Scaling effects of fixed-wing ground-generation airborne wind energy systems

While some airborne wind energy system (AWES) companies aim at small, temporary or remote off-grid markets, others aim at utility-scale, multi-megawatt integration into the electricity grid. This study investigates the scaling effects of single-wing, ground-generation AWESs from small- to utility-scale systems, subject to realistic 10 min, onshore and offshore wind conditions derived from a numerical mesoscale Weather Research And Forecasting (WRF) model. To reduce computational cost, vertical wind velocity profiles are grouped into 10 clusters using k -means clustering. Three representative profiles from each cluster are implemented into a nonlinear AWES optimal control model to determine power-optimal trajectories. We compare the effects of three different aircraft masses and two sets of nonlinear aerodynamic coefficients for aircraft with wing areas ranging from 10 to 150 m 2 on operating parameters and flight trajectories. We predict size- and mass-dependent AWES power curves, annual energy production (AEP) and capacity factors (cf) and compare them to a quasi-steady-state reference model. Instantaneous force, tether-reeling speed and power fluctuations as well as power losses associated with tether drag and system mass are quantified.

Abstract licence: CC BY

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