German researchers have developed a device to help evaluate the potential for interference between wind turbines and radar instruments.
Designed for suspension from a helicopter or small unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), the device measures the strength of the electric field and the radar signals used in meteorology, defense or air traffic control, reports the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).
Wind turbines, which convert kinetic energy from the wind into electric current and offer a cost-effective, environmentally-friendly energy alternative to fossil fuels, are growing in popularity, up by almost 45,000 globally from 2011 to 2012. However, a number of national agencies, including the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.K.’s national weather service, have voiced concerns, saying the large rotor blades on wind turbines can reflect electromagnetic waves that are picked up as interference by a radar system. Known as “wind turbine clutter,” the interference can affect the ability of nearby air traffic control radar systems to identify the position and altitude of aircraft or distort the accuracy of atmospheric condition readings at a weather station, leading to false warnings of severe and hazardous weather and missed alerts of heavy rainfall and flooding.
Now, a team from the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), in cooperation with FCS Flight Calibration Services GmbH from Braunschweig, Germany, has created a device that could help prevent interference between proposed wind farm installations and nearby radar systems.
According to the researchers, several wind energy projects are currently on hold because radar operators have refused to rely on simulation models to prove the two technologies will not interfere with each other on the basis that simulation of wave propagation requires numerous assumptions that cannot be verified by measurements. Data from the new device, which consists of an antenna and receiver system and relies on GPS satellites to mark the time and location of specific electromagnetic field strength measurements, could be used to improve simulation models’ accuracy in predicting the level of interference between radar systems and wind farms.
The device can either be suspended from a helicopter or installed on a small unmanned aerial vehicle for testing in areas where manned vehicles cannot fly.
German researchers have developed a device capable of measuring interference between electric installations and radar instruments.
