20% US Electricity From Wind
Impacts from current and future wind turbine (WT) deployments necessary to achieve 20% electricity from wind are analyzed using a suite of unprecedentedly detailed numerical simulations over the eastern USA and a range of innovative scenarios to describe where and how the installed capacity (IC) will be achieved.
Quadrupling of WT installed capacity from the 2014 penetration levels increases total cumulative electricity generation by 3.63 thus achieving the 20% from wind by 2030 goal. This expansion of WT IC causes no large scale impact on regional climate.
We present multiple year-long simulations for a nested domain over the eastern US that employ real WT characteristics and locations and realistic scenarios of IC increases. This research shows the goal of 20% of electricity supply from wind turbines can be readily achieved without substantial impacts on system-wide generation efficiency or regional climate impacts.