How Do Wind Turbines Create Energy – The potential of wind power is huge! Bringing clean energy to electric homes across the UK. But what do we do about it, you ask? Yes, really a lot! We are investing, innovating and delivering some of the much-needed new cheap, low-carbon electricity to the UK.
Wind is a form of solar energy. Wind is caused by the uneven heating of the atmosphere by the sun, the difference in the surface of the earth and the rotation of the earth. Wind currents can be collected by wind turbines to generate electricity.
How Do Wind Turbines Create Energy
Wind turbines convert the kinetic energy from the wind into power. A generator is then used to convert mechanical power into electricity, powering homes and businesses across the UK.
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Typically, a wind turbine is around 30-45% efficient which increases to 50% during peak wind times. If wind turbines are 100% efficient, the wind will drop completely after passing through the turbine.
In the UK, wind turbines typically produce electricity 70-80% of the time, making them a reliable source of power throughout the year.
A wind turbine is simply the opposite of a fan. Instead of using wind to generate electricity, they use wind to generate electricity. When the wind blows (it doesn’t have to be a strong wind) the dishes spin. This motion turns a rotor, which turns a generator, this motion creates kinetic energy, which is then used to generate electricity.
Wind turbines are simply powered by wind gusts (about 3-5 meters per second). The wind then spins the blades of a turbine around a rotor, which spins a generator and it produces electricity.
Backyard Wind Power
If you’ve ever flown a kite or sailed a boat, you’ll know that there’s a lot of power in the wind. Of course, the use of wind power is nothing new – it has been used to grind flour or power machinery around the world for hundreds of years. And wind-powered boats have been around for thousands of years.
So there is plenty of wind power, but how do other factors contribute to the production of electricity from wind turbines?
As with many natural energy sources, they are rarely 100% renewable. The wind can drop, blow very hard or blow up – none of these are good for wind turbines. So finding the right location where the wind power is as predictable as possible is very important.
The wind is affected by the earthquake: hills, valleys, forests and buildings. All of these dissipate and transform the available power so flat, high and undisturbed sites are best for wind turbines. That’s why there are so many offshore wind farms and why you’ll find turbines on top of mountains.
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Countries with flat landscapes, such as Belgium and the Netherlands, are good locations for wind farms because there is very little wind to blow through.
Each wind turbine has a sensor that detects the strongest wind direction. The structural structure behind the beam (called the nacelle) contains mechanisms to rotate the top of the structure, keeping the beams in the perfect position for the strongest wind. When the wind is too strong, the turbines have a brake to slow down the rotors, avoiding damage.
We assemble our wind turbines to produce large amounts of electrical power. The power is then fed into the national utility grid and the renewable energy is distributed to thousands of our customers’ homes across the UK.
This is the draw! Both wind farms provide clean and low-carbon energy. And most importantly – wind is a renewable resource that will never run out!
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Wind turbines can be built faster than any other type of power plant. The average time to assemble a wind farm capable of producing 50 MW of energy is only 6 months!
There are more than 1 GW of renewable projects in planning and development – that’s 1000 MW. So to give you an idea of the power – just 7.2 MW can power up to 4,000 homes!
One of the largest onshore wind farms in Europe as part of the EDF Renewables group. The 177 MW Dorenell wind farm near Dufftown in the Scottish Highlands is home to:
We have partnered with the communities where our wind lives to create opportunities for the future. Here’s how:
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We are one of the UK’s leading renewable energy companies, with 36 wind farms in operation and one of the largest operating battery storage units in Europe. Learn how we plan to build a sustainable future with wind power.
You can also take a tour of our Fallago Rigg windmill with Camilla Thurlow in episode 5 of our Electric Adventures.
Our Innovation team deals with the technical stuff when it comes to wind energy. Learn how they are using Big Data to create value from offshore fields. You can also read about the challenges of offshore wind turbines. In September 2018, it was announced that the UK’s wind generation capacity exceeded 20 Gigawatts for the first time, which is enough energy to meet the annual energy needs of more than 14 million homes. The news follows the opening of the world’s largest 189-turbine wind farm off the Cumbrian coast in the same month.
The ability to generate wind power in the UK means that the country’s CO2 emissions have been reduced by more than 25 million tonnes per year thanks to a shift away from fossil fuels.
Floating Offshore Wind Shot
This is a time when it is recognized that there is a significant need for alternative energy sources, and wind energy clearly has a significant impact.
The topic of how energy is created from wind turbines is an interesting one, and what’s even more interesting is the way wind energy has evolved over the years, with the efficiency of turbine production increasing dramatically. The technology behind this development is driven by optics, so let’s take a closer look at the important relationship between optics and wind energy.
When the blades of a wind turbine are hit by the wind, they spin, spinning a shaft in the turbine, a box-like structure at the top of the turbine. The wind does not need to be strong to turn the blades; even with a light wind of 3-5 meters per second, the turbines will start working.
The nacelle contains a generator. This converts the kinetic energy of the rotating shaft into electrical energy which is then passed through a transformer, increasing the voltage to allow it to be transferred onto the National Grid, or used by a local facility.
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The faster the wind, the more electricity is generated, even if the wind is too strong, the turbine will shut down to avoid damage.
Most onshore wind turbines can generate around 2-3 megawatts of energy, which is more than 6 million kilowatt hours of electricity per year, which meets the electricity needs of around 1,500 households.
In 2018, 15 percent of the electricity generated in the United Kingdom came from wind power, a significant increase from 7 percent in 2013. As of April 2019, there are 1,932 offshore turbines in the UK, and 7,779 onshore.
Siting wind farms is quite a science. Because energy production is completely dependent on wind levels, farms need strategic planning to ensure they are located in locations that provide a reliable source of wind throughout the year. The efficiency of the wind turbine is also very important for the amount of energy production. Interestingly, both the location of wind farms and the efficiency of the turbine depend on optical technology.
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Much of the progress in wind energy can be attributed to the development of optical technology that has made the inspection of wind turbine structures and components much more direct and safe. This monitoring allows potential failures to be detected in advance; it reduces operational risk by early identification of damage, and adjusts wind farm site plans and new turbine design.
Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) is a basic optical technology. It works by sending out a pulse of light and then waiting for it to return, measuring the time taken and recording the data.
LiDAR systems are widely used to monitor wind speed and direction. They provide very advantageous intelligence when planning a wind farm. From deciding whether a particular location will provide the best energy, to the correct placement of turbines, LiDAR plays a key role.
Once the turbines are in place, LiDAR takes on a new and again very important role: it becomes responsible for increasing production efficiency.
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With the LiDAR system mounted on the turbine’s idler, the alignment of the tubes becomes an automated, straightforward process. The system has the ability to predict wind direction, turbulence and gusts before it encounters the nozzles, all allowing for increased efficient production.
LiDAR technology has made it possible to measure the wind faster, further and higher than the traditional masts used in the past. It has also reduced the cost of data collection, and increased its accuracy. LiDAR can also be used to track gearbox or bearing failures; radiation damage and unbalanced systems. It is a truly excellent optical technology.
LiDAR systems consist of reliable optical lenses, front folding mirrors, covered windows and
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