MODULE III

WIND ENERGY &

ENERGY FROM OCEANS
WIND ENERGY
WIND POWER
The first use of a large windmill to
generate electricity was a system built in
Cleveland, Ohio, in 1888 by Charles F. Brush.
The Brush machine was a post mill with a
multiple-bladed "picket-fence" rotor 17 meters
in diameter, featuring a large tail hinged to turn
the rotor out of the wind. It was the first
windmill to incorporate a step-up gearbox (with
a ratio of 50:1) in order to turn a direct current
generator at its required operational speed (in
this case, 500 RPM.)
 INTRODUCTION

• A wind turbine is a rotating machine which converts the kinetic energy of wind
into mechanical energy.
• If the mechanical energy is used directly by machinery, such as a pump or
grinding stones, the machine is usually called a windmill.
• If the mechanical energy is instead converted to electricity, the machine is called
a wind generator, wind turbine, wind power unit (WPU), wind energy converter
(WEC), or aerogenerator.
• Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWT)
• Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWT)
 EVOLUTION OF WIND TURBINES
• Wind is a clean, safe, renewable form of energy.
• Although the use of wind power in sailing vessels appeared in
antiquity, the widespread use of wind power for grinding grain and
pumping water was delayed until
• the 7th century in Persia,
• the 12th century in England, and
• the 15th century in Holland.
• 17th century, Leibniz proposed using windmills and waterwheels
together to pump water from mines in the Harz Mountains.
• Dutch settlers brought Dutch mills to America in the 18th century.
• This led to the development of a multiblade wind turbine that was
used to pump water for livestock.
• Wind turbines were used in Denmark in 1890 to generate electric
power.
• Early in the 20th century American farms began to use wind
turbines to drive electricity generators for charging storage batteries.
MODERN WIND TURBINE
Commercial wind energy is one of the most economical
sources of new electricity available today.
Wind turbines can be set up quickly and cheaply compared
with building new coal-fired generating stations or
hydroelectric facilities.
Modern wind generating equipment is efficient, highly
reliable, and becoming cheaper to purchase.
The environmental impact of large wind turbines is
negligible compared with an open pit coal mine or a
reservoir, and during their operation produce no air
pollution. Because of these factors, wind energy is
recognized as the world's fastest-growing new energy source.
 HOW DOES A WIND TURBINE
WORK?
• Wind turbines operate on a simple principle. The energy
in the wind turns two or three propeller-like blades
around a rotor. The rotor is connected to the main shaft,
which spins a generator to create electricity.
• Wind turbines are mounted on a tower to capture the most
energy. At 100 feet (30 meters) or more above ground,
they can take advantage of faster and less turbulent wind.
• Wind turbines can be used to produce electricity for a
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy.
single home or building, or they can be connected to an
electricity grid (shown here) for more widespread
electricity distribution.
HOW DOES A WIND TURBINE WORK?
 HOW DOES A WIND TURBINE
WORK?
•Anemometer: Measures the wind speed and transmits wind speed data to the
controller.

•Blades: Most turbines have either two or three blades. Wind blowing over the blades
causes the blades to "lift" and rotate.

•Brake: A disc brake, which can be applied mechanically, electrically, or hydraulically

to stop the rotor in emergencies.

•Controller: The controller starts up the machine at wind speeds of about 8 to 16 miles
per hour (mph) and shuts off the machine at about 55 mph. Turbines do not operate at
wind speeds above about 55 mph because they might be damaged by the high winds.
• Gear box: Gears connect the low-speed shaft to the high-speed shaft and increase
the rotational speeds from about 30 to 60 rotations per minute (rpm) to about 1000
to 1800 rpm, the rotational speed required by most generators to produce electricity.
The gear box is a costly (and heavy) part of the wind turbine and engineers are
exploring "direct-drive" generators that operate at lower rotational speeds and don't
need gear boxes.
• Generator: Usually an off-the-shelf induction generator that produces 60-cycle AC
electricity. High-speed shaft: Drives the generator. Low-speed shaft: The rotor turns
the low-speed shaft at about 30 to 60 rotations per minute.
• Nacelle: The nacelle sits atop the tower and contains the gear box, low- and high-
speed shafts, generator, controller, and brake. Some nacelles are large enough for a
helicopter to land on.
• Pitch: Blades are turned, or pitched, out of the wind to control the rotor speed
and keep the rotor from turning in winds that are too high or too low to produce
electricity.

• Rotor: The blades and the hub together are called the rotor.

• Tower: Towers are made from tubular steel (shown here), concrete, or steel
lattice. Because wind speed increases with height, taller towers enable turbines to
capture more energy and generate more electricity.
• Wind direction: This is an "upwind" turbine, so-called because it operates facing into
the wind. Other turbines are designed to run "downwind," facing away from the wind.

• Wind vane: Measures wind direction and communicates with the yaw drive to orient the
turbine properly with respect to the wind.

• Yaw drive: Upwind turbines face into the wind; the yaw drive is used to keep the rotor
facing into the wind as the wind direction changes. Downwind turbines don't require a
yaw drive, the wind blows the rotor downwind.

• Yaw motor: Powers the yaw drive.

WHERE SHOULD YOU PUT A
WIND TURBINE?
WIND TURBINE TYPES
 HOW MUCH POWER DOES A
WIND TURBINE GENERATE?
Kinetic Energy = Work = ½mV2

Where:
M= mass of moving object
V = velocity of moving object

What is the mass of moving air?

A
= density (ρ) x volume (Area x distance)
= ρxAxd V
= (kg/m3) (m2) (m) d
= kg
HOW MUCH POWER DOES A
WIND TURBINE GENERATE?
Power = Work / t
= Kinetic Energy / t
= ½ mV2 / t
= ½(ρAd)V2/t
= ½ρAV2(d/t) d/t = V
= ½ρAV3

Power in the Wind =½ρAV3

 A COUPLE THINGS TO
REMEMBER…

Power in the Wind = ½ρAV3

Swept Area, A = πR2 (m2) Area of the circle

swept by the rotor.

ρ = air density – its about 1-kg/m3

EXAMPLE – CALCULATING POWER IN THE WIND

Power in the Wind = ½ρAV3

V = 5 meters (m) per second (s) m/s
ρ = 1.0 kg/m3
R = 0.2 m

A = .125 m2
Power in the Wind = ½ρAV3
= (0.5)(1.0)(0.125)(5)3
= 7.85 Watts

Units = (kg/m3)x (m2)x (m3/s3)

= (kg-m)/s2 x m/s
= N-m/s = Watt
 IS WIND POWER 100% EFFICIENT?

Power from a Wind Turbine Rotor = Cp½ρAV3

Cp is called the power coefficient.

Cp is the percentage of power in the wind that is converted into mechanical energy.

What is the maximum amount of energy that can be extracted from the wind?

16
Betz Limit: C p ,max  .5926
27

* What’s the most power the 0.2-m turbine in the example can produce in a 5 m/s wind?

7.85 Watts x .5926 (Betz Limit) = 4.65 Watts

 WIND CHARACTERISTICS

• Wind has two important characteristics—direction and speed.

• The direction of wind can be gauged using an instrument called the wind vane. It
is also called a weather vane.
• Every wind vane has two parts, the front and the rear. A very common shape for a
wind vane is the shape of an arrow. The tip of the arrow is the ‘front’, and the tail
of the arrow is the ‘rear’. This is then mounted on a vertical column that is free to
move when the wind blows. The front part has a smaller surface area than the rear.
• When wind blows, it presses more on the rear part of the wind vane as it has a
greater surface area.
• The arrow therefore aligns itself such that its tip points in the direction from which
the wind is blowing. Directions, namely, north, south, east, west, etc., will be
marked on the wind vane.
• Another common shape used in a wind vane is that of a rooster. The head has a
smaller surface area than the tail, and points in the direction from which the wind
blows.
• For an accurate reading, the wind vane should be located well above the ground,
beyond trees, and other buildings which may interfere with wind direction.
WIND TURBINE CHARACTERISTICS
 WIND TURBINE CHARACTERISTICS

• Variations in wind speed causes fluctuations in the amount of power produced

• Short Term: Gusts and Turbulence
• Long Term: Seasonal Changes
• WTs have a cut-in, cut-out and a peak power output for a given wind velocity
• Power from the wind is proportional to the area swept by the rotors
• In practice, the max power efficiency is 45%
ENERGY FROM OCEANS
 OVERVIEW OF OCEAN ENERGY

• Ocean energy is replenished by the sun and through tidal influences

of the moon and sun gravitational forces
• Near-surface wind induce wave action and cause wind-blown
currents at about 3% of the wind speed
• Tides cause strong currents into and out of coastal basins and rivers
• Ocean surface heating by some 70% of the incoming sunlight adds to
the surface water thermal energy, causing expansion and flow
• Wind energy is stronger over the ocean due to less drag, although
technically, only sea breezes are from ocean energy
 WHAT IS OCEAN ENERGY?
• The world’s oceans cover nearly 70% of the world's surface
• The oceans are the world's largest collector of the sun’s energy that is
continually renewed at all times
• The ocean is an amazing resources that could be utilized but many
challenges stand in the way
• The various forms of ocean energy generation in use and researched
into today are: OCEAN CURRENTS, OFFSHORE WIND, OCEAN
THERMAL / OTEC, WAVE ENERGY, and TIDAL ENERGY.
 OCEAN ENERGY
• Sustainable energy comes from the sun or from tidal forces of the
moon and sun; usually implies not using it faster than can be
replenished
• The tidal gravitational forces and thermal storage of the ocean provide
a major energy source
• Wave action adds to the extractable surface energy, but is less than
tidal energy
• Major ocean currents (like the Gulf Stream) may be exploited to
extract energy with underwater rotors similar to wind turbines
 WAVE ENERGY
• The energy in waves comes from the movement of the ocean and the
changing heights and speed of the swells
• Kinetic energy, the energy of motion, in waves is tremendous
• An average 4-foot, 10-second wave striking a coast puts out more than
35,000 horsepower per mile of coast.
• As long as the sun shines, wave energy will never be depleted. It
varies in intensity, but it is available twenty-four hours a day, 365 days
a year.
• Wave power is renewable, green, pollution-free, and environmentally
invisible, especially if placed offshore.
SOURCE OF OCEAN WAVE ENERGY
 WAVE ENERGY EXTRACTION TECHNOLOGIES

Point Oscillating Water Column

(Energetech/Oceanlinx)
Absorber
(OPT,
Finavera)

Attenuator, Pelamis WP Overtopping, Wave Dragon

 WHAT CAN HARNESS WAVE ENERGY?

There are three basic methods for converting wave energy to electricity

• Float or buoy systems

• Oscillating water column devices
• “Tapered channel” or “tapchan” systems
 FLOAT OR BUOY SYSTEMS

• These use the rise and fall of ocean swells to drive hydraulic pumps.
The object can be mounted to a floating raft or to a device fixed on
the ocean floor.
• A series of anchored buoys rise and fall with the wave.
• The movement allows an electrical generator to make electricity that
is then shipped ashore
FLOAT OR BUOY SYSTEMS
Point absorber buoys: most common
 capacity = 150 kW

Ocean Power Technology buoy, to best tested this month off Oregon
will power 50 homes. Federal permit obtained for grid-connection.
 OSCILLATING WATER COLUMN DEVICE

• These devices use the in-and-out motion of waves at the shore that
enters a column and forces air to turn a turbine.
• The column fills with water as the wave rises and empties as it
descends.
• In the process, air inside the column is compressed and heats up,
creating energy the way a piston does.
OSCILLATING WATER COLUMN DEVICE
Oscillating Water Column Installations: LAND

Plant Bowen (Georgia Power) operates at 3,200,000 kW

Oscillating Water Column Installations: OCEAN
 “TAPERED CHANNEL” OR “TAPCHAN” SYSTEMS

• These rely on a shore-mounted structure to channel and concentrate

the waves, driving them into an elevated reservoir.
• The water flows out of this reservoir and is used to generate
electricity, using standard hydropower technologies.
“TAPERED CHANNEL” OR “TAPCHAN” SYSTEMS
 WAVE POWER
• Unlike wind and solar power, power from ocean waves continues to be
produced around the clock.
• while the industry has made halting progress, experts agree that it
remains decades behind other forms of renewables, with large amounts
of money and research required for it to make progress
• The Ocean provides a huge issue from a technical point of view and is
far more difficult than on land.
• Saltwater is a hostile environment for devices, and the waves themselves
offer a challenge for energy harvesting as they not only roll past a
device but also bob up and down or converge from all sides that creates
a complicated factor to adjust for.
• Wave energy shows huge potential for energy capture, but an optimum
design is far from being agreed on.
• Lack of large company investment could aid progress but it is not
economically smart decision.
• The United Kingdom — Scotland in particular — is focusing heavily on
wave energy development and could help the technology along.
 POWER FROM OCEAN WAVES
• Wave energy is strongest on the west coasts and increases toward the poles.
• At approx. 30 kW/mcl in the Northwest (yearly avg.), a single meter (3.3
feet) of wave has the raw energy to power about 23 homes.