Wind Power Challenge
How does it work? Energy 101 – Wind
Turbines
Wind Power: Advantages It’s a clean fuel source – no emissions It’s domestic – no reliance on other
countries It’s renewable – can’t be used up
because wind is driven by the sun It’s cheap – 4 to 6 cents per kilowatt
hour
Wind Power: Challenges Initial investment is expensive Good wind sites are often remote –
transmission lines are long Has to compete with other uses for land
that might be more highly valued Environmental impacts: noise,
visual/aesthetic, birds occasionally fly into rotors…
Facts from http://www1.eere.energy.gov/wind/wind_basics.html
Designs There are many viable wind turbine
designs – developers are always looking for one that is slightly more efficient
Your Task: Design and build a set of blades
attached to a rotor that will convert the most wind power to electricity
Materials: Cork (2 per group) Skewers (4-5) Masking Tape Toothpicks (5-10) Construction paper Plastic wrap Aluminum foil
Legos (tower building)
DC Motor (1 per group)
Amp Meter (1 per class)
Glue sticks
Requirements: Tower, propeller and rotor must be able
to spin freely for 30 seconds when placed in front of fan.
It must be made from class materials
Winner: The team who builds the turbine that
generates the most electricity (as determined by highest reading) when attached to the amp meter in a 30 second period wins.