and the construction and maintenance personnel on staff are knowledgeable and available at the site each day.

The AEI Wind Test Center is one of three preferred testing organizations from around the world recognized by the Small Wind Certification Council. Chosen from more than 20 testing centers, the SWCC designation indicates AEI provides quality engineering and testing practices.

With its affiliation to West Texas A&M University, AEI’s programs include classes, seminars, workshops, training programs, and specialized educational opportunities for its Windy Land Owners, which includes seminars and presentations on wind farm installation, operation, contracts and wind assessment information.

West Texas A&M also offers two- and four-year degree programs in engineering technology with an emphasis in renewables, including solar, wind and biomass.

In addition to education, community outreach programs and manufacturing relationships, the center specializes in training and is an official training center for NRG Systems, where workers are trained on 50, 60 or 80 meter tilt-up towers.

“I don’t know if there is anything else like us in the industry all in one place.” Carr said. “We also offer international internships where students learn how to work, not only in wind, but also on our 48 kW solar system. Our entire test site is a net positive producer of energy. We use solar hot water to heat our workshop and solar hot air is pumped into the building for heating.

“We offer very specialized testing, training and data analysis for the wind industry, and we have the capabilities to serve many more developers and manufacturers,” Carr said. – S.M.

For more information visit www.windenergy.org or call 806-651-2295.      

Formerly known as Catch the Wind, Ltd., BlueScout Technologies recently changed ownership and management with a new vision to bring its groundbreaking wind measurement technology to market.

“Our name, BlueScout, is about the future,” said Jo Major, President and CEO of BlueScout. “We are using this rebranding to show our customers, investors, and partners our commitment to helping turbines reliably produce cleaner, renewable energy. We intend to use our technologies and skills to help our customers understand and manage their wind resources more effectively.”

The BlueScout OCS-210 is a next generation turbine control system designed for utility-scale wind turbines. By placing the system on top of the nacelle, the optical unit measures wind speed and direction in the approaching inflow and can employ predictive control architectures to increase energy production and reduce the harmful effects of wind turbulence on wind turbines.

The OWS-150 is a lightweight, portable, all-weather wind assessment tool that can be used up to 300 meters above the ground for wind prospecting, wind resource assessment and turbine performance assessment. This unit is designed to provide engineering analysis data on the same rugged fiber optic platform as the OCS.

“What’s happening now is the industry uses a conventional anemometer positioned behind the rotor,” Major said. “And because there is so much turbulence, it is less representative of the actual wind resource and it limits the quality of data that can be measured and used for control. Everyone in the industry acknowledges that anemometers mounted behind the rotor have a lot of problems. They’ve spent years and years working to control wind turbines with that data, but in the end analysis, the performance of the turbine is limited by the quality of the data coming in. What we do, in a sense, is very focused and elegant. We measure the wind before it hits the turbine and base the control of the turbine on the unperturbed air that is going to strike. There are a lot of valuable things we can do by measuring the wind in front of a turbine.”

By using this pre-strike wind turbine data, BlueScout’s optical control system allows for precise control that generates more power and cleaner operation with less wear and noise.

“There are a lot of economic benefits in knowing the characteristics of the wind before it hits the turbine,” he said. “There is a lot of focus in the industry on dynamically adjusting pitch for optimal performance. Currently, after the wind hits the blades they detect heavy wind either through deflection of the blades or increased torque on the generator and then the blades change pitch. We know where the wind is going and what the wind characteristics are going to be three, four or five seconds before it hits the wind turbine so controls can adjust the blade to the proper pitch for the wind that will be hitting the blades, as opposed to reacting to what has already happened. If you adjust after the fact, it is based upon the assumption that the wind is going to be the same after it hits as when it hit. Our approach is much cleaner. We simply say, ‘well, the wind is going to increase in velocity by 20 percent so we need to proactively change our pitch. ’ ”

“The wind moves on the order of 10 meters per second and our system can see the wind 50 to 100 to 150 meters out in front of the turbine, so you are looking at us being able to tell the turbine what the wind velocity will be in five seconds and in 10 seconds,” he said. “The blades can adjust their pitch rapidly, so there is plenty of warning for these pitch control systems to adapt.”

With the increased acceptance of LIDAR in the industry to measure wind velocity with optical beams, the BlueScout system should be familiar to wind industry. The BlueScout OCS units have an improved telescope to capture more light, a better heating system to prevent icing, and significantly improved signal processing. Major said “improving the system while lowering costs was a challenge for BlueScout engineers, but was necessary to bring the new OCS unit to market for a wider audience.”

“The vast majority of our work is on active turbines, so we’ll send out an installation team and they go up on the turbine and install the OCS,” Major said. “After operating the system for a while, we’ll flip the switch and integrate into the control of the turbine. We are big believers in being collaborative with our customers, so there is a complete sharing of data on how much power is being generated. We provide the owner wind speed, wind direction, power curves and other data that gives the wind farm owner a complete turbine control analysis.”

Major says BlueScout’s technology is in test with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and installed and collecting thousands of hours of data in the field with current customers. – S.M.     

For more information, call 703-956-6554 or visit www.bluescout.com.