This paper presents the results of a pilot project on rooftop wind in WA featuring both data measurement and computer flow modelling that will give insight into best practice for placement of rooftop wind systems. This project is supported by the State Government’s Sustainable Energy Development Office (SEDO) and was showcased at the WA Premier’s launch of the SEDO awards.

The project is being conducted in collaboration with the City of Melville Council and aims to predict the wind resource on the rooftop of the Council Chambers building as part of a feasibility study for a rooftop wind system for the Council.

Computer simulations are carried out using a meso-scale model to model regional flow effects, a wind atlas model to model local terrain and roughness effects, and a CFD model to model the effects of the buildings. These predictions are then compared with data from monitoring campaigns conducted at 6 m above the roofline. The monitoring campaigns use ultrasonic 3D anemometers to capture the highly turbulent micro-climate on the rooftop.

The results show reasonable agreement between the modelling and measurement and highlight those areas where there is additional wind power available due to the speed up of air over the rooftop. Comparisons with European guidelines for rooftop wind systems show that the wind resource at 6 m above the roofline is marginal. Future work includes increasing the height of the monitoring mast and running the computer models to assess the suitability of other locations on the roof.