Conducted at the ECN Wind Turbine Test Site-Wieringermeer (EWTW), the ECN study compared data from a Triton to data from a 100mt tall meteorological tower instrumented with anemometers and wind vanes at four different heights. The study compared measurements of wind speed and direction, as well as wind shear profiles, vertical wind speeds and turbulence intensity.
According to the report, the Triton can be considered valid as a stand-alone system for wind resource assessments, especially given the industry’s tendency towards higher hub heights.
The report also highlights Triton’s operational availability of 98.85% during the test period, low maintenance requirements and good performance at heights above 100mt.
Larry Letteney, CEO of Second Wind, said: “ECN is an internationally respected research laboratory with a long history of research in the wind energy industry and we were pleased to work with them on this project. This study is important because it provides independent verification of the results we have obtained through dozens of our own correlation studies.”
The three-month study, conducted last summer on a wind turbine test station at the independent national laboratory, concluded a year of travel for Second Wind’s demonstration Triton unit. The unit used in the study had been installed at outdoor demonstrations at over 20 separate sites in four countries and covered over 7,500 road miles in an open trailer prior to its installation at Wieringermeer.
