Wind Energy
Wind Energy
Wind Energy
§Wind power, form of energy conversion in which Turbines convert the Kinetic
Energy of Wind into Mechanical then generator can convert Mechanical energy to
electrical energy.
§Wind power is considered a Renewable Energy Source. Historically, Wind Power in the form
of windmills has been used for centuries for such tasks as grinding grain and pumping water.
§Modern commercial Wind Turbines produce Electricity by using Rotational Energy to drive
an Electrical generator. They are made up of a blade or rotor and an enclosure called a
Nacelle that contains a drive train atop a tall tower.
§The largest Turbines can produce 4.8–9.5 MW, have a rotor diameter that may extend more
than 162 metres (about 531 feet), and are attached to towers approaching 240 metres (787
feet) tall.
§The most common types of Wind Turbines (which produce up to 1.8 megawatts) are much
smaller with a blade length of approximately 40 metres (about 130 feet) and are attached to
towers roughly 80 metres (about 260 feet) tall.
§Smaller Turbines can be used to provide power to individual homes. Wind farms are areas
where a number of Wind Turbines are grouped together, providing a larger Total Energy
source.
§Wind resources are calculated based on the Average Wind Speed and the distribution of wind
speed values occurring within a particular area.
§Areas are grouped into wind power classes that range from 1 to 7. A wind power class
equivalent to a wind power density of 150–200 watts per square metre, or a mean wind of
5.1–5.6 metres per second [11.4–12.5 miles per hour]) is suitable for utility-scale wind power
generation.
§As of 2018 the largest Wind Farm in the world was the Jiuquan Wind Power Base, an array
of more than 7,000 wind Turbines in China’s Gansu province that produces more than 6,000
megawatts of power.
§One of the world’s largest offshore active Wind Farms, the London Array, spans an area of
122 square km (about 47 square miles) and produces up to 630 megawatts of power. In 2020,
Hornsea One span an area of 407 square km (about 157 square miles) near
England’s Yorkshire coast, will be even larger, producing about 1,200 megawatts of power.
§Electricity generation by Wind has been increasing dramatically because of concerns over the
cost of Petroleum and the effects of Fossil Fuel combustion on the Climate and Environment.
§China and the United States possessed the greatest installed wind capacity, and
Denmark generated the largest percentage of its electricity from Wind (nearly 38 percent).
§The wind power industry estimates that the world could feasibly generate nearly 20 percent
of its total electricity from wind power by 2030.
§Various estimates put the cost of wind energy per kilowatt-hour as low depending on the
location. This is comparable to the cost of coal, natural gas, and other forms of fossil energy.
§Three key factors affect the amount of energy a Turbine can harness from the Wind:
§Wind Speed, Air Density, and Swept Area.
§1.Wind Speed
§Wind speed largely determines the amount of electricity generated by a turbine. Higher wind
speeds generate more power because stronger winds allow the blades to rotate faster. Faster
rotation translates to more mechanical power and more electrical power from the generator.
§Turbines are designed to operate within a specific range of wind speeds. The limits of the
range are known as the cut-in speed and cut-out speed.
§The cut-in speed is the point at which the wind turbine is able to generate power. Between
the cut-in speed and the rated speed, where the maximum output is reached, the power output
will increase cubically with wind speed.
§For example, if wind speed doubles, the power output will increase 8 times. This cubic
relationship is what makes wind speed such an important factor for wind power. This cubic
dependence does cut out at the rated wind speed.
§This leads to the relatively flat part of the curve in Figure 1, so the cubic dependence is
during the speeds below 15 m/s (54 kph).
§The cut-out speed is the point at which the
Turbine must be shut down to avoid damage
to the equipment.
§The cut-in and cut-out speeds are related to
the Turbine design and Size and are decided
on prior to construction.
Small (<10 kW) Intermediate (10-250 kW) Large (250 kW-2+ MW)
oHomes oVillage Power oCentral Station Wind Farms
oFarms oHybrid Systems oDistributed Power System
oRemote Applications oDistributed Power
(e.g., water pumping,
Telecom sites, ice
making)
§The "size" of a Wind Turbine typically refers to its Capacity.
§Small Wind Turbines are generally defined as those with a capacity of 100 kilowatts and less.
§According to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), Residential-scale Turbines
generally have a rated capacity of 10 kW or less, and Wind Turbines with a rated capacity
between 10 kW and 20kW are known as "Utility-scale" Wind Turbines.
§Whereas Commercial-scale turbines are those with a rated capacity between 21kW and 100kW.
§The main components of a wind turbine are shown in Figure 2.