factors affecting wind turbine efficiency

Factors Affecting Wind Turbine

Effi ciency

I bet you already

know that …

…UNDOUBTEDLY,Wind Energy is one of the CLEANEST forms of producing power from a renewable source.

I bet you already

know that …

But are you aware that wind turbines are not that easy to

set up?

The efficiency of wind turbines depend on 5 major factors:

WIND POWER

ALTITUDE

WIND POWER

ALTITUDE

WIND POWER

OBSTRUCTIONS

ALTITUDE

WIND POWER

BLADE

AERODYNAMICS

OBSTRUCTIONS

ALTITUDE

WIND POWER

AIRTEMPERA

TURE

BLADE

AERODYNAMICS

OBSTRUCTIONS

WIND POWER1

um…yeah.

In other words,

The faster the wind speed and the stronger the wind force, the greater the amount of power generated by a wind turbine.

Different regions have different wind speeds. Therefore it’s vital to understand the relationship between wind speeds with power production.

ALTITUDE2

Places of higher

altitudes have faster wind

speeds due to various

atmospheric factors.

Higher places also have

lesser obstructions

from the surrounding

hills, trees and buildings.

Wind speed increases by

12% as the distance

between the turbine and

ground is doubled.

OBSTRUCTIONS3

Wind is slowed by trees, buildings, hills and mountains which all create some form of friction that restrict free airflow.

It is wise to measure the wind speed at a proposed site for at least one year to determine project viability.

BLADE 4

AERODYNAMICS

The shape of blades

should be accurately

selected for getting

maximum efficiency

The amount of lift for a

given airfoil depends

heavily on the angle that it makes with

the direction of the relative

wind, known as the angle

of attack.

When the angle of

attack gets too large,

turbulence developsand drag increases

significantly, while

lift is lost.

AIR5

TEMPERATURE

The power from a wind turbine will increase almost 16% as the temperature drops from + 20° C to - 20° C for any given wind speed.

Colder air is denserand increasespower output.

END

RESOURCEShttp://www.articlesbase.com/environment-articles/wind-turbine-physics-

factors-affecting-performance-1450642.html

http://www.alternative-energy-news.info/what-factors-affect-the-output-of-wind-turbines/

http://www.solarpowerwindenergy.org/2010/03/04/what-factors-affect-the-output-of-wind-turbines/

http://www.istockphoto.com/file_thumbview_approve/4912563/2/istockphoto_4912563-design-elements-wind.jpg