Potential wind power generation at Khon Kaen, Thailand

The energy demand of the world is increasing rapidly, mainly using fossil energy, which causes environmental damage. The wind is free and clean energy to solve the environmental problems. Thailand is one of the developing nations, and the majority of its energy is obtained from petroleum, natural gas and coal. The objective of this study is to test the characteristics of wind energy at Khon Kaen in Thailand. The wind measurement tools, the 3-cup anemometers to measure wind speed, and wind vanes to measure wind direction, were mounted on a wind tower mast to record wind data at the heights of 60, 90 and 120 meters above ground level (AGL) for 5 years between January 2012 and December 2016. The results show that the annual mean wind speeds were 3.79, 4.32 and 4.66 m/s, respectively. The highest mean wind speeds occurred in June, August and December, in order, and the lowest occurred in September. The majority of prevailing wind directions were from the NorthEast and South-West directions. The average annual wind shear coefficient was 0.297. Furthermore, five wind turbines with rated power from 0.85 to 4.5 MW were selected to estimate the wind energy output and it was found that the maximum AEP and CF were achieved from the low cut-in speed and high hub-height wind turbines. This important information will help to develop wind energy applications, such as the plan to produce electricity and the calculation of the wind load that affects tall and large structures.