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This site started life as place to keep personal notes which needed to be
shared. Its background is in engineering, stats and software for
hydrocarbon exploration. Since leaving the oil industry, I have been
attempting to develop an understanding of renewable energy technologies, with a
specific interest in solar and wind power. Sections of the site are
evolving for these. What you will find:
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The
Electric Solar Bucket was
an experiment which took place between November 2007 and May 2009.
It was based on a 5W PV panel and a lead-acid battery. Whilst
undeniably crude, it provided valuable lessons in the output of a solar
panel in a temperate climate, battery management and experimental
design. |
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Statistical Distributions can
be used in mathematical models. for example, the Rayleigh
distribution is often used to describe wind velocity at a given
location. The Triangular distribution allows subjective estimates
(the minimum, most likely and maximum values) to be included in a
numerical analysis. |
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An alternative name for
Monte-Carlo methods would be Vegas values. The concept is simple,
the inputs of a mathematical model (say, of a PV panel with a battery
buffer) are fed with random values, typical of what a real-world system
might encounter, the output can be a distribution of the output values. |
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An evolving collection of
statistical methods consisting of a description, the appropriate formula
and in may cases a worked example. These pages are intended for
people who may need to use statistics as a tool (for example, use ANOVA
to determine if the variation in solar PV panel output can be attributed
to prevailing cloud cover). |
Both Solar and Wind energy are both weather dependent. In the
temperate zones, the output of solar thermal and PV devices is related to
the cloud cover and if the wind does not blow, a wind turbine is just
a sculpture on the skyline. We are currently working on software which
uses METAR data from NOAA to estimate the output of wind and solar devices,
until this is functional, we have used the Met. Office widget to show the
weather in the Brighton area.
Page Updated: 17-Jan-2010
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