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Wind Power

Wind is a form of solar energy. Wind power all starts with the sun. When the sun heats up a certain area of land, the air around that land mass absorbs some of that heat. At a certain temperature, that hotter air begins to rise very quickly because a given volume of hot air is lighter than an equal volume of cooler air. 

Air Circulation

Faster-moving (hotter) air particles exert more pressure than slower-moving particles, so it takes fewer of them to maintain the normal air pressure at a given elevation When that lighter hot air suddenly rises, cooler air flows quickly in to fill the gap the hot air leaves behind. That air rushing in to fill the gap is wind.

If you place an object like a rotor blade in the path of that wind, the wind will push on it, transferring some of its own energy of motion to the blade. This is how a wind turbine captures energy from the wind.

Principles of Wind Power Plant

The terms wind energy or wind power describe the process by which the wind is used to generate mechanical power or electricity. Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical power. This mechanical power can be used for specific tasks (such as grinding grain or pumping water) or a generator can convert this mechanical power into electricity.

So how do wind turbines make electricity? Simply stated, a wind turbine works the opposite of a fan. Instead of using electricity to make wind, like a fan, wind turbines use wind to make electricity. The wind turns the blades, which spin a shaft, which connects to a generator and makes electricity. Take a look inside a wind turbine to see the various parts.

Inside The Wind Turbine

Inside The Wind Turbine

Anemometer:

Measures the wind speed and transmits wind speed data to the controller.

Blades:
Most turbines have either two or three blades. Wind blowing over the blades causes the blades to "lift" and rotate.

Brake:
A disc brake, which can be applied mechanically, electrically, or hydraulically to stop the rotor in emergencies.

Controller: 

The controller starts up the machine at wind speeds of about 8 to 16 miles per hour (mph) and shuts off the machine at about 55 mph. Turbines do not operate at wind speeds above about 55 mph because they might be damaged by the high winds.

Wind Farm

Gear box:

Gears connect the low-speed shaft to the high-speed shaft and increase the rotational speeds from about 30 to 60 rotations per minute (rpm) to about 1000 to 1800 rpm, the rotational speed required by most generators to produce electricity. The gear box is a costly (and heavy) part of the wind turbine and engineers are exploring "direct-drive" generators that operate at lower rotational speeds and don't need gear boxes.

Generator:
Usually an off-the-shelf induction generator that produces 60-cycle AC electricity.

High-speed shaft:
Drives the generator.

Low-speed shaft:
The rotor turns the low-speed shaft at about 30 to 60 rotations per minute.

Nacelle:
The nacelle sits atop the tower and contains the gear box, low- and high-speed shafts, generator, controller, and brake. Some nacelles are large enough for a helicopter to land on.

Pitch:
Blades are turned, or pitched, out of the wind to control the rotor speed and keep the rotor from turning in winds that are too high or too low to produce electricity.

Wind Turbines Offshore

Rotor:
The blades and the hub together are called the rotor.

Tower:
Towers are made from tubular steel (shown here), concrete, or steel lattice. Because wind speed increases with height, taller towers enable turbines to capture more energy and generate more electricity.

Wind direction:
This is an "upwind" turbine, so-called because it operates facing into the wind. Other turbines are designed to run "downwind," facing away from the wind.

Wind vane:
Measures wind direction and communicates with the yaw drive to orient the turbine properly with respect to the wind.

Yaw drive:
Upwind turbines face into the wind; the yaw drive is used to keep the rotor facing into the wind as the wind direction changes. Downwind turbines don't require a yaw drive, the wind blows the rotor downwind.

Yaw motor:
Powers the yaw drive.

Types of Wind Turbines

Modern wind turbines fall into two basic groups: the horizontal-axis variety, as shown in the photo above, and the vertical-axis design, like the eggbeater-style Darrieus model, named after its French inventor. 

Horizontal-axis wind turbines (HAWT) typically either have two or three blades. These three-bladed wind turbines are operated "upwind," with the blades facing into the wind.

Vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs)

Vertical-axis wind turbines (VAWTs) are pretty rare. The only one currently in commercial production is the Darrieus turbine.  

In a VAWT, the shaft is mounted on a vertical axis, perpendicular to the ground. VAWTs are always aligned with the wind, unlike their horizontal-axis counterparts, so there's no adjustment necessary when the wind direction changes; but a VAWT can't start moving all by itself -- it needs a boost from its electrical system to get started. 

Instead of a tower, it typically uses guy wires for support, so the rotor elevation is lower. Lower elevation means slower wind due to ground interference, so VAWTs are generally less efficient than HAWTs. On the upside, all equipment is at ground level for easy installation and servicing; but that means a larger footprint for the turbine, which is a big negative in farming areas.

Size of Wind Turbines

3.6 MW Wind Power Plant

Utility-scale turbines range in size from 100 kilowatts to as large as several megawatts. Larger turbines are grouped together into wind farms, which provide bulk power to the electrical grid.

Single small turbines, below 100 kilowatts, are used for homes, telecommunications dishes, or water pumping. Small turbines are sometimes used in connection with diesel generators, batteries, and photovoltaic systems. These systems are called hybrid wind systems and are typically used in remote, off-grid locations, where a connection to the utility grid is not available.

Wind Turbine Size Compared with a Man

Solar Wind Bridge Consept

The hybrid system (combining solar and wind power) proposed allows for a continuous production of Energy. The project is based on the idea of utilizing the space between the pillars of the existing viaducts to house a system of wind-powered turbines which will be integrated into the structure.

The solar park is conceived as a green “promenade”, along which there alternate panoramic viewing points and entirely self-sufficient solar greenhouses. As with city farms, visitors to the park will be able to stop and buy the local produce grow in these greenhouses.

The asphalt will be substituted with a technological road surface of a kind already in use in the USA (“solar roadways”). The road surface itself will, therefore, collect energy as a part of a power-generating system composed of a dense grid of solar cells coated with a transparent ad highly resistant form of plastic.

The entire system is capable of producing around 40 million kWh per annum – enough energy to provide power for approximately 15.000 families.

This Solar Wind concept is the brainchild of designers Francesco Colarossi, Giovanna Saracino and Luisa Saracino, who came second in a competition to dream up a bridge spanning the Italian areas of Bagnara and Scilla.

Solar Roadways

Reference Books: Wind Power

Wind Turbine Technology: Fundamental Concep... by David A. Spera	Wind-Diesel and Wind Autonomous Energy Syst...	Reaping the Wind: How Mechanical Wizards, V... by Peter Asmus