Wind Energy
“Wind energy is leading the US to a low carbon future. Not only is wind energy reliable and affordable, but it’s providing sustained emissions reductions in the sector that contributes the most to climate change, the power sector.” -Emily Williams, Senior Policy Analyst for the American Wind Energy Association
A wind turbine is a modern day windmill. Just as a windmill produced a motion to power an object such as a mill, wind turbines produce electricity to power lights and appliances. Wind turbines can take advantage of faster, more turbulent winds.
There are three main parts to a wind turbine. They are a tower, three blades, and a small box called a nacelle. The nacelle contains equipment that changes wind motion into electricity, such as the generator. The tower holds the nacelle and the blades aloft in high-speed wind gusts. The tower is a tubular structure that is safe for birds and bats. The blades rotate when a pocket of low air pressure forms under the blade. This pulls the blade towards the tower and spins it. This also causes a rotor to turn that spins inside a generator to produce electricity. All of these parts are made of fiberglass and metal. The blades are of fiberglass because it is lighter and will move them quicker, making more energy. The rest of the structure is metal so it can withstand the high wind gusts the turbine picks up. This process emits no Carbon Dioxide at all and is safe for the environment.
A horizontal wind turbine runs with the blades parallel to the ground. This is the most used type of turbine and is relatively bird safe. Vertical wind turbines have blades that go up from the ground. These turbines are more bird safe than horizontal ones, but are not as commonly used. The tower of a wind turbine can range anywhere from 200 feet to 300 feet in a turbine used to produce mass electricity. Their blades are typically eighty feet long and connect to a strong, sturdy nacelle.
Wind turbines are also very efficient and can stand-alone or connect to the power grid. When large amounts of turbines are grouped together, they are referred to as a wind farm. It takes at least fourteen miles per hour of wind to spin a turbine on a regular basis. Energy companies grouped their turbines in these locations. Some very windy locations with wind turbines include the Alta Wind Energy Centre in Tehachapi, California, and the Shepherds Flat Wind Farm in Arlington, Oregon. Texas also has many wind farms due to it’s size and wind speeds.
Other people can seek the power of the wind. Many farmers that live far away from the grid will keep turbines on their farms to cheaply and efficiently power their homes. Remote wind turbines that don’t need all of their energy on site have power lines carry their energy to more populated and energy needy areas.
Offshore wind energy has recently become very reliable. The first offshore wind project was installed in Denmark in 1991. Since then, countries, especially in Europe, have rapidly been developing these farms. This renewable energy is very handy in the densely populated coastal towns such as New York City and Boston. Wind blows more uniformly and harder off shore, causing wind turbines to produce more energy.
The rapid development of wind energy in general had led to reductions in Carbon Dioxide emissions in the power sector. In 2013 alone, wind energy brought down emissions equivalent to taking 16.9 million cars off of the road, or 4.4%. It is the most scalable zero-emission electricity source. It can also be one of the cheapest coal and oil alternatives.
Emily Williams, who is the Senior Policy Analyst for the American Wind Energy Association says, “Wind energy is leading the US to a low carbon future. Not only is wind energy reliable and affordable, but it’s providing sustained emissions reductions in the sector that contributes the most to climate change, the power sector.”
Not only does wind energy cut down Carbon Dioxide emissions, it also helps to cut down problems that global warming leads to. It helps to cut down on other health harming air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. It reduces massive amounts of water being evaporated during the cooling process at a conventional power plant. In average, wind energy cuts down 1,300 pounds of Carbon Dioxide for every megawatt one turbine produces. Overall, wind energy is the cleanest and has the least impact on the environment of all energy sources.
There are three main parts to a wind turbine. They are a tower, three blades, and a small box called a nacelle. The nacelle contains equipment that changes wind motion into electricity, such as the generator. The tower holds the nacelle and the blades aloft in high-speed wind gusts. The tower is a tubular structure that is safe for birds and bats. The blades rotate when a pocket of low air pressure forms under the blade. This pulls the blade towards the tower and spins it. This also causes a rotor to turn that spins inside a generator to produce electricity. All of these parts are made of fiberglass and metal. The blades are of fiberglass because it is lighter and will move them quicker, making more energy. The rest of the structure is metal so it can withstand the high wind gusts the turbine picks up. This process emits no Carbon Dioxide at all and is safe for the environment.
A horizontal wind turbine runs with the blades parallel to the ground. This is the most used type of turbine and is relatively bird safe. Vertical wind turbines have blades that go up from the ground. These turbines are more bird safe than horizontal ones, but are not as commonly used. The tower of a wind turbine can range anywhere from 200 feet to 300 feet in a turbine used to produce mass electricity. Their blades are typically eighty feet long and connect to a strong, sturdy nacelle.
Wind turbines are also very efficient and can stand-alone or connect to the power grid. When large amounts of turbines are grouped together, they are referred to as a wind farm. It takes at least fourteen miles per hour of wind to spin a turbine on a regular basis. Energy companies grouped their turbines in these locations. Some very windy locations with wind turbines include the Alta Wind Energy Centre in Tehachapi, California, and the Shepherds Flat Wind Farm in Arlington, Oregon. Texas also has many wind farms due to it’s size and wind speeds.
Other people can seek the power of the wind. Many farmers that live far away from the grid will keep turbines on their farms to cheaply and efficiently power their homes. Remote wind turbines that don’t need all of their energy on site have power lines carry their energy to more populated and energy needy areas.
Offshore wind energy has recently become very reliable. The first offshore wind project was installed in Denmark in 1991. Since then, countries, especially in Europe, have rapidly been developing these farms. This renewable energy is very handy in the densely populated coastal towns such as New York City and Boston. Wind blows more uniformly and harder off shore, causing wind turbines to produce more energy.
The rapid development of wind energy in general had led to reductions in Carbon Dioxide emissions in the power sector. In 2013 alone, wind energy brought down emissions equivalent to taking 16.9 million cars off of the road, or 4.4%. It is the most scalable zero-emission electricity source. It can also be one of the cheapest coal and oil alternatives.
Emily Williams, who is the Senior Policy Analyst for the American Wind Energy Association says, “Wind energy is leading the US to a low carbon future. Not only is wind energy reliable and affordable, but it’s providing sustained emissions reductions in the sector that contributes the most to climate change, the power sector.”
Not only does wind energy cut down Carbon Dioxide emissions, it also helps to cut down problems that global warming leads to. It helps to cut down on other health harming air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. It reduces massive amounts of water being evaporated during the cooling process at a conventional power plant. In average, wind energy cuts down 1,300 pounds of Carbon Dioxide for every megawatt one turbine produces. Overall, wind energy is the cleanest and has the least impact on the environment of all energy sources.