Wind Energy 1 Wind Energy Winds are caused

Wind Energy!!! 1

Wind Energy Winds are caused by uneven heating of the Earth (landmass and water body together) by solar radiations generating air movement. These air movements are know to many of us as land breeze and sea breeze. This movement of air can be used to do work. This energy is harnessed with the help of a windmill and electricity is generated from it. 2

Energy in the Wind 3

How does a wind turbine work? 4

Wind Energy Technology At it’s simplest, the wind turns the turbine blades, which spin a shaft connected to a generator that generates electricity. Large turbines can be grouped together to form a wind power plant, which feeds power to the electrical transmission system. 5

Inside a Wind Turbine 6

Conversion of Wind Energy to Electricity 7

Wind Turbine Perspective Workers Blade 112’ long Nacelle 56 tons Tower 3 sections 8

Modern Windmills 9

Orientation Turbines can be categorized into two classes based on the orientation of the rotor. Vertical Axis Horizontal Axis 10

Types of Electricity Generating Windmills Small ( 10 k. W) • Homes • Farms • Remote Applications (e. g. water pumping, telecom sites, ice making) Intermediate (10 -250 k. W) • Village Power • Hybrid Systems • Distributed Power Large (250 k. W - 2+MW) • Central Station Wind Farms • Distributed Power 11

Modern Small Wind Turbines: High Tech, High Reliability, Low maintenance • Technically Advanced • Only 2 -3 Moving Parts • Very Low Maintenance Requirements • American Companies are the Market and Technology Leaders. 10 k. W 400 W 50 k. W 900 W 12

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U. S. ’s largest Windmill Manufacturers • General Electric • Clipper 14

Impacts of Wind Power: Noise • Modern turbines are relatively quiet • Rule of thumb – stay about 3 x hubheight away from houses 15

Wind Farms 16

Off-Shore Wind farms 17

Middelgrunden 18

Ancient Wind Farms 19

Early “WINDMILL” in Afghanistan (900 AD) 20

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1980’s California Wind Farm Older Technology + Lower Elevations + Poorly Sited = Bad News! 23

Jacob’s Turbine – 1920 - 1960 24

Smith-Putnam Turbine Vermont, 1940's 25

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