Integration of Wind Turbines With Compressed Air Energy Storage

Abstract

Some of the major limitations of renewable energy sources are represented by their low power density and intermittent nature, largely depending upon local site and unpredictable weather conditions. These problems concur to increase the unit costs of wind power, so limiting their diffusion. By coupling storage systems with a wind farm, some of the major limitations of wind power, such as a low power density and an unpredictable nature, can be overcome. After an overview on storage systems, the Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) is analyzed, and the state of art on such systems is discussed. A Matlab/Simulink model of a hybrid power plant consisting of a wind farm coupled with CAES is then presented. The model has been successfully validated starting from the operating data of the McIntosh CAES Plant in Alabama. Time-series neural network-based wind speed forecasting are employed to determine the optimal daily operation strategy for the storage system. A detailed economic analysis has been carried out: investment and maintenance costs are estimated based on literature data, while operational costs and revenues are calculated according to energy market prices. As shown in the paper, the knowledge of the expected available energy is a key factor to optimize the management strategies of the proposed hybrid power plant, allowing to obtain environmental and economic benefits.

Increasing the Value of Wind with Energy Storage

“…It bears mentioning that the coupling of wind generation and storage has been studied in other contexts, but that this proposed use of storage to increase the market value of wind energy has not be studied before. Sørensen (1981); Cavallo (1995); Denholm et al (2005); Paatero and Lund (2005); DeCarolis and Keith (2006); Succar et al (2006); Greenblatt et al (2007); Swider (2007); Black and Strbac (2007); Abbey and Joos (2007); García-González et al (2008); Arsie et al (2009) all examine the value of using energy storage to manage the variable and unpredictable nature of wind availability in power systems and the broader economics of energy storage and wind. Most of this analysis has focused on more 'engineering' aspects of wind integration such as grid stability, load-balance, and system security.…”

Geotechnical issues related to renewable energy

“…Another form of the CAES system utilizes wind power to generate electricity power. However, due to the intermittent nature of wind, the variation from generating electricity power is stored at the peak hours to provide stable electricity continuously (Arsie et al, 2009). The on-going technology for the CAES is in the form of a hybrid concept to combine the conventional CAES with renewable energy such as wind and geothermal heating (David, 2004).…”

Farm Wide Dynamics: The Next Critical Wind Energy Frontier

“…There are presently no CAES facilities operating in conjunction with a wind power plant however two facilities exist for the purpose of shifting power from off peak to peak demand hours. Arsie et al [63] proposed a method for simulation and management of a hybrid CAES/wind power plant combination comparing cost and efficiency for a range of wind farm sizes. Konrad et al [64] completed a more detailed study of geology and geography, design and configuration and economic and operations analysis for a specific region in Ontario, Canada shedding light on the opportunities that exist for CAES and its feasibility.…”