Is the wind on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau really “weak and powerless”?

Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

It is one of the three major wind zones in my country.

There are about 75 days of strong winds (above 17m/s) each year.

However, due to the lower air density in the plateau

Wind energy resources here have long been

Considered "weak"

No development value

Is this really the case?

Image source: Tuchong Creative

Zhu Rong, chief meteorological expert of the China Meteorological Administration and researcher at the National Climate Center, led a research team to conduct a comprehensive and detailed study and evaluation of the characteristics, formation mechanism and development potential of wind energy resources on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

The assessment found that the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is a region rich in wind energy resources in my country. The technically exploitable amount of wind energy resources at an altitude of 100 meters and an average wind power density of 400 watts per square meter and above is 1.02 billion kilowatts, accounting for 26% of the national total. Among them, the Tibet Autonomous Region has 600 million kilowatts, Qinghai Province has 200 million kilowatts, and the areas belonging to Xinjiang, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan have a total of 220 million kilowatts.

1km resolution wind energy resource distribution data on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (1979-2008)

Source: National Tibetan Plateau Data Center

Zhu Rong, Sun Chaoyang. (2021). 1km resolution wind energy resource distribution data on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (1979-2008). National Tibetan Plateau Data Center, DOI: 10.11888/Meteoro.tpdc.271275. CSTR: 18406.11.Meteoro.tpdc.271275.

Research has found that the most notable feature of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau's wind energy resources is the daily variation in wind speed - in most parts of China, the wind speed is low during the day and high at night. The daily variation pattern of wind speed on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is that the wind speed is high from the afternoon to the first half of the night, and low from the second half of the night to the next morning. Moreover, the wind speed changes rapidly and the amplitude of the change is large.

Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Liu Dongjun

The daily variation of wind speed on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is caused by the mountain-valley wind circulation, which is significantly stronger than other regions in my country. The superposition of the mountain-valley wind circulation and the weather-scale background wind field produces a strengthening effect, which is the main reason for the rich wind energy resources on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

The study pointed out that the greater the wind speed, the smaller the difference in power generation caused by different air densities. Under the fourth-level wind energy resource level, the amount of wind power available on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is equivalent to that in Inner Mongolia under the same conditions.

Strong winds occur frequently on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Under the conditions of wind energy resources with an annual average wind power density of 400 watts per square meter, an area at an altitude of 4,600 meters can obtain the same wind power generation as an area at an altitude of 1,100 meters.

so

Wind energy on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Not "weak"

With the development of plateau wind turbines

Plateau wind power generation efficiency further improved

On the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

More wind energy resources will be available

The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has a vast territory, a fragile ecological environment, and a vastly varying climate. Although it lacks coal, oil, and gas, it is rich in hydropower, geothermal energy, solar energy, and wind energy.

A detailed assessment of clean energy on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau can provide a scientific basis for the development and utilization of clean energy on the plateau, and is of great significance for actively promoting the construction of an ecological security barrier on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

After exploring a wind energy development path that ensures the sustainable development of the ecological and climate environment, it will provide reliable support for my country to achieve its "dual carbon" goals.

END

Source: Qinghai Science and Technology News

Producer: Ma Lian

Editor: Wu Nan

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