There are forces on the earth that can be harnessed and turned into some form of energy. Wind is one of those forces. It is especially viable in areas that are flat. Wind energy is an up and coming form of renewable energy that will thrive as technology advances. Wind energy is produced by wind turbines. These turbines work kind of like a fan in reverse. Instead of have electricity turn the blades of the fan, wind turns the blades in order to produce electricity. The blades are connected to a shaft inside the turbine and when the wind turns blades, the blades turn the shaft. The shaft is connected to a generator in which makes the electricity. (How Do Wind Turbines Work?) The turbines are connected to transmission grids in order to carry the electricity generated to the areas needed. (Block) Wind turbines come in multiple sizes that range from big commercial sizes to residential sizes. There are two different types of commercial wind turbines, vertical-axis and horizontal-axis. Horizontal-axis has two or three blades and vertical-axis looks like an egg beater. The towers can range from 200 to 320 feet in height, with the blades ranging from 80 to 100 feet in length. (Commercial-Scale Wind Turbine Generators in the OPPD Service Area, 2006, p.1)These turbines can produce between 10 kilowatts to several megawatts. (How Do Wind Turbines Work?) Commercial wind turbines are generally grouped together into wind farms. (Commercial-Scale Wind Turbine Generators in the OPPD Service Area, 2006, p.1) Location sites for wind turbines can be either on land or off shore. Sites that have no rough hills, trees, or buildings, such as the Great Plains, are a good site to build wind farms. (Commercial-Scale Wind Turbine Generators in the OPPD Service Area, 2006, p.3) Wind turbines have a significant amount of startup costs. The biggest cost of building a wind farm is the actual wind turbine itself, which can make up to 70% of the cost of the whole project. In 2012 it cost $1,940/kW for an installed turbine and the cost has been trending downward for years. (The Cost of Wind Energy in the U.S) Site location is a key competent in determine the site of the build and weather it will be successful in producing energy. Operating costs and maintenance can run an average of $20/kW a year. In order to place wind farms in prime locations, they have to be in rural areas which require transmission lines to be built, these price to build these facilities can range from $20 million to $100 million. (Commercial-Scale Wind Turbine Generators in the OPPD Service Area, 2006, p.4) A study by the U.S. Department of Energy found that the U.S. could have 30% of its power generated from wind energy by 2024. The study came up with one scenario that would achieve 30% wind energy and three scenarios that would generate 20% wind energy. They each had a combination of offshore wind development and new transmission lines. The building of new transmission lines made up the bulk of the cost, costing in the billions of dollars. (Block) The United States has been trending upward in wind energy for years. In 2004 the United States produced 10,000 MW in wind energy and increasing to 40,000 MW in 2010. (Would Wind Be a Significant Energy Source? 2012, p.28) In 2012 the United States saw 13.2 gigawatts of wind power installed, making the countries total amount of wind power at the end of 2012 at 60 gigawatts. (Woody, 2013) If the United States was to rely completely wind energy it would have to build new transmission lines along with aggressive offshore wind
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One of the biggest things I learned is how much power can actually be generated by wind turbines. I was always skeptical of wind energy because of the fact that wind comes and goes. As technology advances, wind turbines will become less expansive to install. They will also be able to generate more power, since the generators will keep improving and the blades will become lighter. I have only seen one wind farm in my life time and that was in Oregon. I was amazed on how big the wind turbines are. I would have to say that if I had a choice, I would not want to see them from my
One of the biggest things I learned is how much power can actually be generated by wind turbines. I was always skeptical of wind energy because of the fact that wind comes and goes. As technology advances, wind turbines will become less expansive to install. They will also be able to generate more power, since the generators will keep improving and the blades will become lighter. I have only seen one wind farm in my life time and that was in Oregon. I was amazed on how big the wind turbines are. I would have to say that if I had a choice, I would not want to see them from my