HOW CAN YOU HARNESS THE ENERGY OF THE WIND? - ENVIRONMENT - 2025

The basic way to harness the energy of the wind or wind energy is generating electricity with the use of turbines. Wind energy is that obtained through moving air masses, that is, through the wind.

Currently, it is one of the most popular in the world, since it constitutes a reliable source of energy (the winds are consistent and do not depend on the time of day, as is the case with solar energy).

Windmills take advantage of wind energy to grind grain or pump water, among other uses.

In addition, it is a clean and renewable energy, that is, non-polluting. By 2014, more than 90 countries owned wind farms, facilities that generate 3% of the total electricity consumed on planet Earth.

Harnessing wind energy: turbines

How is electricity generated from the wind in wind farms?

Power plants collect energy from the wind through turbines, which are devices that are responsible for transforming wind energy into electricity.

In general, these turbines are arranged in large numbers in large fields; this type of installation is known as a wind farm.

Broadly speaking, the process of obtaining wind energy is as follows:

1 - The moving air mass flows through the turbine blades, causing them to move.

2 - The movement of the turbines drives a generator that subsequently produces electricity.

Each turbine works independently; However, these are connected to each other thanks to a cabling system, which collects the energy produced by all the turbines and transports it to the electricity grid in the area.

Turbines

Each turbine is made up of four fundamental parts: the base, the tower, the generator and the impeller.

1- The base

The base holds the turbine in place. This must be strong enough to support the general structure of the turbine added to the force of the winds.

2- The tower

The mechanism that is responsible for generating electricity from the wind is located in the tower. The impeller and generator are part of the tower.

3- The generator

The generator is the center of the turbine and it is the part that directly transforms energy into electricity.

4- The impeller

The impeller or blades are attached to the rotor. Most wind turbines have three blades, the size of which determines the amount of energy that is collected: the longer these are, the more wind energy is collected.

Before installing an impeller, it must be subjected to a series of tests to determine if it will be able to withstand the weather conditions and the force of the wind.

Impeller of a turbine. Photo retrieved from web.mit.edu.

Wind speed

In general, a turbine will not take advantage of winds whose speed is less than 3 km / s; instead, the turbine reaches its highest potential with winds that have a speed of 12 km / s.

Are the turbines safe?

Wind turbines have an integrated computer that is responsible for monitoring the direction and speed of the wind. Once these two elements have been determined, the turbine is automatically programmed to run smoothly.

In the event that the wind speed exceeds the levels that are considered safe, the computer will shut down the turbine to prevent damage.

Use of wind energy throughout history

The use of wind energy is not a new practice. In fact, it has been used since ancient times, in windmills or boats powered by the wind, among others.

The first systems that were developed to obtain this type of energy were vertical axis and horizontal axis windmills. Currently, this type of system continues to be used.

Later, in 1888, Charles Brush built the first large-scale generator turbine, which collected and transformed energy from the wind into electricity.

Currently, due to the search for alternative sources of energy to reduce the pollution levels of planet Earth, wind energy has increased in popularity and many countries are implementing the construction of wind farms.

Advantages of wind energy

1 - Wind energy is a renewable source, which means that there is no concern that it will run out, as with fossil fuels.

2 - This type of energy generates little environmental impact, since it does not emit greenhouse gases, gas or other polluting agents. This is why it belongs to the group of "clean energies".

3 - The movement of air masses can be accurately predicted, allowing this source to take full advantage.

4 - Due to the fact that the turbines are independent of each other, they can be subjected to maintenance processes without the need to turn off the other turbines of the wind farm.

5 - Although the development of this type of energy requires large areas of land, once a wind farm has been built, the land around it can be used for other purposes, such as agriculture or livestock.

6 - The wind energy available in the atmosphere is five times greater than the total energy consumption of planet Earth.

7 - Modern turbines are capable of collecting up to 1 megawatt (MV) of wind energy. If you build farms with 100 or 150 turbines, the amount of energy collected would be staggering.

References

1. Wind. Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from electrocity.co.nz.
2. Wind Energy. Implications of large-sacle deployment on the GB electricity system (2014). Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from raeng.org.uk.
3. Wind Power Fundamentals. Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from web.mit.edu.
4. Renewable energy and other alternative energy sources. Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from dmme.virginia.gov.
5. What are the different types of renewable energy? Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from phys.org.
6. 5 Types of Renewable energy. Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from myenergygateway.org.
7. Alternative energy. Retrieved on May 2, 2017, from ems.psu.edu.