Wind Turbine

by Ryan

Wind is all around us. We can feel it. However, we can only feel it when there’s an energy pushing the wind to be in motion. This text will explain about Wind Energy, wind turbines, the mechanism of a wind turbine, as well as the advantages and disadvantages.

Wind energy is a process when wind is used to generate mechanical power. You know when you are flying a kite or a sailing boat moving forward at a great speed, well that is mechanical power produced by the wind. It is used mostly as a wind turbine to produce mechanical power such as pumping water or producing electricity. Wind turbines have been in use since 5,000 B.C. when people used them to propel boats through the Nile River as well as to grind corn as well as pump water. By 10,000 AD, people in China and Sicily, Italy were already using it to pump seawater to make salt. In the past, since electricity wasn't discovered, people used it mostly for food production as well as supplying water. In today’s world, people use it mostly for generating electricity, as an eco-friendly alternative to fossil fuel power stations. Wind turbines were firstly tested as an electricity source by Professor James Blyth in 1887. He tested it on his holiday cottage in Scotland, using a 10-metre tall turbine to produce electricity for the cottage. Since then, people have used wind turbines as an alternative and more eco-friendly resource to produce electricity. Wind Turbines produce little to no emissions that can pollute the air.

There are two types of wind turbine which are Vertical axis and horizontal axis. Vertical wind turbines have 2 different types which are Savonius, which has an “s” shape when in motion but has 2 “D” shapes when it stops and the Darrieus, which has long & curved wings. The Savonius axis can only rotate if there’s enough power from the wind to cause it to rotate while the Darrieus sucks the wind first before releasing it, causing it to produce more energy. There are 2 different types of the horizontal axis turbine which are the upwind and downwind turbine. The upwind turbine allows the wind to hit the propeller first before the wind tower, which holds the propeller while the downwind turbine hits the tower first before the propeller. In comparison, the vertical axis will be more suitable in metropolitan areas as it is smaller in size which will cause less noise. However, the energy output from the vertical turbine will require more than one turbine to power a wind power plant. Horizontal axis will produce more power however, because the general size of the axis is big, it’ll require a large area to place the axis.

As an alternative power resource, wind turbines are very sustainable as it is a form of solar energy. Wind is actually a motion caused by the uneven heating of Earth’s surface. It usually diffuses from a high-pressure area to a low-pressure area. As wind turbines need to be in good conditions to operate, it’ll require people to maintain the turbine. This will create more job opportunities as according to statistics, over 100,000 workers in the US work in the wind sector and it is expected that over 600,000 will work in the production and maintenance of the wind turbine by 2050. However, when there’s an advantage, there’ll be disadvantages. The first, and rather most worryingly financially, is the cost. Creating a wind turbine costs around $50,000-$80,000 per turbine which can provide up to 10-kilowatts per turbine while maintaining one will cost $3,000-$8,000 per kilowatt in the same size of household. Next, there are a few dilemmas regarding the placement of the turbine. A vertical turbine can work in metropolitan areas but will require more than 1 to provide electricity for a building while a horizontal turbine will only require 1 turbine to provide electricity for a building however, it’ll take quite a lot of space. This will cause a dilemma whether they should use more turbines in the metropolitan area or to use less turbines in the suburbs. Lastly, an issue with horizontal turbines is that they can kill birds. When birds fly, they aren’t really aware of the turbine because it is spinning unless the turbine is not on.

In conclusion, wind turbines come in a lot of different types, sizes, and prices. It is also one of the best renewable resource alternatives available for the future. If Professor Blyth hadn’t discovered using wind turbines as an electric resource, the earth might be in worse shape than today. However, with great power comes great responsibility. The turbine can furtherly harm the ecosystem such as killing birds or cutting down trees for space to build a turbine.