The Objective of Implementing Active Wind Turbine Control is to Reduce Bird Fatalities by 80%
One inconvenient reality faced by the clean energy sector, which appears to be a matter of significant concern for the fossil fuel industry, is the undeniable fact that wind turbines cause bird fatalities. Researchers suggest that more intelligent turbine designs could substantially reduce this impact.
Quantifying the number of birds that collide with the rotating blades of wind turbines and perish is a challenging task. Furthermore, the subject is so politically charged that researching it might warrant caution. The American Bird Conservancy has examined some of the existing evidence and suggests that the estimate of at least one million bird deaths annually in the United States alone is likely an underestimation.
The Imperative to Find a Solution
While this number is significantly lower than the estimated 25.5 million birds that unintentionally collide with overhead power lines annually, the approximately 980 million bird fatalities due to building collisions each year, or the staggering 1.4 to 3.7 billion birds that fall victim to domestic cats, it remains an unacceptable figure. This issue requires attention because as we move towards a fully sustainable energy grid, the need for an increasing number of turbines in the coming decades makes it imperative to find a solution.
Scientists at SINTEF and the Norwegian Centre for Environment-friendly Energy Research have a potentially effective solution in mind for many situations.
Equipping Turbines with Bird Detection Technology
Their concept is relatively straightforward: equip each turbine with cameras capable of detecting birds heading directly into the rotor’s path. Specialized software will then calculate the birds’ anticipated flight paths, and if there’s a risk of collision, the system will transmit control commands to slow down the blades. This will be achieved by adjusting the generator moment and altering the blade twist.
The system can be configured to completely shut down turbines in the event of a significant number of approaching birds. However, it’s important to note that it may take up to 20 seconds for a large turbine to come to a complete stop from its normal rotation speed.
According to Garcia Rosa, “Based on our simulations, we believe that the SKARV project has the potential to reduce fatal collisions by up to 80%. The next phase involves further refining the strategies for controlling blade rotation speeds and integrating them with bird flight trajectory identification methods. Subsequently, we aim to conduct practical demonstrations. We anticipate that SKARV technology could become commercially available within five years, possibly sooner if there’s significant industry interest.”
Navigating Environmental Concerns and the Need for Pragmatic Solutions
This issue can lead to interesting dynamics, as even coal industry leaders can become advocates for environmental concerns. If bird interruptions become a recurring problem for clean energy generation, systems like SKARV might cause clean energy proponents to adopt more pragmatic approaches. Some researchers argue that birds are learning to avoid turbines on their own. Nonetheless, with over a million bird deaths annually in the USA alone, this remains a problem worth addressing. We eagerly await updates on the progress of trials.
Read the original article on: New Atlas
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