Transcript Wind Energy

Wind Energy
Group 6:
Jason Armstrong, Alejandra Salazar, William Becker,
Silverio Sierra, Jessica Morgan
How is Wind Generated?
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Atmosphere warming
by the sun
Hot air rises while
cooler air falls
Result  WIND
Energy From Wind
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Kinetic Energy from
air
Conversion into
mechanical force or
electricity
59% max efficiency
Increasing current
development
How It Works?
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Wind pressure turns a
rotor
Rotor attached to
shaft
Shaft connected to
electrical generator
For residential
systems, DC output
stored in batteries
For large systems,
synchronous inverters
coverts DC into AC and
feeds into the grid
Amount Of Power Extracted
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Proportional to the cube of
the wind’s velocity and area
swept by blades which is
proportional to the blade
diameter
The greater the wind velocity,
the more impact on the rotor
blades
The higher the support tower,
the higher the wind velocity
Fewer blades are more
efficient
Types of
Windmills
Types of Wind Turbines
Horizontal
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1)
2)
3)
Common
Three Categories:
Dutch type
American multivane
2 or 3 bladed
turbine
Vertical
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Egg-beater shape
Darrieus rotor
Dutch Windmill
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4 arms
Thousands used in
Holland, but few used
today
Used to pump water
and grind flour
Small efficiency 7%
American Multivane
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Used to pump water
Dependable
Operates under
small wind velocities
Low efficiency and
output
2 or 3 Bladed Turbine
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Primarily used today
Most efficient
Vertical-Axis Machine
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Darrieus rotor
No shift in wind
directions
Gearbox and
generator mounted
at base
Difficult to put high
up on a tower
Not popular
Disadvantages:
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High initial cost
Inconsistent energy source
Limited power
Expensive energy storage
Visual Pollution (noise,
appearance)
Interference with television
and radio waves
Potential threat to birds
Competition with other uses of
land
Location of wind farms
Advantages:
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Clean energy source
Eliminates many pollution
problems
Renewable resource
Lowest priced energy
source
Benefits to rural economy
Small units which can be
tailored to a specific
location
Fine complement to solar
energy
Rural Economic Benefits
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Iowa – 240 MW wind farm
-$64,000/yr lease payments to farmers
($2,000/turbine)
-$2 million in property taxes
-40 long term jobs
-200 short term construction jobs
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Minnesota – 107 MW wind farm
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-$50,000/ yr lease payments to farmers
-$61,000 in property taxes
-31 long term jobs
Wind Energy in Costa Rica
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Largest wind farm in
Central and South
America
Generates 3% of
national electricity
Prevents 57,000
tons of CO2
Ideal location for
wind farms
Economic Benefits in Costa Rica
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Free fuel
Low maintenance
cost
Initial costs covered
by private donors
Creates new jobs,
although few
Problems With the Costa Rica
Wind Farms
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Not too beneficial to
the locals
Little employment
opportunities
Wages are not
significantly higher
US Wind Energy
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Electric Utilities Companies and their role in “green
power” programs
Top 5 Ranked states for wind energy potential: ND,
TX, KS, SD, MT
Becoming more attractive as a source of energy
The Lone Wind State
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TX leading state in
installed capacity of
wind energy
Central and SW
Services Inc.
(6.6MW)
TXU Electric/York
Research Corp.
(34.3MW)
International Leaders
Denmark:
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Leader in converting
windpower
Owns 50% of worldwide
wind power technology
Largest offshore wind farm
Expected to be 21% of
overall energy
Germany:
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Largest number of installed
turbines
Why Wind?
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Current concern for
the environment
High energy prices
Fossil fuel insecurity
Renewable energy
Increased capacity
needs
Complements with
Solar Energy
Attractive alternative
Any Questions?