The wind turbine has a rated capacity output of 6.15 MW, a rotor diameter of 416 ft, and a hub height of 280 – 312 ft (hub height does not include the extra height of the turbine blades).

The first phase of the Thornton Bank Wind Farm project involved the construction of six, 5 MW turbines, for a total rated capacity of 30 MW on what is eventually planned to be a 325 MW wind farm.  The wind turbines were designed by REpower, a leading manufacturer of on and offshore wind turbines.  Phase two will consist of the installation of twenty-four new 6.15 MW turbines, bringing the new rated capacity to nearly 178 MW.

For a range of houses that averages a required usage of 1 kW hour, a 6.15 MW wind turbine could potentially power just over 6,000 homes.  A 23 mile long, 150 kV underwater cable connects the wind farm to the shore.  Belgium hopes to have 13% of all its energy come from a renewable source by 2020.  The Obama administration approved a Mid-Atlantic offshore wind project earlier this year to help jump-start offshore wind farm development off the coasts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia.

The post World’s Most Powerful Offshore Wind Turbine appeared first on TurbineGenerator.

These large offshore wind farm projects would be constructed in the mid-atlantic, being the first large offshore wind project ever backed by the United States.

Many environmentalist believe that these offshore wind projects will be dangerous to the environment, especially damaging to migratory and ocean birds.  But, the Obama administration has claimed that the environmental risks are not great enough for disapproval of the projects.

This push by the Obama administration could see these projects beginning to form in only a couple of years, which is much faster than the usual seven to nine year waiting period to get approved leasing for wind farm construction.

Wind turbines are most efficient in areas with consistently strong winds, and in surroundings with very few obstacles for wind to travel.  This is why we see most of the wind farm in the US in the flat, plain areas of the United States like Iowa and Texas.

Offshore wind turbines would have clear and uninterrupted access to consistently strong winds, and winds that travel with a clear laminar flow.

If all of the offshore wind available in the United States was exploited, there would be enough electrical generation to power the entire country.

The biggest setbacks are cost, transferring and transporting the energy, and risks to the environment.

The post Obama Approves Offshore Wind appeared first on TurbineGenerator.