Are You Correctly Evaluating Your Performance Upgrade?
(Room Windsor Complex)
27 Feb 18
3:00 PM
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3:30 PM
OEMs and 3rd parties currently offer a variety of turbine upgrades. These may be software-based controls optimization, or hardware-based aerodynamic devices. Many items should be evaluated, such as structural reliability, to determine if an upgrade can be implemented at a specific site, but how do you determine if it should? How do you prove the technology will lead to higher production at a specific site without sacrificing reliability? This study presents options for the validation of site-specific upgrades using (non-IEC) test-based methods as well as the associated risks and benefits of each method. Several test methodologies are presented that are appropriate for various upgrade types. These tests provide an estimate of the AEP increase resulting from turbine upgrades during a defined test period. Also presented is a methodology for using test results to make long-term predictions of AEP gain following the test period. The potential impact of reliability of various components is also assessed.