Abstract:The present study deals with wind energy analysis and the selection of an optimum type of wind turbine in terms of the feasibility of installing wind power system at three locations in South Korea: Deokjeok-do, Baengnyeong-do and Seo-San. The wind data measurements were conducted during 2005-2015 at Deokjeok-do, 2001 at Baengnyeong-do and 1997 at Seo-San. In the first part of this paper wind conditions, like mean wind speed, wind rose diagrams and Weibull shape and scale parameters are presented, so that the wind potential of all the locations could be assessed. It was found that the prevailing wind directions at all locations was either southeast or southwest in which the latter one being more dominant. After analyzing the wind conditions, 50-year and 1-year extreme wind speeds (EWS) were estimated using the graphical method of Gumbel distribution. Finally, according to the wind conditions at each site and international electro-technical commission (IEC) guidelines, a set of five different wind turbines best suited for each location were shortlisted. Each wind turbine was evaluated on the basis of technical parameters like monthly energy production, annual energy production (AEP) and capacity factors (CF). Similarly, economical parameters including net present value (NPV), internal rate of return (IRR), payback period (PBP) and levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) were considered. The analysis shows that a Doosan model WinDS134/3000 wind turbine is the most suitable for Deokjeok-do and Baengnyeong-do, whereas a Hanjin model HJWT 87/2000 is the most suitable wind turbine for Seo-San. Economic sensitivity analysis is also included and discussed in detail to analyze the impact on economics of wind power by varying turbine's hub height.

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Optimum wind farm site selection is a quite complicated and iterative process, as it depends upon various parameters and so called "site selection criteria". Determining the relative weight of each criterion, which is a multi-criteria decision making (MCDM) process, is very critical during this process. The current study deals with the optimum site selection for on-shore wind farm development in the territory of South Korea using a geographic information system (GIS). Seven different site selection criteria, including the slope of the land, the distance to roads and wind potential are considered. Similarly, seven different types of land zones where it is impossible to build a wind farm, commonly known as restricted areas, such as military zones, wetlands, etc., were also considered and excluded from the study area. The analytical hierarchy process (AHP) coupled with fuzzy triangular numbers (FTN) was utilized as a MCDM tool to get criterion weights and making the optimum site selection decision. Wind farm suitability maps were prepared under six different scenarios, and it was found that the eastern part of the country has relatively higher feasibility for on-shore wind farm development in the near future. According to the wind farm suitability scale (1 to 8 where 8 being top sites) developed in this study, it was determined that under each scenario the total area of scale 8 sites i.e., "the most suitable sites" account for less than one percent of the total area of South Korea. Apart from the wind farm suitability maps, the top five sites were also determined according to each scenario and the values of important parameters such as latitude ( • ) & longitude ( • ), the area of the site (km 2 ) and the average values of all seven criterions were also estimated for each of the top five sites.