Abstract

TORREZ S., R.; GHEZZI, F.  and  PALENQUE, E.. THE WIND POTENTIAL OF LAS JUNTAS. Revista Boliviana de Física [online]. 2009, vol.15, n.15, pp.9-13. ISSN 1562-3823.

The "Las Juntas site" (16°.78 S, 67°.68 W) is found in the furthest reaches of area known as Rio Abajo and consists of a river delta within a wind swept canyon at the convergence point of the La Paz and Caracato Rivers. Las Juntas experiences intense wind flows and squalls reaching wind speeds above 25 m/s o 90 km/h. The wind flow patterns observed at the riverbed originate from the warming of the air confined within the canyon (valley). The energy of an air current is proportional to velocity³. Measurements so far obtained at Las Juntas record a maximum wind energy value above 100 W/m², This means that a wind turbine with 2 meter radius propellers could produce up to 1 KW of energy suitable for domestic use. The intense winds found at Las Juntas if converted to energy at a large scale could provide an important source of renewable energy. This preliminary study using initial data obtained from fieldwork at Las Juntas describes the wind characteristics and other related meterological parameters that are important to establish the site's wind patterns and energy potential.

Keywords : atmosphere physics; fluid dynamics; observation and data reduction techinques.

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