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What is wind speed normalization?

Wind speed normalization is a key step in accurately assessing the performance of wind turbines. The warranted power curve of the OEM is provided for a specific air density which needs to be matched for a fair comparison

The wind speed normalization formula 🧮

The relationship between measured wind speed and normalized wind speed is expressed as:

Vnormalized=Vmeasured×(ρmeasured/ρreference)1/3

  • Vnormalized​: Adjusted wind speed for standard air density.
  • Vmeasured: Wind speed at actual conditions.
  • ρmeasured​: Actual air density at the site (based on temperature, pressure, and humidity).
  • ρreference: Standard reference air density (usually 1.225 kg/m3)

A simple analogy: flat running 🏃‍♂️ vs uphill running ⛰️🏃‍♂️

Wind speed normalization is like levelling the playing field. Instead of just looking at raw wind speeds, we adjust for differences in air density to better understand how much energy the wind can actually generate.

Imagine you’re trying to compare two runners 🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️. One is running uphill, and the other is on flat ground. To make the comparison fair, you’d need to adjust for the difference in terrain. Normalizing wind speed is similar—it factors in air density to provide a clearer picture of wind turbine performance.

Fair performance assessment:

Normalizing helps compare turbine performance under different environmental conditions. It ensures a cold winter day ❄️ and a hot summer day ☀️ are evaluated on equal terms.

Summary

Wind speed normalization ensures accurate and fair assessments of turbine performance by accounting for air density variations and allows a better understanding of energy potential.

The normalised wind speed used in Dashboard wind power curve app allows a direct comparison of the turbine production with the OEM power curve thus providing an analysis matching the industry's best practice.