Standards & Performance Testing 

Session Chair:Larry SherwoodExecutive DirectorSmall Wind Certification Council

AWEA Small and Community Wind ConferenceDecember 8, 2010

SWCC certifies Mechanical Strength, Durability, Function & Performance of turbine systemto new AWEA standard

NRTLs certify Electrical Safety of Turbine &Controller (new UL Standards in development)

PE certifies Tower & Foundation

NABCEPcertifies the Installer

NRTLs certify Inverter to IEEE 1547/UL 1741

Wired per National Electrical Code (NEC) (new article in 2011)

Gri

d-t

ie S

mall

Win

d T

urb

ine in t

he U

S

TM

AWEA Standard

AWEA Small Wind Turbine Performance and Safety Standard (AWEA Standard 9.1 – 2009)

Harmonized with the BWEA Standard (some differences such as acoustics)

Incorporates, with modifications, existing IEC standards for small wind turbines

Written to ensure the quality of the wind turbine can be assessed while imposing only reasonable costs and difficulty

TM

Equipment Eligibility

Per the AWEA standard

Newly manufactured, electricity-producing wind turbines with a swept area up to 200 m2

200m2 ~ 16m diameter rotor ~ 65 kW (or less)

Horizontal and vertical axis turbines are eligible

TM

SWCC: Small Wind Certification Council

New independent, third-party certification body to serve North America

Certify that small wind turbines (SWTs) meet the requirements of the new AWEA Small Wind Turbine Performance and Safety Standard

Used as state-level eligibility

SWT Manufacturer(structural analysis)

Test Organization(field testing)

the Standard

Certifies Conformity

TM

SWCC Certification Label

Rated Annual Energy (kWh) @ annual average wind speed of

11.2 mph (5 m/s)

Rated Sound Level (dBA) Sound pressure level not

exceeded 95% of time with average wind speed of 11.2 mph (5 m/s) at 60 meters from rotor

Rated Power (kW) @ 24.6 mph (11 m/s)

TM

SWCC Certification Applications Pending

Manufacturer Turbine

American Zephyr Corporation Airdolphin GTO

Bergey Windpower Co. Bergey 5kW & Bergey Excel-S

Cascade Engineering Swift Wind Turbine

Endurance Wind Power Inc. Endurance S-343

Enertech, Inc. Enertech E13

Evance Wind Turbines Ltd. Evance R9000

Eveready Diversified Products Kestrel e400i 3kW 250V & 48Vdc

Polaris America LLC P15-50

Potencia Industrial S.A. 10kW Hummingbird

Renewegy, LLC Renewegy VP-20

Seaforth Energy AOC 15-50

Southwest Windpower Skystream 3.7

Taisei Techno Co. TTK-10kW

Urban Green Energy UGE-1k and UGE-4k

UrWind UrWind O2

Ventera Energy Corporation Ventera VT10

Windspire Energy Windspire – 800040

Xzeres Wind Corporation ARE4428

TM

Benefits of Certification

Certification labels ease consumer comparison of products

Funding agencies and utilities will gain greater confidence that small turbines installed with public assistance have been tested for safety, function, performance and durability and meet requirements of consensus standards

Certification can help prevent unethical marketing and false claims, thereby ensuring consumer protection and industry credibility

TM

Standards & Performance Testing

Tim Zgonena, Underwriters LaboratoriesPublic and Regulatory Acceptance – New Developments in Small Wind Codes and Standards

Chris Simpson, Proven EnergyPractical Implications of Certification – The UK Experience

Paul Smart, Campbell Scientific Inc.Component Measurements for Assessing Total System Performance of a Small Wind Turbine

Kelly Winder, Saskatchewan Research CouncilSmall Wind Turbine Performance – A Case Study

Larry SherwoodExecutive Director

Small Wind Certification CouncilLarry@smallwindcertification.org

518-213-9441