Institute for CTE EducatorsJuly 15-17, 2013

A STEM View of Wind Energy

R. Keith Booker, Ed.SMemphis East High School

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT) • 7th Century - Persia

• First use of wind for production• Used for milling grain

• 11th Century – China• First to adapt wind for pumping water• First large-scale salt extraction

Wind Energy - Overview

Advantages• Omni-directional• Low wind speed• Low mounting height

Disadvantages• Low starting torque• Dynamic instability• Main bearing failure

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT)

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT) • 11th Century - Europe

• Brought from Middle East during Crusades• Used for grain mills and water pumps

• 14th Century – Netherlands• First large scale pumping application

• 1887 – James Blythe - Scotland• First use for electrical generation

Wind Energy - Overview

Advantages• High-wind stability• Variable-pitch blades• Lower mechanical stress

Disadvantages• High start-up cost• Downwind instability• Requires additional controls

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT)

Panemone Wind Turbine

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT)

Darrieus Wind Turbine

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT)

Savonius Wind Turbine

Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT)

Fixed-blade Wind Turbine

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT)

Turbine Components

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine (HAWT)

U.S. Wind Production Zones

Worldwide Production

2010 Worldwide Wind Energy Production = 2.8 Terawatt hours (TWh)

Average U.S. household usage = 3 kWh

2.8 TWh = 2,800,000,000 kWh / 3 kWh = 930,000,000 U.S. homes

Worldwide Production

1. China

2. U.S.

3. Germany

4. Spain

5. India

Top Ten Producers (GWh)

6. France

7. Italy

8. U.K.

9. Canada

10. Portugal

6.8

6.7

6.5

5.2

4.1

62.7

46.9

29.1

21.7

16.1

Questions?