Wind is a constant
resource available around the world which we can harness and use as
energy. Although we cannot see it, it
has a tangible presence we can feel which generates a force strong enough to
aid humanity. Wind power in today’s
world has increased rather rapidly through its demonstrated history and
mechanics of modern times, global and local awareness, as well as in education
of the citizens.
History is riddled with
uses of wind power in the community. Gary
Johnson discusses that in the third century BC, the Hero of Alexandria had
described a horizontal-axis turbine that would be used to supply power for an
organ. Neil Morris then believes in
1592, Cornelis Cornelisz built a sawmill powered by the wind which would move
the saw blades up and down, cutting timber as it passed through the mill. Three hundred years later in 1888, Charles
Francis Brush created the first electricity-generating windmill. Afterwards, in 1890, Poul La Cour created
electricity-generated windmills with more sails that were built on iron or
wooden towers.
Wind power was first
demonstrated for practical use in windmills, as well as in sailboats. According to Morris, in the beginning, sails
were shaped as squares because sailors understood that the wind would move the
boat as long as there was something to catch the force of the wind. However, as time passed, Arabs came to
realize that a triangular sail, or lateen, would help seamen sail into the
wind, capture it, and use it to their advantage. On land, the wind was utilized through
windmills, one of the first inventions that people used instead of exerting
their own strength. The first windmills
are unlike the ones commonly seen today because they originally had the sails
parallel to the ground; however, as time went by the sails eventually became
vertical and would have a tail pole so they could be rotated when the wind
would change direction. The main purpose
of windmills was to either grind grain or pump water or transferring it from an
area with a higher water level to an area with a lower water level.
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| Britse, Gunner (photographer). [Untitled photograph of a wind turbine]. Retrieved November 13, 2012 from: http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2007/01/wind-power-in-stormy-waters.html |
The wind turbines used to
capture wind power are enormous, as are the mechanics. Spilsbury states in a traditional horizontal
turbine, the blades, which are shaped so the wind has the most effect on them,
rotate around a hub. The blades and the
hub together are called the rotor which is connected to a shaft. As the shaft works, it operates the gearbox
using cogs which affects a second shaft to spin faster than the first to turn a
generator. Both the shaft and the
gearbox are held inside the nacelle, which is at the top of the tower so the
height of the machine is optimal to capture wind. However, if the winds are too strong, many
turbines have automatic brakes, some also have control systems that
electronically change the angle of the rotor and direction.
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| Horizontal Axis and Vertical Axis Wind Turbines [photograph]. Retrieved November 13, 2012 from: http://www.heliosbuzz.com/wind-energy-vertical-axis-wind-turbines/vawt/ |
There are two main kinds
of wind turbines, horizontal and vertical axis.
Ian Graham states that vertical axis wind turbines consist of a large
shaft with, usually, three blades parallel to the ground that rotate around the
shaft. An advantage to these turbines is
that they do not have to be rotated when the wind changes because they are spun
from any direction the wind takes; however, they are not as efficient because
there’s only a small area to catch the wind.
Since vertical turbines are generally lower to the ground, which is
beneficial when it comes to maintenance, it also means that there is less wind
that can be converted to energy. On the
other hand, horizontal axis wind turbines are most commonly seen because they
are the more efficient since they have the height to attain a lot of wind
power. Therefore, they can generate more
electricity than vertical turbines, but have the disadvantage of having to be
turned when the wind direction shifts.
The use of wind power has
been developing through time, and we may even see some more creations. Morris claims there have been ideas such as
combining kites and wind turbines together into a gyromill, a machine that
would fly high in the sky, rotating multiple turbines and the electricity it
would generate would travel back down along the cord. Tall buildings could be combined with wind
turbines in an attempt to generate the buildings own electricity. There have also been stormblades, which look
like jet engines, that has the rotors on the inside and happens to be twice as
efficient as other turbines.
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| [Untitled photograph of wind turbine architecture]. Retrieved November 13, 2012 from: http://benefitsofwindenergy.info/live-putting-wind-turbines-on-buildings-doesnt-make-sense-by-alex-wilson-on-05012009/#comments |
A lot of electricity can
be generated from wind farms, a group of large turbines in one site which feeds
into a grid and is distributed to consumers.
Spilsbury addresses that one turbine on its own can generate about 500
kilowatts to 3,000 megawatts of electricity; imagine how much electricity could
be generated from an entire wind farm. While
wind farms are beneficial, they are also temperamental because they need a lot
of space to work properly. If the wind
turbines are too close to one another, they can block the wind supply to their
neighbors. They can also alter the
surrounding wind because of the swirling of the blades, which would hinder the
blades of another turbine to turn. There
have been attempts to create wind farms at sea.
While there is more space and the winds are stronger along the coast,
which could generate more energy, it is much more difficult to erect the tall
towers due to their sheer size and expense.
Having the resources to tug a large turbine and its parts out into the
water as well as laying down the power cables that would carry the electricity
to land is economically unfriendly to any company willing to increase energy
resources.
The expense of one wind
turbine is astronomical, it’s astonishing how many there are. Spilsbury has found that the cost that goes
into setting up one wind turbine alone must be considered by buying land and
machinery, the mechanics of creating the engine, as well as connecting it to
the power supply. It costs roughly three
million dollars to buy and arrange a turbine that could generate one
megawatt. Some governments will
subsidize wind farms in an effort to reduce greenhouse gases; however, even
with some subsidizations wind power is still more expensive than other
nonrenewable resources.
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| Sedlacek, Karel (photographer). Gyromill - Hybrid Hellicopter and Windmill [photograph], Retrieved November 13, 2012 from: http://www.mmspektrum.com/clanek/atraktivni-projekty-letajici-elektrarna.html |
While wind power is
extremely beneficial to the environment through its lack of harmful waste,
people believe that there are other negative effects that hinder the desire for
these large machines. Spilsbury has argued
that those who live near a turbine complain about the noise that the blades
make as well as the sounds from the generator and gearbox. Others see the wind turbines as an
obstruction of the landscape, that it ruins the beautiful view of a country
side even though they take up small amounts of space and farmers may use the
land around them.
Wind power has also been
making headway in the Ohio area. In the
beginning, Charles Francis Brush originally created a system in Cleveland that
lit the street lights in 1878, who later created the first windmill that
generated electricity. In Ghose’s
article, Ohio State University (OSU) is now funding for wind power as
well. OSU has agreed to pay for 50
megawatts of wind energy, which is roughly about 26% of the power consumption
from the OSU Columbus campus. Newspapers
say that this is one of the largest wind power purchases from a non-Utility
American entity. Funk’s article counters
that wind power is making a difference outside of Columbus as well, in
Cleveland where there are going to be more than 170 smart homes built that will
be using energy from wind turbines, as well as other energy-efficient
mechanisms such as solar arrays and electric vehicles.
Wind power is benefits
the environment, but also has a deep root in ecology. In the fourth edition of “Environment,” it
says that wind turbines are able to convert the kinetic energy from the wind
into the energy that runs in electricity.
At the rate that its popularity is increasing, it’s believed that wind
power will double every three years, especially since it produces more than
twenty-three times than it consumes.
However, Congress has not permitted a long-term federal tax credit for
wind development, much to environmentalist’s dismay.
In conclusion, there has
been more global awareness about wind power as well as an increase in its
popularity throughout the ages due to a green-conscious population. It will be very exciting to see this energy
efficient resource expand in the years to come to create a greener future.
