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RERL Facilities
The RERL facilities include a wide range of wind energy
technologies relating to wind energy system testing and
design and wind resource assessment. The RERL has a
two-bladed 250 kW
research wind turbine located in Holyoke, MA, and a
state-of-the-art 100 kW power electronic converter. In
addition to towers and anemometry, the RERL also has a
LIDAR (LIght Detecting And Ranging) and two SODAR
(Sound Detecting And Ranging) wind measurement
systems. A wind tunnel, which can produce air speeds
up to 15 m/s, is also available through the Mechanical
& Industrial Engineering Department for RERL
research and testing. RERL staff and students use both
industry-standard and in-house software for turbine
modeling, resource modeling and assessment, and visual
and audible impact analysis.
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SODAR - Sonic Detection and Ranging - Acoustic
remote sensing of wind resource.
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LIDAR - Light Detection and Ranging - Another
of RERL's remote sensing equipment that can be
used to assess wind resource.
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