Wind Energy and Turbines

For many, the mention of wind energy conjures images of giant white turbines, their blades slowly rotating, stretching off into the distance with no end in sight. This is how it has been portrayed in pictures, but this is not how wind energy truly looks. Photographs in books and magazines imply that wind energy would require these never ending fields. On the contrary, smaller fields where a limited amount of turbines create all the power needed and more for a city that is nearby, or smaller individual turbines creating enough energy for a home or neighborhood without being obtrusive, is how wind energy truly looks. Wind energy harnesses the power of the wind and converts it to other forms of energy, one of the main known forms being electricity.

Wind is a form of solar energy so when it is used it creates electricity. Electricity is a physical phenomenon associated with fixed or moving electrons and protons. The wind power development was a step forward for the use of electricity on how to generate more electricity using the wind. The accomplishments for electricity is that Senegal used 10MW for a wind farm and they gave a positive report and is now using it since the second half of 2005. (Dodge) Another thing is during the Second World War; small wind generators were used on German U-boats to recharge submarine batteries as a fuel-conserving measure. The good thing about wind power is can produce electricity at night as well as during the day and that it is plentiful, renewable, and it reduces the greenhouse gas emissions. (ERIC) The Wind Power would be cheaper to develop electricity and it is less harm to our daily lives.

Wind turbines have evolved over the years to develop into what they are today. People have been using technology for years. For example, it was used for transportation sailboats as early

2. Wind power is generating electricity by collecting wind, and it saves energy in the world.

As the global supply of fossil fuels becomes steadily lower, need is growing for new energy sources that are beneficial to the environment and cost-effective. Wind power is one solution to this need. Wind turbines require significant investment, but are cost-efficient in the long term. If construction of turbines is sufficiently increased, the wind may be able to in the future provide a very major portion of global energy.

Windmills date as far back as 200 BC. The first windmill was known as “Hero of Alexandria”, located in what is now known as Iran, but was not too successful. These windmills were tweaked over many years to have a well functioning purpose. The main purposes of the windmills in ancient times were water pumping and grain grinding. Windmills have been used for thousands of years, allowing for a revolutionary way of completing certain tasks.

Wind energy is a clean, alternative source of energy that does not produce greenhouse gas emissions and can be produced domestically. While wind energy accounts for a small overall portion of the energy produced in the United States, the potential for wind energy is significant. Nevertheless, there are some obstacles that delay the widespread use of this technology, including intermittency of wind, cost, and public policies that deter their implementation.

A wind turbine looks and works like a giant fan, but difference is turbines uses wind to make electricity, while a fan uses electricity to make wind. The size and model of a turbine depend specifically on the area in which it will be used. A turbine is made up of an 80 meter steel tower that is secured into the ground by steel rebar and concrete. Three large blades are attached to the hub, which is the center of the rotor. The hub directs energy from the blades into the generator. The energy then is transported to the nacelle. The nacelle is a container that houses the gearbox, low shaft, high speed shaft, controller, generator, and break. The blades cut through the air and distort the wind force, which can affect another turbine in another spot, so spacing is important. In one square kilometer can fit twenty wind turbines. The distance between the blades depend on size of turbines and geographical area.Wind turbines are usually 300 meters apart, or seven rotor diameters apart. Rotor diameter refers to the amount of area swept by the

Also, wind energy can be gathered almost anywhere because wind exists all around the planet and it does not use water as part of the process (Maehlum). Many energy sources, such as fossil fuels, nuclear plants, and hydropower, need water to create electricity, so it is difficult to use those energy sources in parts of the world where water is scarce (Advantages and Challenges of Wind Energy). Wind energy is a great choice for the future because it is renewable and widely available.

Wind power has been used over centuries (Bowden 44). It converts the energy form the wind into wind power with the help of wind turbines (How Do Wind Turbines Work?). They can provide power for houses and farms. In order to fulfill the electricity needs of humans, large group of wind turbines can work together as wind farms (Catherall 32).

Since 400-500A.D, people used windmill energy in farms for grain grinding and water pumping. In 1888, the first wind turbine that generated electricity was discovered by Charles F.Brush in Ohio, USA. However, there are limitations on speed.

Why Wind Energy Is Important? To begin with,

I can still remember that I’ve made a windmill by a paper in my childhood. I hold my windmill running on the lawn. Currently, wind power has become the world 's fastest growing renewable power source. The earliest use of wind to produce energy is when the Egyptians are said to have used it to propel their sailboats through the water. At 1300’s, the windmill appeared in Europe and was used in the to drain fields. After hundreds of years, people have utilized the wind to do works and used across North America pumping water by the end of 1800’s. It was called steel blades at that time, also had been introduced to improve efficiency. In 1888, windmill was used in Cleveland, Ohio to generate electricity. Now in the 21st

Wind energy is essentially the conversion of the kinetic energy from air molecules in motion to mechanical energy which is generally then converted into electrical energy. People have used wind power since 700 AD in

A wind turbine turns wind into energy. As wind blows towards the blades of the turbine, the rotors spin around, capturing kinetic energy from the wind. The rotor blades are able to rotate around the hub (located at the front, middle of the turbine) allowing them to meet the wind at the best possible angle. Inside the nacelle (the main body of the turbine), the gearbox is able to convert the low-speed turning of the drive shaft into high-speed rotations that are fast enough to drive the generator proficiently. The generator then takes the kinetic energy from the spinning shaft and turns it into the electrical energy. With the help of anemometers that provide the measurements of wind direction and speed, the rotors and nacelle can be rotated by a yaw motor allowing the blades to face directly towards the oncoming wind, capturing the maximum amount of energy possible. The electrical current produced by the generator then flows through a cable running through the centre of the turbine tower. From there, a step-up transformer converts the electrical energy to a voltage about 50 times higher. The energy can then be transmitted efficiently to buildings and homes nearby or to the power grid.