Wind Energy
Basics
The Kidwind Project
www.kidwind.org
What is Electricity?
Electricity is energy
transported by
the motion of electrons
**We do not make electricity, we CONVERT
other energy sources into electrical energy**
Conversion is the name of the game
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Faraday Effect
• Faraday Effect
• Basic Concepts
• Voltage – V – Potential to Move Charge (volts)
• Current – I – Charge Movement (amperes or amps)
• Resistance – R – V = IxR (R in =ohms)
• Power – P = IxV = I2xR (watts)
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
How Does a Generator Work?
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Electricity!
More efficient light bulbs are great, but what is
the BEST way to conserve electricity and reduce
our consumption of fossil fuels???
• How much would it cost to run this
100 Watt bulb for a full day (24 hrs)?
• What about this 25 Watt CFL light
bulb, which produces the same
amount of light?
• 100 Watts x 24 hours = 2400 Watt Hours
(2400 Watt Hours = 2.4 Kilowatt Hours)
• 25 Watts x 24 hours = 600 Watt Hours
(600 Watt Hours = 0.6 Kilowatt Hours)
• 2.4 kWh x $0.08/kWh = $0.19
TURN IT OFF!!!
• 0.6 kWh x $0.08/kWh = $0.05
Be conscious of your energy choices!
Where do we get our electricity?
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
What is a Fossil Fuel???
What is “Renewable Energy?”
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Types of Electricity Generating Windmills
Small (10 kW)
Intermediate
(10-250 kW)
• Homes
• Farms
• Remote Applications
• Village Power
• Hybrid Systems
• Distributed Power
(e.g. water pumping,
telecom sites,
icemaking)
Large (250 kW - 2+MW)
• Central Station Wind Farms
• Distributed Power
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Parts of a Wind Turbine
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Wind Turbine Perspective
Workers
Blade
112’ long
Nacelle
56 tons
Tower
3 sections
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Large Wind Turbines
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
450’ base to blade
Each blade 112’
Span greater than 747
163+ tons total
Foundation 20+ feet deep
Rated at 1.5 – 5 megawatt
Supply at least 350 homes
Yawing – Facing the Wind
• Active Yaw (all medium &
large turbines produced
today, & some small turbines
from Europe)
– Anemometer on nacelle tells
controller which way to point
rotor into the wind
– Yaw drive turns gears to point
rotor into wind
• Passive Yaw (Most small
turbines)
– Wind forces alone direct rotor
• Tail vanes
• Downwind turbines
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Importance of Wind Speed
• No other factor is more
important to the amount of
power available in the wind
than the speed of the wind
• Power is a cubic function of
wind speed
– VXVXV
• 20% increase in wind speed
means 73% more power
• Doubling wind speed means
8 times more power
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Calculation of Wind Power
•Power
inWind
the wind
Power
in the
= ½ρAV3
Effect of air density, 
– Effect of swept area, A
– Effect of wind speed, V
R
Swept Area: A = πR2
Area of the circle swept
by the rotor (m2).
Carnage!
Jobs in the Wind Industry
Construction
Public Relations/Organizing Support
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Operations/
Maintenance
Maintenance
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Engineering/
Design
Environmental Impact Assessment
Wind Power is Fun!
KidWind Project | www.kidwind.org
Questions???
The KidWind Project
www.kidwind.org