Wind energy potential assessment in order to produce electrical energy for case study in Divandareh, Iran

This paper evaluates the electricity production at Divandareh, a place located at Kurdistan, Iran through wind energy assessment using wind data of the site recorded in duration of a year at three different heights of 10, 30 and 50 meters. For this purpose, a statistical analysis of the measured wind data is performed. According to the US standards, the site is found to be a class-3 wind power site with power density of 336.18 W/m2at 50 m height. Moreover, dominant flow direction of wind is checked through wind rose plotting. It has been shown that the site is suitable for wind energy development by installing wind turbines with tall towers. Thereupon, four different commercial wind turbines have been nominated in order for studying. Using characteristics of nominated wind turbines and analyzed wind data, the average power and annual output energy are obtained for each of them. Finally, after determination of capacity and availability factors and comparison of these factors among wind turbines and due to economical criteria, it is achieved that turbine model De Wind 48 has the most appropriateness with the selected site.