ENERGY CONSUMPTION REQUIREMENT AND WIND ENERGY GENERATION POTENTIAL OF A RURAL COMMUNITY

SOURCE:

Faculty: Engineering
Department: Mechanical Engineering

CONTRIBUTORS:

Madu, Kingsley Ejikeme
Achebe, C. H,

ABSTRACT:

Nigeria, in modern times, is besieged by the problem of inadequate power generation and distribution. Most rural villages become cut off from the existing grid, as an unavoidable sequel. The aim of this dissertation is to undertake an evaluation of the energy consumption requirement and wind energy generation potential of a rural community. The study was centered around Owerre-Ezukala community, in Anambra State. The dependent variable of wind velocities of the experimental sites were measured using the electronic digital anemometer. The results of the paired sample statistics derived from the Weibull and Cauchy statistical models, found the mean power for Betz and the generated models to be 11.4808 kW and 28.9350 kW respectively. There exists a weak positive relationship between the power produced by Betz model and the generated model; with an identified mean difference of -17.45 co-joining the two models. Further result revealed the occurrence of a significant difference between Betz’ and the generated models with a p-value of 0.000 which falls on the rejection region of the hypothesis. A functionality analysis was performed based on a hub height of 10 m, blade radius of 7.5 m, and a swept area of 176.74 m2, using the variables. Hence, the co-efficient of performance of the wind turbine, K, for Betz’ model equals 0.47; and 0.49 for the generated model. An energy audit performed in the community reveals energy need of 710 kW, which can be met using 25 wind turbines in a wind farm. This calculation is derived from the REVEK mathematical model. The above indices show that siting a wind farm in Owerre-Ezukala is a viable option. The measured wind speed values in this assessment could serve as sources of data for NIMET record data-upgrade and futuristic referencing.