What is Wind Power and How Does It Work?
• A wind turbine generator (WTG) usually consists of three blades on top of a tower with the blades facing into the wind. The wind turns the blades, which spins a shaft that is connected to a generator that produces electricity. The electricity is sent to a transmission line or a distribution system line. Diagram of wind turbine generator Illustration courtesy of US DOE’s Wind & Hydropower Technologies Program • WTGs range in size from a unit to pump water for cattle to utility size. The most cost-effective sizes are the utility size – 600 kilowatts to 2 1/2 MW. • WTG technology has matured into a reliable and competitively priced power resource. • WTGs are getting larger and taller – the wind speed is greater at higher elevations such as 50 and 70 meters. • Currently there are 24,000 MW of installed WTG worldwide, 1,700 MW in California alone. Most of the California WTGs are located at Altamont, Tehachapi, and San Gorgonio.
Wind power is a form of renewable energy – energy that is replenished daily by the sun. As portions of the earth are heated by the sun, air rushes to fill the low pressure areas, creating wind power. But the wind’s characteristics may conceal its true power. The wind is slowed dramatically by friction as it brushes the ground and vegetation, it may not feel very windy at ground level. Yet the power in the wind may be five times greater at the height of a 40-story building (the height of the blade tip on a large, modern wind turbine) than the breeze on your face. Furthermore, the wind is accelerated by major land forms, so that entire areas of the country may be very windy while other areas are relatively calm. Wind power is converted to electricity by a wind turbine. In a typical, modern, large-scale wind turbine, the kinetic energy in the wind (the energy of moving air molecules) is captured by blades, then converted to rotational motion by the rotor – holding a three-bladed assembly
Many people want to know what wind power is and how it works. By definition wind power is energy created by the force of wind that generates a mechanism and assists electrical turbines to move and produce an electrical current. Wind is a natural element that is caused by solar heating on the earth’s exterior particularly during the daytime. When the other parts of the earth’s surface are experiencing cooler climates much like at night, it creates a reaction in the atmosphere. This reaction causes the warm air to move out and the cool air to move in. Subsequently in less technical terms wind power is a form of energy produced by the warming and cooling effects of the earth’s surface. The concepts of wind powered devices are used to allow nature to physically produce energy without eliminating the resources, thus creating an abundant source of natural powered energy. Natural scientists over the years have enhanced the development of harnessing wind power to create an assortment of a ways
Wind power is generated through the use of a turbine, usually mounted on a tower. The turbine collects wind energy and converts it to electricity which is transferred to your houses breaker panel, allowing you to rely on your existing utility power supply as only a backup. ——- Wind power Air moves around the earth because of the differences in temperature and atmospheric pressure that exist. Wind turbines harness the movement of air to produce energy. The wind turns the blades, which turn a rotor shaft. This produces mechanical power used to drive an electric generator. —— Wind power has been used for many years to drive mills and water pumps. Although some of those uses continue, the most common commercial use of wind power today is for running turbines that generate electricity. Wind turbines are often set up in clusters, called wind farms, and the electricity generated is fed into the grid. —– “Wind power refers to the extraction of useful energy from the wind. In 2005, w
