Abdulbaset Alazhare

Project Title: Wind Farm Digital Twin: Integrating monitoring, data and modelling

Keywords: Wind energy production, fuel crisis, wind farms, Irish energy, twin model, real-time monitoring, data modelling, physics-based models, data interrogation optimization, Data2Dynamics, fatigue equivalent loads, remaining life, Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland.

As the demand for renewable energy continues to grow globally and the fuel crisis looms, Ireland has committed to significantly increasing its green energy production. By the year 2030, the country aims to boost its wind energy production to 7 GW, a drastic increase from the 4,309 MW recorded in 2021. Achieving and sustaining such ambitious targets necessitates the implementation of large-scale, intelligent wind farms that leverage the principles governing wind flow and energy production to optimise their operation. These farms aim to maximize power output while minimizing turbine fatigue.

The objective of this project is to integrate real-time monitoring, data interrogation, and modelling techniques within the realm of wind energy. By establishing a connection between data-driven modelling, real-time monitoring, and the underlying physical principles that govern wind farms, the primary aim is to optimize wind farm performance and assess its operational lifespan.

An essential aspect of this project is the utilization of real-time monitoring techniques to develop site-specific wind turbine power curves and address challenges related to data reduction and fault detection. The project seeks to enhance the existing limited literature on data-driven modelling specific to wind farms by combining statistical learning techniques with classification aspects. This comprehensive analysis encompasses a range of approaches, including physics-based models, purely data-driven methods, and a hybrid methodology referred to as Data2Dynamics.

The research is conducted in collaboration with University College Dublin and funded by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), Grant no. RDD604.

 Supervisor:  Dr Breiffni Fitzgerald