Wind energy is one of the most affordable forms of electricity today. R&D efforts perfected the turbine design in the last 20 years. The manufacturers launch newer and bigger turbine models each year. Yet, there is a downside of the technology that hinders its adoption: dependency on weather. Investors want to know if the location they choose for a wind farm is the optimum one. In the meantime, wind farm operators need to know beforehand how much power their assets produce. Big Data and IoT can overcome both concerns at once.
The windiest location doesn’t necessarily mean the best spot to erect a turbine. Are there local turbulences that will influence the lifetime of the turbine? How will the topography affect the performance? Answering all these questions requires a precise investigation of each square meter of a site. This means spending a lot of precious time and resources. Big Data together with IoT, analyzing and learning from thousands of data sources, can instantly create a virtual wind farm in the computer before the investment is made. Assurance of their investments is what all investors want, and Big Data is there to provide it.
Electricity is more valuable when it can be scheduled. However, the unpredictable nature of wind is limiting its value. The industry has been developing weather forecast models to overcome this uncertainty. However, it was Big Data, powered with IoT, that led to a paradigm shift in the way the models are developed. Collecting a vast amount of data from thousands of sources and using it to learn the weather patterns is increasing the forecast accuracy. The operators soon will know the power output of their assets with a lead time up to several days.
Academia and industry are working together on developing more powerful Big Data and IoT solutions for the wind energy sector.
Leadvent Group is organizing the Windpower Data and Digital Innovation Forum. The latest updates and cutting-edge technologies will be discussed at the Forum by experts from industry leading companies, research centers and universities. It is a unique opportunity to learn from the best professionals of the field. Take your place among them and keep up with the latest activities of Big Data and IoT in wind industry!
For more information: https://leadventgrp.com/
