About Wind Energy
Lessons learned since the earliest recorded history (as early as 5000 BC) in the
way people have harnessed wind energy, are beginning to pay off. Now very close
in cost to power by conventional utility generation, wind energy is the world's
fastest-growing energy source and will power industry, businesses and homes with
clean, renewable electricity for decades to come.
Wind power is a growing industry, and the technology has changed considerably in
recent decades.
Windpower can be divided into three size ranges, which are used for different
applications. The size is chosen differently depending on the turbine’s purpose.
Typical sizes in the three ranges available in the US are:
- Residential: below 30 kW
- Community: 30 - 100 MW
- Commercial scale: 100 MW +
A turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of a moving fluid into
rotational energy (engineers call both liquids and gases “fluids” – i.e. things
that flow). A wind turbine’s blades use aerodynamic lift and drag to capture the
wind’s energy and turn the generator’s shaft. The main parts of a typical wind
turbine are:
- Rotor / Nodes: a wind turbine’s blades and the hub to which they attach form the rotor.
- Nacelle: the frame and housing at the top of the tower. It protects the gearbox
and the generator from weather, and helps control the mechanical noise level.
- Tower: a steel structure, typically tubular, with a ladder up the inside for
maintenance access.
- Base / Foundation: made of concrete reinforced with steel bars. Typically
either a shallow flat disk or a deeper cylinder.
Further Reading
Here's an informative document put together by North Dakota State
University, entitled "Wind Turbine Lease Considerations for Landowners."