Archive for the ‘Wind Energy’ Category

Renewable Energy – Wind Power

Sunday, June 28th, 2009

Wind power is the useful form of energy that can be obtained from wind renewable energy. Wind power can be defined as renewable wind energy that has been converted to useful electrical energy. A way of harnessing wind renewable energy is by using wind turbines to produce electricity. Wind turbines have blades that rotate to convert the wind renewable energy to electric energy by means of an electric generator incorporated within the wind turbines. For commercial use, large amount of electricity needs to be generated which can be achieved by installing wind farms where a number of wind turbines are used together.

The use of wind renewable power has been known for a long time. This alternative energy source was used in windmills to pump water or to grind grains.

There are a lot of advantages of wind power. The main benefit of wind renewable power is that it does not cause pollution. Any types of chemical processes are not required when wind power is used and so no harmful by-products are left over that can contaminate the environment and thus degrade it. Wind power is a renewable energy source and so we can never run out of it. Using wind renewable power does not emit any global warming gases. Also it is a cost effective way of generating electricity.

There are some disadvantages also of using wind power. The use of wind turbines causes noise pollution. Also wind farms require a large area of land that could have been otherwise used for other purposes.

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Renewable wind energy – an alternative power source

Friday, June 26th, 2009

The blowing wind possesses kinetic energy which can be converted to several useful forms of energy that can be put to use for many purposes. This kinetic energy needs to be harnessed so that renewable wind energyy can be put to use in different applications. Renewable wind energy can be harnessed by using machines called wind turbines.

A wind turbine has two or three propeller like blades which are called rotors. These blades or rotors are attached to the top of a very tall tower. When the wind blows, the rotors spin and power a generator. The generator has a large number of copper connectors and magnets that produce electricity. This electricity can be used as an alternative power source to meet the power needs of urban and rural areas.

Rotors are installed at a height so that they can capture the maximum renewable wind energy whose intensity is more at high altitudes. This also ensures maximum power generation. The electricity generated by a wind turbine can be used as an alternative power source to meet the power requirements of a single household or a small community and can also be used to power mills for grinding grains and to pump water. However, the electricity produced by a wind turbine is not enough for commercial purposes. Therefore, wind farms need to be installed with a large number of wind turbines. Together, this large number of wind turbines generate enormous amount of electricity that is supplied to electricity provider companies that provide electricity for commercial use.

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Wind Energy Increases in Popularity

Sunday, June 7th, 2009

Wind Energy

Wind energy is the harnessing of natural power and converting it into electrical energy through the medium of wind turbines. To date only 1.5% of the world’s electrical utilization is generated through wind energy. But some countries have managed to exploit wind energy with remarkable results. 19% of electrical power generated in Denmark for instance, is from wind energy. Wind energy being renewable, is the preferred choice of many environmentalists as it is plentiful, renewable, and entails no greenhouse gas emissions.

Traditionally, wind energy has been harnessed for centuries. The old-fashioned sailing boat that has been in existence from the dawn of history is arguably the oldest example. Wind energy was the sole source of motivation of sailing ships till perhaps a hundred odd years ago. History reveals that as far back as a 17th century BC, wind energy was harnessed for irrigation projects in the Babylonian empire. The Sinhalese exploited wind energy from monsoon winds as far back as 300 BC to power their furnaces. In Europe, especially the Netherlands, when energy in the form of windmills has been used to number purposes such as grinding corn for instance. Many are still in existence today. In the United States, the water pumping windmill was the single most important factor that allowed the expansion of farming in North America.

The drawback in wind energy is that it is inconsistent being dependent on winds which are times when the seasonal or may not be adequate to drive the turbines to the requisites speeds. Extensive work is being conducted from the ability to store the power generated by wind energy.

Wind energy penetration which is the percentage of power generated by wind to total generation is progressively increasing especially in geographical areas that are largely suit to it.

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Wind Energy Companies Showing Promise

Tuesday, May 26th, 2009

In March of this year, Western Wind Energy Corporation was pleased to announce a 20% increase in revenues to $5,116,652 for fiscal year 2008. This is compared to $4,264,759 for the fiscal year 2007. For the three months ended December 31, 2008 revenues were up 144% to $687,666 from $282,053 for the two months ended December 31, 2007. This is a substantial increase compared to many wind energy companies and is largely credited to the current administration’s emphasis on renewable energy development, including wind energy.

Western Wind Energy Corporation’s financial position as of December 31, 2008 was significantly stronger than the prior year as liquid capital increased from $449,493 on December 31, 2007 to $1,817,371 on December 31, 2008. Working capital improved from a deficiency of $15,419,200 last year to a positive working capital of $1,388,165 on December 31, 2008 and shareholders’ equity jumped from $2.8 million to $22.4 million.

Congress recently passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, which extends the megawatt-hour production tax credits through 2012 for alternative energy and wind energy companies, and provides an option to elect a 30% investment tax credit or equivalent cash grant from the US Department of Energy. This is expected to have a positive impact for wind energy companies, including wind energy. Western Wind has seen an increase in the number of parties that have expressed an interest in financing its operations and future projects, though initial evaluations of most of these proposals are highly positive.

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Renewable Wind Energy

Saturday, May 23rd, 2009

The United States has a number of advantages that will play out in the next few years. We have one of the best renewable wind energy corridors in the world in the area east of the Rockies from the Dakotas all the way down to Texas. At 60-80 meters, which is the height of modern-day wind turbines, the gusts of wind are powerful and consistent. However, the development of renewable wind energy is expensive, land-intensive, and risky for venture-capital firms to finance – particularly in the currently unstable economy. That is why a significant injection of capital from the federal government would go a long way in helping states to develop renewable wind energy sources best fit for their geographic location. The American southwest, for example, is best suited for solar. The Midwest, however, is best suited for renewable wind energy.

The Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) grant programs, international programs, infrastructure development activities, and other supporting activities have received considerable funding increases under a new appropriations act and budget settlement. The Weatherization Assistance Program received $200 million, while the State Energy Program received $50 million, adding to the $8 billion directed through these programs by the economic stimulus act. For facilities and infrastructure, the act provides $76 million, most of which will go to the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, including $41 million to complete construction of the Energy Systems Integration Facility. Combining that economic stimulus funding with the regular 2009 budget generates a total budget of $18.73 billion for EERE, 11 times more than the funding from 2008.

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