In the brisk winds off the coast of northern Japan, a groundbreaking experiment has been blowing through the world of offshore wind energy. Susumu Shimada, a researcher at the Renewable Energy Research Center of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology in Koriyama, Japan, has been leading the charge. His team has been putting dual and single scanning Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) systems through their paces to measure near-shore winds, and the results are stirring up the industry.
Imagine you’re standing on the deck of a ship, feeling the wind on your face. Now, imagine trying to measure that wind accurately, not just for the moment, but consistently over time, and not just at one point, but across a wide area. That’s the challenge Shimada and his team have been tackling. They set up shop at the Mutsu Ogawara test site, about 1.5 kilometers offshore, and ran their experiment from November 2020 to August 2021.
So, what’s the big deal about LiDAR? Well, it’s a remote sensing method that uses light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges (distances) to objects. In this case, it’s used to measure wind speed and direction. The team compared the accuracy of dual scanning LiDAR (DSL) and single scanning LiDAR (SSL) systems with in-situ observations from a 60-meter meteorological mast. The results? The DSL showed good agreement with the mast observations for all wind directions, while the SSL’s accuracy was strongly influenced by the wind direction. As Shimada puts it, “The 10-min wind speeds and directions obtained by the DSL exhibited good agreement with the meteorological mast observations for all wind directions.”
But here’s where it gets interesting for the maritime sector. Turbulence intensity (TI) is a big deal when it comes to wind energy. High TI can lead to increased wear and tear on wind turbines, and even structural failure. The team found that the TI measured by the SSL was significantly lower than that measured by cup anemometers, while the DSL’s measurements were in line with the cup observations. This means that while SSL might be suitable for assessing wind resources due to reduced technical and financial constraints, DSL could be the way to go for a more comprehensive assessment, including site-specific conditions.
So, what does this mean for the maritime industry? Well, offshore wind energy is a growing market, and accurate wind measurement is crucial for its development. LiDAR systems, particularly DSL, could provide the detailed, accurate data needed to make offshore wind farms more efficient and reliable. This could lead to more jobs, more investment, and more opportunities for maritime professionals.
But it’s not just about the money. Accurate wind measurement could also help reduce the environmental impact of offshore wind farms. By providing detailed data on wind conditions, LiDAR systems could help optimize the placement and operation of wind turbines, reducing their impact on marine life and the environment.
The results of this experiment were published in the journal Wind Energy, adding to the growing body of research on LiDAR systems for wind measurement. As the offshore wind energy market continues to grow, so too will the demand for accurate, reliable wind measurement. And with researchers like Shimada and his team leading the way, the future of offshore wind energy looks bright.
