Will Wind Energy Be Blown Away?

Wind energy is form of renewable energy. This 'new' source of energy is getting more popular and not without reason. In various parts in the world big wind turbine parks are placed by corporate businesses yielding big quantities of energy that can be sold as environmental friendly or 'green' energy. Wind energy is big business. Big companies profit from renewable energy but also invest substantially in this new energy source.As mentioned before wind energy is very environmental friendly. In the search for alternatives for fossil fuels this energy source turned out to be very lucrative. This energy source makes us less dependent on traditional fossil fuels. It is important to lessen the dependence on traditional fuels. There are many reasons why here we will inform you with the most important once. The traditional fuels are predominantly in the hands of countries in troublesome areas. Therefore you are not sure if the amount of crude oil you request will be delivered due to instability in the region. Also the price for these old fuels is increasing and the current reserves are diminishing. But most of all these old energy sources pollute our planet. But as always the beautiful story of wind energy has not only positive sides. Let's look at some of negative points as well.In the Netherlands a windmill park is located in the north of the country. Although the local people here were in favour of the windmills they changed their minds when the mills were actually placed. The residents were complaining about a constant noise during the night that could be compared to a 747 taking of. These complaints were not taking serious by the corporate business owners. Therefore the residents decided to research their complaints by the local university. The outcome of the research was that the residents were right and their complaints should be taken seriously. It turned out that the windmills produced more noise in the evening and night than during daytime due to a higher turbulence at night caused by very specific changes in the upper air layers. During the day there is less turbulence and the sounds that are produced by the windmills are diminished by the noise of local traffic and wind blowing through the trees. All specifics can be read in this paper: The Sound of High Winds: The Effect of Atmospheric Stability on Wind Turbine Sound and Microphone Noise by Frits van den Berg. In Germany wind mills where placed in the North Sea. Although the location for this purpose is very good, the park doesn't seem to produce the calculated amount of energy. The windmills often don't work properly due to malfunction. Whilst the location is good and wind is blowing almost constantly the windmills often just don't work. The mills were not moving at all and therefore not producing electricity. This project turned out to be very disappointing, but the project is still running and it is believed that it will function according to plan in the future.In the United States in Vermont the local residents were opposed by the planning of a new wind turbine park. The locals felt that the wind towers would ruin their beautiful landscape. It is a landscape that many generations have fought to preserve and the current residents our proud of. It is hard to convince people to share their landscape with large wind towers that disturb these beautiful views. The plans for building the windmills in Vermont are of the table.Although is it a good and economical of energy, wind energy is taking some real blows. The advantages are clear and the disadvantages are becoming clear as well. When placed in a surrounding where the landscape is cherished by the people who live there, one could argue not to place them because it might ruining the beautiful landscape and spoil the beautiful views. Locals and tourist would find these turbines just plain ugly. Also it should be kept in mind that wind turbines with these sizes can produce a lot of noise during the evening and night. Beside these considerations it has shown that wind energy is not always a big success and there is more progress to be made. Technically there are some steps to be made, but a lot of people are working hard in this. Let's hope that wind energy is here to stay and we will find proper ways to utilise this form a way that we all can benefit from it.
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Renewable Energy - The Power of Wind

The power of wind can be used to provide energy for people across the world, no matter where they live.You see a sailboat gliding across the ocean pushed by its harmless wafts, you get some relief on a hot day from it's gentle breeze and a pinwheel starts spinning to a youngsters delight from it's puff of air. There are also cases of umbrellas being turned inside out, shingles being blown off rooftops and tornados causing ruins from its strong gusts. By using it to our advantage, we can turn it into a renewable source of energy, which will not cause pollution and will produce a clean energy alternative to harmful fossil fuels. Wind energy has existed through time. Ancient peoples used it for sailing ships, grinding wheat and pumping water. Today, wind energy is the world's fastest-growing energy source and we are able to use it to produce electricity. This source of energy is a renewable resource that became popular during the oil crisis of the 70's. Wind energy is captured through the use of wind turbine machines. There are two types that are available. The horizontal axis machine consists of propellers with three blades. It is usually around 20 stories tall and 200 feet wide. The vertical axis machine consists of blades that go from bottom to top. They are 100 feet tall and 50 feet wide. Propellers on wind turbines are large so as to capture a great volume of air. They can be angled or turned to face the wind for maximum effect. The machines work by using the blades to hold the wind's kinetic energy. The wind turns the blade. The blade is connected to a drive shaft that turns a generator to produce electricity. Wind turbines need wind speeds over 12 miles/hour to be successful. When winds get too high the turbines are able to keep the blades from being damaged and turning too fast through the use of a brake. Wind power plants consist of about a dozen wind turbines machines and are called wind farms. These farms are owned and operated by businessmen known as Independent Power Producers. The electricity produced on a wind farm is collected and transmitted through long distance high power lines. It is important to locate these farms in ideal areas where the most wind can be captured. This is why you will find them located in high altitudes and open areas such as hilltops, open plains and shorelines. The advantages to wind power are many. It is a clean form of energy that is non-polluting and does not produce global warming effects. Although large, it allows for land use under the wind turbines for farming. Some disadvantages are it can have a damaging effect on the wild bird population. Also, some people consider them eyesores. As new technologies emerge, wind power will become a more cost effective source of energy. The government currently issues tax credits for its use and there are green pricing programs available. There is also a renewed concern for the environmental damage that the uses of fossil fuels create. As we search for an alternative to fossil fuels, the answer to our energy problems may just be blowing in the wind.
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Energy Resources of Wind Power

"Wind power" is nothing but the successful conversion of wind energy into something other useful form, usually electricity by using wind turbines specially designed long blades, shaped such that they can capture the rushing wind and rotate providing for mechanical motion. It was reported in the year 2005 that the world's wind power capacity was about 60000 megawatts, constituting about 1% of the world's present electric power usage. Although not much of this renewable energy is used in the U.S, countries like Denmark and Spain make use of this technology to contribute, in quite respectful doses, to their electrical energy needs. Modern electric power is generated by converting the rotary motion of the turbines, caused by the wind, into electrical energy by the means of a electric generator. Wind power is used to provide electricity ranging from huge wind farms to stand-alone mills to provide energy for isolated places. It also has to be noted that wind energy is renewable, abundant, mitigates the greenhouse effect, contributes nothing to the air pollution and is reasonable easy to produce. The cost of producing wind power has tumbled down considerably over the time. It is worth mentioning the fact the amount of wind power being produced in the U.S alone has seen growth rates of about 15 to 20%. About 1 to 4% of the solar energy is converted into wind energy, while most of it is again absorbed by the vegetation for photosynthesis; the rest of it keeps rushing about at high altitudes and low-altitudes with varying velocities and intensities. The power of the wind is captured by letting it flow past the turbine blades which in turn induce a torque in the motor attached. The amount of power generated is proportional to the density of air, the area swept by the rotor and the cube of the speed of the wind. Higher velocities of wind cause more power to be generated, however, all locations no not all always have winds blowing at the same speeds or velocities. It has been noticed that the power is averaged out and most of the windmills capture power in short wind bursts. Wind power is quite a popular way to economize on the energy costs and most customers in the U.S can opt for some utility power service providers and subscribe to power from these forms of new alternative sources of energy mostly wind energy.
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