Abstract
World wind power resources are abundant, but their utilization could
be limited because wind fluctuates rather than providing steady power.
We hypothesize that wind power output could be stabilized if wind
generators were located in a meteorologically designed configuration
and electrically connected. Based on 5 yr of wind data from 11
meteorological stations, distributed over a 2,500 km extent along the
U.S. East Coast, power output for each hour at each site is
calculated. Each individual wind power generation site exhibits the
expected power ups and downs. But when we simulate a power line
connecting them, called here the Atlantic Transmission Grid, the
output from the entire set of generators rarely reaches either low or
full power, and power changes slowly. Notably, during the 5-yr study
period, the amount of power shifted up and down but never stopped.
This finding is explained by examining in detail the high and low
output periods, using reanalysis data to show the weather phenomena
responsible for steady production and for the occasional periods of
low power. We conclude with suggested institutions appropriate to
create and manage the power system analyzed here.
http://www.pnas.org/content/107/16/7240.full.pdf+html
Electric power from offshore wind via synoptic-scale interconnection
1. Willett Kemptona,1,
2. Felipe M. Pimentaa,
3. Dana E. Verona, and
4. Brian A. Colleb
+ Author Affiliations
1.
aCenter for Carbon-free Power Integration, College of Earth,
Ocean and Environment, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716; and
2.
bSchool of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook
University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-5000
1.
Edited by M. Granger Morgan, Carnegie Mellon University,
Pittsburgh, PA, and approved February 23, 2010 (received for review
August 14, 2009)
