Kaitlyn Brown, Staci Capozzi, Kayla Oster, & Nicholas Sposato

Wind Power

History I:• One of the first natural

energy sources used in history

• 2000-1700 BC windmills were used in Babylon and China to pump water and grind grain

• Introduced to Europe in the 12th century and quickly became popular. Holland had approximately 8,000 windmills and England had around 10,000 by 1750

•In decline in the 18th century because the Watt’s steam engine was introduced

•Further declines resulted during the 20th century as the availability of fossil fuels and hydropower increased

•The modern wind era in the U.S. began after the energy crisis of 1973 with the installation of wind farms in California in the early 1980’s

History II:• Wind technology and industry matured after overcoming some initial

problems.

• In the 1980’s commercial efforts in the area of wind energy increased and was mainly brought about by:– energy tax credits– new technologies in wind energy systems – and the passages of the Public Utilities Regulatory Act (PURPA)

• During the late 1980’s through the early 1990’s wind power was in decline because of:– decreased prices in oil– increase in natural gas-fired generating plants– the expiration of tax credits

• During the 1990’s wind energy had a 25% per year growth rate in the U.S. and a 37% per year in Europe. As of today, wind energy is the fastest growing energy resource in the world.

Wind Calculations :• Theoretical power from the wind is given by the expression

PT = ½ pAv3 where ‘p’ is the density of air, ‘A’ is the area swept out by blade, and ‘v’ is

the velocity of wind

• The maximum available power from is given by Betz Theorem where,

Pmax = Efficiencymax PT = (0.59) PT

and the actual power from wind is,

Pactual = Efficiencyactual x Pmax and

Pactual = Efficiencyactual x 0.59 x ½ pAv3

Behind Wind Technology:• Energy production from wind turbines cannot be accomplished

unless there is wind delivered to the turbine at a certain speed.

• Wind results from the unequal heating of the earth by the sun. The power in the wind depends on the area considered and on the cube of the wind velocity (remember: PT = ½ pAv3).

• Doubling the velocity yields 8 times more power and energy (23= 8). Wind speeds typically increase with height as well.

• To maximize power and energy outputs, careful attention must be given to placement and tower height.

Wind Technology:• Wind technology is relatively

straightforward in that there are blades, gearing, a generator, a tower, and controls. Wind pressure turns a rotor made of blades, and this rotor is attached to a shaft which is connected through various gears to an electrical generator.

• Wind turbines are classified by the orientation of the rotor shaft; there are horizontal axis and vertical axis machines.

Wind Technology (cont.)• For residential systems, the DC output of the

generator can be stored in batteries or used to run devices that use resistive heating like toasters.

• The synchronous inverter revolutionized the wind energy industry, and converts DC power from the wind generator into AC. It then feeds it into the utility grid or to a local load at the correct frequency which is then sold to the utility at a rate determined by each state or market.

Advantages• Renewable and free to access (unlike coal, natural gas, or oil)• Turbines create zero emissions, so no:

-regional haze-acidic precipitation-mercury contamination

-Smog• No use of water

-irrigation and thermal electric generation consume 77% of the world’s fresh water supply

• Incentives

-farmers in the Midwest US can receive $3,000 to $10,000 per turbine for a land lease (turbines are placed on their land and farmers or grazers can still use the land to graze cattle or plant crops)

• Relatively low start- up and maintenance costs

Disadvantages/ Dangers• Location is a factor because wind is intermittent

– some areas have high, strong winds– some areas have little or no wind– need to find a happy medium- not so strong that they blow over and not so

weak that they do not turn the blades

• Aesthetic appeal (or lack thereof)– people of Nantucket Sound in Cape May have been fighting against the

installation of an offshore wind farm due to the “visual pollution” http://www.capewind.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=Sections&file=index&req=viewarticle&artid=9&page=1

• Danger to bats and migratory birds (?) – negligible when compared to those killed by flying into other man-made

objects such as buildings, power lines, and planes

Dangers to Humans• Noise

• Strobing

-light flashes caused by the turbines passing in front of the sun’s rays

• Ice pieces may be flung off the turbine blades

-majority of turbines have and automatic shut off when a certain amount if ice has been formed

• Blade disconnection

-Germany

Costs• The Jersey-Atlantic Wind Farm located in Atlantic City, New Jersey

has five turbines that power the Atlantic County Utilities Authority (ACUA) wastewater treatment plant, 2,500 homes, and still has leftover energy that is sent to the grid- COST = $12 million

• Florida Power & Light informed the Florida Public Service Commission in December 2007 building two new nuclear units at Turkey Point in South Florida was - COST = $ 8,000 per installed kW….. $24 billion

• Wind vs. natural gas and coal (production costs per megawatt hour)- Natural gas- $65- Coal- $55 - Wind- $45

* Wind power is much more economically viable with the lowest start up and maintenance costs when compared to then any other energy source, renewable or nonrenewable

Potential for Replacement of Fossil Fuels?

• Earth very suitable for wind energy

• Theoretical max of 5 times current global consumption of energy

• Can wind solely replace fossil fuels?

• Opposition to Renewables

http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/worldwindenergyreport2008_s.pdf

The United States and Wind Power

• Leading country in installation

• President Obama’s stance

Around the World

Around the World

http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/worldwindenergyreport2008_s.pdf

Future Plans

•Garden State Offshore Energy has proposed an offshore wind farm

•96 turbines to produce 346 MW of energy which would power thousands of homes

•16-20 miles offshore to minimize damage to ocean view

•Winds blow more reliably the farther offshore you go

Future Plans• Norway is planning to make the world’s

largest wind turbine

• Most powerful-10 MW to power 2,000 homes

• This turbine floats, so can get further offshore

• Can turn around with the wind

FLOdesign• Design stemmed from jet engine• Turbine surrounded by shroud• Air hits stator• Redirected to turn rotor• Once on other side, the air moves

slower than the air flowing outside the turbine

• Shroud guides fast-moving outside air into the area just behind the rotors which speeds up the slow-moving air, creating an area of low pressure behind the turbine blades that sucks more air through them

FLOdesign• Smaller blades• Can fit them closer together• Has fin to align with wind flow• Could double or triple

turbine’s output• Prototype completed

by end of 2010

Is it possible to convert 100%?

• Island in Denmark attempting to convert

• Wind blows constantly

• Projects like this that, if successful, can bring down costs

• In order for us to convert more to wind power we need to create offshore turbines that are:– larger

– more efficient

– utility-scale

Sources• ACUA: Atlantic County Facilities (2005). Jersey-Atlantic wind farm fact sheet. Retrieved from http://www.acua.com/acua/content.aspx?

id=492&ekmensel=c580fa7b_20_88_btnlink• Archer, Cristina L.; Mark Z. Jacobson (2005). "Evaluation of global wind power".

http://www.stanford.edu/group/efmh/winds/global_winds.html.• Belson, Ken. Retrieved from http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/10/03/new-jersey-approves-offshore-wind-farm• Bullis, Kevin. Retrieved from http://www.technologyreview.com/energy/21737/?a=f• Conners, S.R. & McGowan, J.R. (2000).Wind power: A Turn of the Century Review. Annual Review of Energy and the Environment, Vol. 25, pps

147-197. • Dickie, Justin. (2007, August 6). American resident warns of dangers of wind farms. The Amherst Daily News.• EERE. U.S. Department of Energy, (2005). Wind powering America fact sheet series (DOE/GO-102005-2123).• Hinrichs, R.A. & Kleinbach, M. (2006). Energy, Its Use and the Environment (Fourth Edition). Philadelphia: Harcourt College Publishers. • Kevin (2009). Wind turbines. Retrieved from http://www.windturbinesnow.com/wind-energy-resources.htm• Laird, Frank N. "A Full-Court Press for Renewable Energy." Science & Technology 25.2 (2009): 53-56. Science Reference Center. Web. 22 Nov.

1345. • Makofske, William. (2001). Supplementary Handouts for ENST 223: Wind Power Information. Ramapo College of New Jersey.• Miller, Linda. (2006, June 28). Investing in Wind Energy: Socially Responsible and Fiscally Wise. Business and Finance. Retrieved from

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/39762/investing_in_wind_energy.html?cat=3• NREL Team. (2010, January 5). Wind research. Retrieved from http://www.nrel.gov/wind/• Pasqualetti, Matin, J. (2004). Wind power: Obstacles and Opportunities. Environment, 46(7), pps 22-38. Retrieved from http://

web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdf?vid=48&hid=8&sid=812a0e17-945e-4a90-a5e5-e4579b5a4ec0%40sessionmgr4• Ritter, John, . (2005, January 4). Wind turbines taking toll on birds of prey. USA Today.• Sangrillo, Mick. (2003). Putting wind power's effect on birds in perspective. Retrieved from http://www.awea.org/faq/sagrillo/swbirds.html• Sawin, Janet L. (2008) "Wind Power Continues Rapid Rise." World Watch 21.4: 12-18. Science Reference Center. • Sovacool, Benjamin K. (2008, November 2). How much will Nuclear power plants cost?. Scitizen: You bring science closer to society. Retrieved from

http://scitizen.com/future-energies/how-much-will-new-nuclear-power-plants-cost-_a-14-2287.html• Stone, Jerry James. Retrieved from http://www.treehugger.com/files/2010/02/norway_to_build_worlds_most_powerful_offshore_wind_turbine.php• Tankersly, Jim. http://articles.latimes.com/2009/apr/03/nation/na-energy3• WWEA (2009). "World Wind Energy Report 2008." World Wind Energy Association WWEA: 1-16. Retrieved from www.wwindea.org