Ecosense Installed Wind Energy Training System at Department of Renewable Energy Engineering, College of Agricultural Engineering & Post Harvest Technology
The College of Agricultural Engineering and Post-Harvest Technology (CAEPHT) was established by CAU in the year 2006 to address the issue of shortage of trained manpower (human resource) in the disciplines of agricultural engineering and post-harvest technology besides other issues, pertaining to natural resource management, farm mechanization, post-harvest technology, processing & value addition, utilization of renewable sources of energy, creation of agro-industries etc. in the region.
Furthering the process of manpower training, CAEPHT ordered Wind Energy Training System from Ecosense.
Wind Energy Training System
Wind Energy Training System is a scaled down version of actual standalone Wind Turbine power plant. This system facilitates the students with working and configurable model of wind turbine. This system gives the insight about individual components and consequences of changing the operating points of any wind turbine defined in terms of wind speed and pitch angle. Students can learn concepts like I-V characteristic, cut-off, cut-in speed etc.
This system is developed such that it can work inside a closed laboratory with an artificial wind generating unit, which makes it weather proof. User can access and utilize the system capability at any time of the day without worrying about the actual climatic conditions. This system uses a big fan mounted on top of an Induction motor, the speed of which can be controlled by a Variable Frequency Drive. User can control the speed of motor which further controls the Wind speed using the Variable Frequency Drive. The variable wind speed prompts Wind Turbine to convert Wind Energy into Electrical energy and outputs three phase electrical output. The three-phase electrical output is connected with a three-phase rectifier which converts electrical output from AC to DC. The DC output is then further connected to a Charge controller and Battery. A DC load can be connected at Charge controller output. The Battery is further connected to a home inverter which provides clean useable AC electricity.
Advantages of Wind Energy Training System
Ecosense’s Wind Energy Training System enables students to learn about Wind Turbine technologies in easy and interactive manner. A user can study and understand about the following principles of Wind Energy Generation technology:
• Evaluation of efficiency of charge controller
• Evaluation of the cut-in speed of wind turbine experimentally
• Evaluation of Tip Speed ratio (TSR) at different wind speeds
• Evaluation of coefficient of performance of wind turbine
• Draw the turbine Power versus wind speed curve
• Draw the curve between TSR and coefficient of power
• Draw the power curve of turbine with respect to the rotational speed of rotor at fix wind speeds
• Demonstrate the power analysis at turbine output
• Demonstrate the power analysis at different branches of wind turbine energy system with AC load only
• Demonstrate the power analysis at different branches of wind turbine energy system with DC load only
Ecosense installs Wind Energy Training System at CAEPHT, Gangtok
Master’s Training Conducted
After successful installation of systems, a short 1-day master’s training program is conducted. This master’s training was focused on how to efficiently utilize the system in core-curriculum development and practical experimentations.
Program Outcomes
The faculty members and students really enjoyed our two-day training programme and loved to work on our lab equipment. Professors will further conduct experiments on the system to understand it more deeply and incorporate this lab set up as part of their regular curriculum.