Wind Turbine Archives | TurbineGenerator

Wind Turbine Advancements

Cole Kisor — Tue, 07 Mar 2023 14:51:54 +0000

Wind turbines have come a long way since their inception in the 1880s. Today, they are a common sight in many parts of the world, providing clean energy to power homes and businesses. In the last five years, wind turbine technology has undergone some significant changes, updates, and improvements. These advancements have resulted in increased efficiency, improved reliability, and reduced costs. In this article, we’ll take a closer look at some of the key changes that have occurred in the wind energy industry over the last half-decade.

You might be wondering why we need to make changes to wind turbines at all. After all, isn’t wind free and infinite? Well, yes, wind is free and infinite (for the most part), but that doesn’t mean we can just stick a few blades on a pole and call it a day. If we want to harness the power of the wind effectively, we need to design turbines that are efficient, reliable, and cost-effective. And that’s where the last five years of research and development have come in.

Changes in Blade Design: One of the most significant changes in wind turbine technology over the last five years has been in blade design. Researchers have been working to develop blades that are longer, lighter, and more efficient. Longer blades mean that turbines can capture more energy from the wind, while lighter blades reduce the load on the turbine’s gearbox and other components. By making the blades more efficient, we can get more power out of each revolution of the turbine, which translates into higher energy output and lower costs.

Why we don’t just make the blades really long and really light and call it a day? Well, as it turns out, there are some practical limitations to blade length. For one thing, longer blades are more susceptible to damage from high winds and other environmental factors. Plus, longer blades require larger turbines, which can be more expensive to build and maintain. And finally, there’s the pesky issue of transportation. You can’t just strap a 100-meter blade onto the roof of your car and drive it across the country.

Improvements in Gearbox Technology: Another area of focus in wind turbine technology over the last five years has been in gearbox design. The gearbox is a critical component of the turbine, responsible for transmitting the power from the blades to the generator. Unfortunately, gearboxes are also prone to wear and tear, which can lead to downtime and maintenance costs. To address this issue, researchers have been developing new gearbox designs that are more reliable and require less maintenance. Some of these designs use alternative materials, such as ceramic or plastic, to reduce friction and wear. Others use new lubricants that are more durable and longer-lasting.

Why we don’t just skip the gearbox altogether and hook the blades up directly to the generator? Well, it turns out that the generator needs to rotate at a very specific speed to produce electricity, and the wind doesn’t always blow at that exact speed. The gearbox allows us to adjust the rotational speed of the generator to match the wind speed, which means we can produce electricity more consistently.

Advancements in Control Systems: Finally, there have been some significant advancements in wind turbine control systems over the last five years. These systems are responsible for monitoring and adjusting the turbine’s performance, ensuring that it operates at maximum efficiency while also protecting it from damage. Some of the latest control systems use machine learning algorithms to analyze data from the turbine and make real-time adjustments to optimize performance. Others use advanced sensors and monitoring equipment to detect potential issues before they become major problems.

While there are still some challenges to be addressed, the future looks bright for wind energy, and we can look forward to even more exciting advancements in the years to come.

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Wind Power in 2013

Cole Kisor — Sat, 09 Feb 2013 19:43:28 +0000

The future of wind power in the United States will hopefully get a considerable push in the right direction after congress and Obama have approved the renewal of the wind energy tax credits after they were threatened for removal after the fiscal cliff in late 2012.

Now, wind energy construction companies can continue stalled wind turbine construction from the year before.

if you look at the infographic above, wind energy capacity in the United States has increased year by year, and 2013 was threatened to not continue this steak if the tax credits were not renewed.

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Congress extends wind tax credits

Cole Kisor — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 17:41:13 +0000

Hurray! Congress has extended the wind energy tax credits through 2013. Meaning that any wind turbine production project that begins construction in 2013 will be eligible regardless of them becoming operational or not in this same year.

This extension, although many hoped for a longer extension than one year, is huge for the wind industry. Many large-scale wind energy projects have been put on hold recently in fear of the tax credits not being extended.

This could be a big year for wind energy production in the United States, with the tax extensions and President Obama’s hopes to motivate large-scale offshore wind projects on the Atlantic coast of the United States.

Although wind energy construction companies have been suspending many wind projects while waiting for this decision, the future, for now, looks better for the wind industry.

Let’s look at the capacity of wind energy production starting in 2000:

1999 – 2,473 MW

2000 – 2,529 MW

2001 – 4,232 MW

2002 – 4,687 MW

2003 – 6,350 MW

2004 – 6,723 MW

2005 – 9,147 MW

2006 – 11, 575 MW

2007 – 16, 906 MW

2008 – 25, 410 MW

2009 – 34, 863 MW

2010 – 40,267 MW

2011 – 43, 461 MW

2012 – 51,630 MW (Through September 2012)

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East Coast Offshore Wind Turbines

Cole Kisor — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 15:03:03 +0000

Looks as if the ocean view of some of you Eastcoasters may be changing over the next few years.

The US Government has released new plans to offer leases towards large areas of ocean off the coast of Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Virginia that have a high potential for wind energy production.

Around 200,000 acres will be available for lease starting in 2013. This amount of ocean space could potentially produce thousands of megawatts of energy and provide electricity to hundred of thousands, maybe even millions of homes.

These potential offshore wind turbine projects will for sure come with hard opposition from residents and environmentalist but the government is convinced that they have chosen locations that will cause the least amount of damage to local plants and animal life.

Offshore wind turbines are more expensive that building wind turbines on land, but the investment would be a great start towards cleaner energy in the future from offshore wind.

If these trials prove successful, the US government would maybe consider looking into areas off the coast of Oregon or Hawaii to begin a Pacific offshore wind project.

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Clever Video on Renewables

Cole Kisor — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 20:40:15 +0000

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Abraham Lincoln on Wind Energy

Cole Kisor — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 18:01:21 +0000

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Romney Declares War on Wind Energy

Cole Kisor — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 18:25:51 +0000

Romney’s campaign has confirmed this week that it will put an end to long-standing tax credits for wind farm projects when the debate is set to resurface later this year.

If republicans secure the white house the wind energy sector of the United States, which has become the second biggest wind energy market to China with the help of these tax credits, will take a big hit as the credits would be set to expire.

Romney believes that the wind energy market will still thrive in a free and competitive market, and that a competitive equilibrium will follow and allow all energy sources to compete fairly without government interference.

Non Romney supporters like to point out that he plans to extend over $40 Billion dollars of subsidies and tax breaks towards oil and gas, which are subsidies that Obama wishes to see phased out.

Romney has been called out as a flip-flopper before, this time on energy. Again, when he was governor of Massachusetts, Romney supported a number of clean tech and renewable energy firms.

Wind energy firms are beginning to slow production until the results of this years election are in. Potential mass layoffs, and cancelled future wind projects are on the horizon in the wind energy sector if Romney is elected.

The choice is in the voters hand. The United States and it’s stance on energy will head in two different directions depending on who is elected this November.

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Floating Offshore Wind Turbines

Cole Kisor — Tue, 17 Jul 2012 20:53:02 +0000

It’s cheaper to have an offshore wind turbine floating on the water surface than it is to build the structural support to the bottom of the ocean. The difference in cost between the two is then exaggerated even more the further you go from the shore, where winds are usually stronger and more efficient for wind turbines anyway.

The idea was started by Professor William E. Heronemus at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1972, but the idea never seemed feasible until the 1990’s when the commercial wind industry started to be more established. Today, the technology still mostly consists of expensive prototypes, but a few more years and we could see these floating turbines dominating the offshore market.

Floating offshore wind turbines are constructed on land, and may have parts that touch the ocean floor, but they do not require any structural pieces to be connected to the ocean bottom. Similar to regular offshore wind turbines, long electric cables transfer the electricity back to land, and the further you are from shore, the higher the cost to transfer the electricity.

A leading prototype in the market today is the 54-meter tall, 2MW floating turbine 5 kilometers off the coast of Agucadoura, Portugal. The turbine sits atop a semi-submersive floating device known as the WindFloat, which was designed by a conglomerate of wind energy companies that make up WindPlus.

This particular wind turbine is kept in place by a drag embedment anchor, the same device that is used by offshore oil rigs, meaning that the wind turbine could be transferred easily to different parts of the ocean that are blowing the strongest winds.

Most of the money saved is in the construction process, because the entire floating turbine can be built on land, whereas a fixed offshore wind turbine requires highly-expensive underwater construction.

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Why do some wind turbines not spin?

Cole Kisor — Thu, 31 May 2012 01:32:16 +0000

Ever wonder why some wind turbines in a wind farm are not spinning?

Well, there are a handful of potential reasons why a wind turbine is not spinning.

1. There is not enough wind for the wind turbine to start spinning on its own, and any available start-up mechanism for low wind speeds is not being used.

2. The wind turbine has been shut down for maintenance.

3. The wind farm is already producing electricity at capacity, so it is unnecessary to have every turbine in use.

4. There is too much wind, and the excessive wind speeds can be harmful to the integrity of the machine, especially a horizontal wind turbine. High wind speeds can destroy a horizontal wind turbine, like in the picture on the left.

5. The turbine blades are poorly designed, and cannot spin in any wind conditions.

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Falmouth wind turbine to be shut down over noise levels

Cole Kisor — Fri, 18 May 2012 19:30:10 +0000

Falmouth Massachusetts, a town that proudly supports renewable energy, has moved to shut down the operations of a 1.65MW wind turbine that was saving the city an average of $375,000 a year.

The wind turbine is located at the town’s wastewater treatment plant. It stands with a 262 foot long hub, with blades that extend another 400 feet from the center of the rotor. Nearby residents who suffer from the noise live as close as 1/4 of a mile from turbine.

A Falmouth resident who lives 1,300 ft. from the wind turbine, an energy conservationist who worked for years in solar energy, is still proud of the cities wind turbine but says it has to be shut down. Headaches, loss of sleep, nausea, and the ringing in his ears that never goes away outweighs the benefits of harnessing the wind’s energy near his home, and 50 other residents have similar claims.

Many of the 50 residents agree that the view of the turbine is not the problem, nor do they seek compensation. They simply want the wind turbine to be moved to another location or turned off because the noise is unbearable.

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