Wind Turbine Energy: Information on Wind Turbine Energy!

What is wind turbine energy?

Wind turbine energy, as the name suggests, is the energy obtained from turbine engines operated by wind. The rotating blades of a wind turbine drive an electric generator, thereby performing the task of conversion of wind energy into electrical energy.

Scientific studies show that the total wind energy available in the atmosphere far exceeds the current world energy consumption. Applying a set of oprtational assumptions, the study was able to show that the total potential for wind turbine energy on land and near-shore is about 72 TW, as opposed to current world energy consumption of about 15 TW.

Small-scale production of energy

Small-scale generation systems can be used to produce wind turbine energy for domestic purposes in isolated areas. These plants can be used to charge batteries that feed small appliances like parking meters and internet gateways, thereby reducing dependence on grid electricity or diesel generators, resulting in economic savings as well as reduction in carbon footprint. In some jurisdictions, surplus power produced by small-scale producers can be fed into the electricity network and sold to the utility company, offsetting some of the small-scale producer’s energy costs.

Large scale electricity generation

Back in the 20^th century, use of small small wind turbines for lighting up isloated rural buildings was widespread. Even then, large wind turbines were being tried out for production of wind turbine energy in the USSR and the USA. Electrity produced from these turbines would be supplied to the distribution network. In fact, the first Mega-Watt capacity turbine was built as an experimental unit in Vermont, in 1941.

Modern wind turbine energy generation began with the commercial production of wind turbines by Danish manufacturers Kuriant, Vestas, Nordtank, and Bonus in the year 1979. These early turbines were small, with capacities in the range 20kW to 30kW each.  Technological development has allowed them to grow both in size and scope, with the biggest turbine available now capable of producing 7 MW of electrical power. For commercial production of wind turbine energy, a large number of turbines are grouped together into a single wind power plant, known as a “wind farm”. Electricity generated from these farms is fed into the utility grid and sold to customers, just like electricity generated from other resources.

Penetration

The fraction of energy produced by wind, or wind turbine energy, to the total available generation capacity is known as ‘penetration.’ Existing generation capacity, price mechanism, storage capacity and demand management, among others, are factors determining the limit for a particular grid. Scientific studies have indicated that 20%of the total electrical energy consumption can me met with wind turbine energy with minimal effort. Even so, only a handful of grid systems have penetration of wind energy more than 5%.

Installed capacity

Since its invention to this day, wind turbine energy production has undergone a systematic technological evolution. Today, thousands of wind turbines are in operation around the world, with Europe as the largest contributor, contributing about 48% of the total output, with the USA contributing another 25% Apart from the USA, Germany, China, Spain and Inida round off the list of top five producers of wind turbine energy. The total instaled capacity has also more than quadrupled since 2000 to about 157,899 MW (as of 2009).

In terms of penetration, Denmark leads the chart of wind turbine energy producing states, with impressive figures of over 19%, followed by Spain and Portugal (over 11%) and Germany and Ireland (over 6%).