WIND ENERGY

NAME: JEKILYAH GIBSON

FORM: IY

CLASS: GENERAL SCIENCE

TEACHER: MS. PILGRIM

 INTRODUCTION
This project is about wind energy. Wind energy is very
useful indeed and Im sure youll learn plenty from this project. I
also hope to learn a lot myself. I hope you enjoy reading this
project on wind energy as it is sure to be accurate and
informative. Enjoy!!
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page nos.

1. What is Wind Energy? 3

2. History of Wind Energy 4
3. Where is it found? 5
4. How does it work? 6
5. Is it commonly used? 8
6. Types of Wind Turbines 9
7. Advantages and Disadvantages 11
8. Comparisons 12
9. Conclusion 13
10.Bibliography 14
 CONCLUSION
I hope youve learnt many new interesting facts about
wind energy. I learnt quite a bit and I really enjoyed doing this
project. Wind energy is very useful and I think it should be put to
use in Trinidad and Tobago.
 WHAT IS WIND ENERGY?
As a gentle breeze or a powerful hurricane, wind blows constantly around
the world. Winds can be defined as belts of moving air that flow from one
area to another, driven by the Suns heat. Warm air is lighter than cold air
so warm air rises as it is heated by the sun and cold air flows to take its
place. This sets up a circular current of air which produces winds. Light,
warm air exerts less pressure on the earth than cold air creating an area of
low pressure towards which cold air flows. Similarly, cold air sinks and
produces an area of high pressure into which warm air flows. The greater
the distance in pressure between two areas, the stronger the winds.

Energy can be defined as the ability or capacity to do work and the power
obtained from fuel and other resources, used for light and heat.

Wind energy is when modern windmills or wind turbines use the wind to
turn the long arms on them to drive generators which produce electricity.
 HISTORY OF WIND ENERGY
The earliest ships used wind power to carry them across the sea and
architects have used wind driven ventilation in ancient times. The use of
wind to provide mechanical power came later.

The Babylonian emperor, Hammurabi planned to use wind power for

irrigation projects in the 17th century BC. The ancient Sinhalese people used
the monsoon winds to power furnaces as early as 300 BC. Windmills were
used in Iran as long ago as the 7th century for raising water from rivers and
later for grinding corn. Windmills were then used to grind flour across
Northwestern Europe, starting in the 1180s. In the United States, water
pumping windmills allowed the farming and ranching of vast areas in North
America which had no readily accessible water.

The first modern wind turbines were built in the early 1980s.

Before After
 WHERE IS IT FOUND?
Wind farms are usually put where there are high winds. Availability of
transmission lines, value of energy to be produced, cost of land acquisition,
land use considerations and environmental impact on construction and
operations must also be taken into consideration.

Onshore wind farms can be found in Denmark, Spain, Portugal, United

States, Romania, India, Germany and Ireland. From May 2009, eighty
countries around the world will be using wind energy.

Offshore wind farms are found in Denmark, Belgium, Sweden, Finland,

Ireland and in the United Kingdom, which is the world leader in offshore
wind energy.
 HOW DOES IT WORK?
A wind turbine uses the wind to make electricity. The wind turns the blades,
which spin a shaft. The shaft is connected to a generator. The generator
converts mechanical energy to electricity. The cable, which is in the tower,
carries the electricity to a transmission line which carries it to towns, cities,
homes, etc.

Anemometer it measures the speed of the wind and transmits the

data to the controller.
Blades the wind, blowing over the blades causes them to rotate.
Brake it stops the rotor in emergencies.
Controller starts the machine at about 8-16 mph and shuts off the
machine at 55 mph because if the turbine spins faster than that, it will
be damaged.
Gear Box gears connect the low speed shaft to the high speed shaft
and increase the rotational speeds.
Generator it produces the electricity.
High-Speed Shaft it drives the generator.
 Low-Speed Shaft it is turned by the rotor at 30-60 rotations per
minute.
Nacelle it sits on the tower and contains the gear box, speed shafts,
generator, brakes and controller.
Pitch blades are pitched out of the wind to control the rotor speed
and keep the rotor from turning in too high or low winds.
Rotor the blades and the hub are the rotor.
Tower made from tubular steel, concrete or steel lattice. The taller
the tower is, the more electricity the turbine can make as the wind
speed increases with height.
Wind Direction the direction the rotor is facing.
Wind Vane measures wind direction and communicates with the
yaw drive to turn the rotor in the direction of the wind.
Yaw Drive it keeps the rotor facing the wind as the direction
changes.
Yaw Motor it powers the yaw drive.
Cable located inside the tower, it take the electricity to transmission
lines.
 IS IT COMMONLY USED?
Wind turbine production has expanded to many countries all over the
world. It is commonly used because the wind itself costs nothing and
does not pollute the air. It is environmentally friendly and a
renewable energy source.
Denmark nearly one-fifth of its electricity is generated with
wind turbines.
America nearly 1% of electricity is generated with wind
turbines, which is about 4.5 million households.
India 3% of its electricity is produced with wind energy.
Mexico 13% of its electricity is produced by wind energy.

France, Canada and China are experiencing rapid growth in the

amounts of electricity that is produced by wind energy in their
countries.
 TYPES OF WIND TURBINES
Horizontal Axis:
Horizontal axis wind turbines (HAWT) have the rotor shaft and
generator at the top of the tower and must be pointed into the wind.
Most of them have a gearbox. The blades are made stiff to prevent
them from being pushed into the tower by high winds. Also, the
blades are placed a considerable distance from the tower and are
sometimes tilted up a bit.

HAWT Subtypes:
12th century windmills these structures have four blades with either
wooden shutters or fabric sails and were developed in Europe. In the
Netherlands, this type of windmill was made to generate electricity.

19th century windmills These had many blades, operated on tip

speed ratios and had good starting rotation. It helped to power many
farms with electricity and became a main source of farm power by the
1950s.

Modern wind turbines These usually have three blades and are
pointed into the wind by a by computer controlled motors. These
have high speeds and efficiency as well as low rotation ripples. The
blades are coloured light gray and are very long and the tower is very

tall.

Vertical Axis:
Vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT) have the main rotor shaft arranged
vertically. Because of this, the turbine does not need to be pointed
into the wind to be effective. The generator and gearbox can be
placed near the ground so it is easily accessible and the tower doesnt
need to support it.

VAWT Subtypes:
Darrieus wind turbines Also known as eggbeater turbines, they are
efficient but produce large rotation ripples and tire out the blade,
axle and bearing. They also need an external power source to start it
turning because the starting rotation is very low. Its blades are
curved.

Giromill - These turbines have straight blades, high starting rotation

and efficient in rough winds.
 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES

Causes no air pollution Can be harmful to bats

The wind itself costs nothing Takes up large areas of land

A renewable source of energy Stops when the wind stops blowing

It consumes no fuel Large and sometimes noisy

 COMPARISONS
WIND SOLAR FOSSIL HYDRO- TIDAL NUCLEAR GEOTHERMAL
ENERGY ENERGY FUELS ELECTRIC ENERGY ENERGY ENERGY
ENERGY
Causes no Causes no Causes air Causes no Causes no Causes no Causes air
air air pollution air air air pollution
pollution pollution pollution pollution pollution
Renewable Renewable Non- Renewable Renewable Renewable Renewable
renewable
Non-fixed Non-fixed Non-fixed Non-fixed Fixed Fixed Fixed supply
supply supply supply supply supply supply rate
rate rate rate rate rate rate
Hurts Doesnt Hurts Hurts Doesnt Hurts Doesnt hurt
wildlife hurt wildlife wildlife hurt wildlife wildlife
wildlife wildlife
Relatively Expensive Expensive Expensive Relatively Expensive Relatively
cheap cheap cheap
 BIBLIOGRAPHY
Kramer, Ann and Miranda Kennedy. The Dorling Kindersley
Childrens Illustrated Encyclopedia. Great Britain. Dorling
Kindersley Limited, 1991.

Allen, Robert and Andrew Delahunty. Oxford Students

Dictionary. Great Britain. Oxford University Press, 2002.

Websters Universal Dictionary and Thesaurus. Scotland.

Geddes and Grosset Limited, 2002.

Wikipedia.com