The future of energy; Blowing in the wind

By James Claps and Max Joubert

First windmills used in the 11th century by Middle Eastern people

Idea travelled to Europe through merchants and crusaders

Used to pump water in the New World.

Replaced by the steam engine

Returns due to increasing oil prices during the 1970s

What is a wind farm?A group of wind

turbines bunched together for producing electric power.

Interconnected with a medium voltage power collection system.

Usually between a few dozen and 100 turbines and cover up to hundreds of square miles

Why we need wind farms

Average temperature has climbed 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit around the world since 1880

In the Northern Hemisphere, thaws also come a week earlier in spring and freezes begin a week later.

750,000 deaths a year in china due to pollution.

AdvantagesAdvantages

Wind is free and inexhaustible Turbines don’t cause green house gases or

other pollutantsRemote areas not connected to a power

grid can supply their own powerLand below turbines can still be used for

farming.Turbines vary in size, making it possible

for single houses and small villagesOne of the cheapest renewable resources

Parts of a turbine

How a wind farm works

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/windandhydro/printable_versions/wind_animation.html

The wind turns the blades around a rotor, which is connected to the gears,

The gears twist the shaft that spins the generator to produce electricity.

The energy is then connected to an electricity grid to distribute the power

EconomicsEconomicsWind power is

generally getting cheaper.

Technology increasing, components made more economically

Newer, more efficient designs◦Same output, less

turbinesTrend towards larger

machines

Disadvantages

Wind force isn’t constant making it unreliable

Can vary from zero to storm force. Turbines are too noisy and are seen as

eyesores The blades endanger wildlife Large scale farms are needed to

provide for entire communities Requires a higher initial investment

than fossil fuel generators.

Good wind sites are usually located in remote locations

Wind farms must compete with alternate uses for the land and could be seen as less important

excess transmission lines depleting $1.5 million per mile cost of high-voltage

lines Can take 5-10 years

Largest turbine in the world, in Hawaii, stands 20 stories tall and has blades the length of a football field

Twin Groves II is the largest wind farm in Illinois in McLean county. It has a megawatt capacity of 161.6

Lynn and Inner offshore wind farm In the United Kingdom 54 turbines powers 130,000 homes

Caununda wind farm, Australia 54 turbines 30,000 homes

Altamont pass, California Largest concentration of turbines. 4900 relatively small turbines

A wind farm in Derrybrien Ireland caused a mud slide that killed fish and polluted water. Scientist believe similar slides will occur in Scotland

Projects like cape wind are right where a tornado could come through and wipe out.

Wind farm turbines are breaking in many wind farms in America.

With recent improvements, a lot of the original problems have been fixed

Too loud- you can now hold a conversation underneath a wind turbine without raising your voice.

Excessive turbine lighting- Wind farm lights are now non-intrusive and further design improvements will make them even less so.

Blade throwing and collapse-Blade throws were common earlier on, but due to better turbine design and engineering they are now safe enough to operate in rural areas and near schoolsAnd they are able to withstand different levels of

hurricane winds

ConclusionConclusionWind generators are

different sizes which makes it possible to solely power a single home.

Extra power your house produces can be sold back to power companies.

Although they haven’t figured out all the kinks yet, we believe wind power will be key to powering our future