6.

WIND ENERGY
Topics:
• Potential and
• Utilization
 WIND ENERGY
 Wind energy is the kinetic energy associated with the
movement of atmospheric air. It has been used for hundreds
of years for sailing, grinding grain and for irrigation. Wind
energy systems convert this kinetic energy to more useful
forms of power.
 Wind machine converts the wind energy into useful form of
energy. Wind mill works on the principle of converting
kinetic energy of the wind to mechanical energy.
 Wind turbines transform the energy in the wind into
mechanical power, which can then be used directly for
converting to electric power.
 Wind turbines came into existence in the beginning of the
20th century to generate electric power.
 Wind mills for water pumping are still being installed in many
countries particularly in the rural areas.
 Top 10 countries by wind power capacity (2013 End)
Wind power total
New 2013
Country capacity % world total
capacity (MW)
(MW)
China 16,088 91,412 28.7
United States 1,084 61,091 19.2
Germany 3,238 34,250 10.8
Spain 175 22,959 7.2
India 1,729 20,150 6.3
UK 1,883 10,531 3.3
Italy 444 8,552 2.7
France 631 8,254 2.6
Canada 1,599 7,803 2.5
Denmark 657 4,772 1.5
(rest of world) 7,761 48,332 15.2
World total 35,289 MW 318,105 MW 100%
ADVANCEMENT OF WIND MACHINES

Wind Turbine:
Size from hand held to 2MW
Typical – 250 kW
Rotor dia. – 25 to 30 m
Tower height – 30 to 40m
Brick Tower

Old Wind Mill,

Netherlands
(mostly flour
mill)
New Wind Turbine
(power generation)
 ADVANTAGES OF WIND ENERGY

 It is a renewable source of energy.

 Like solar energy, wind power systems are
non-polluting.
 On a small scale, up to a few kilowatts
system is costly. On a large scale costs can
be competitive with conventional electricity
and lower cost can be achieved by mass
production.
 DISADVANTAGES OF WIND ENERGY

 Suitable sites are sparse and wind velocity is

fluctuating in nature.
 These systems are noisy in operation (a large unit
can be heard many kilometers away).
 Wind power systems have relatively high overall
weight.
 Large area is needed.
 Present systems are not practically maintenance
free nor reliable.
 Storms may severely damage a Wind Turbine
 WIND TURBINE

 A wind turbine works the opposite of a fan.

Instead of using electricity to make wind, a
turbine uses wind to make electricity.

 The wind turns the blades, which spins a

shaft, which is connected to a generator and
generates electricity.
 TYPES OF WIND MACHINES

 Wind machines are generally classified

in terms of the orientation of the axis of
rotation of their rotors as

 Horizontal axis machines and

 Vertical axis machines.

 HORIZONTAL AXIS TYPE WIND MILLS
 Axis of rotation is parallel
to the direction of the
wind stream.
 Rotor axis is horizontal
can be adjusted so that it
is parallel to the direction
of the wind stream.
 Horizontal axis wind mill
can further be classified
as double blade, three
blade and multi blade
types.
 VERTICAL AXIS TYPE WIND MILLS
 This is the simplest of
the modern types of
wind mill which works
like a cup anemometer.
 Rotor axis is vertical
and fixed.
 This machine has
become popular since it
requires relatively low
velocity winds for
operation.
COMPARISON BETWEEN HORIZONTAL AND
VERTICAL AXES TYPE WIND TURBINES
Horizontal axis Vertical Axis
A controller is required for No controller is required
proper orientation (Wind vane)
Variable speed power Simpler power transmission system
transmission for better control from the rotor to the axis
Variable Blade pitch can tolerate The machine performs even at
wider fluctuation in wind speed. lower wind velocity ranging 8 km/hr
to16 km/hr
Light weight It is too bulky, having much material.

High tower ensures greater Low height installation leads to

wind speed lower available wind speed
 ROTORS FOR WIND MACHINES

 Horizontal axis
 Multi-blade type
 Propeller type
 Vertical axis
 Savonius type,
 Darrieus type
TYPES OF WIND MACHINES

Horizontal axis machines

TYPES OF WIND MACHINES
 MULTI-BLADE ROTOR

 The multi-blade rotor consists of a

number of curved sheet metal
blades which increase in width
going outwards from the centre.
 The number of blades usually
ranges from 12 to 20. They are
fixed at their inner end to a
circular rim. They are also fixed
near their outer edge to a second
rim, which provides support.
 The diameter of the rotor usually
ranges from 2 to 5 m.
 MULTI-BLADE TYPE WIND MACHINE
 The main elements are rotor, the wind mill head
(casing or nacelle), the tail vane, the transmission
system and the supporting structure (tower).
 The rotor overhangs at one end of the shaft emerging
from the wind mill head. The centre of the rotor is
referred to as the hub. Just behind it is the front
bearing of the machine.
 The machine is normally used for pumping water. For
this reason, an additional component at the base of
the tower is a water pump.
MULTI-BLADE TYPE WIND MACHINE (contd…)
 Transmission system consists of a power shaft, a speed reducing
gear drive, a crank shaft-connecting rod mechanism and a pump
rod. The gear drive reduces the rotational speed by a factor of 3
or 4. The rotational motion is then converted to a reciprocating
motion by the crank shaft-connecting rod mechanism which in
turn is connected by means of the pump rod to the water pump.
The pump rod passes through the base of the wind mill head
which sits on a ball-bearing turn table.
 The tail vane, a simple shape cut from sheet metal, is attached
to the back side of the wind mill head. It serves the purpose of
aligning the rotor with the direction of the wind.
 The tower is usually a steel truss construction. It serves the
purpose of keeping the rotor and the wind mill head at an
appropriate height from the ground where the wind speed is
adequate.
 PROPELLER ROTOR
 Propeller rotor consists of
only two or three blades
made from glass fiber
reinforced plastic.
 The blades have aerofoil
sections with a high
thickness-to-chord ratio and
yield a high lift relative to the
drag.
 The diameter of the rotor
usually ranges from 2 m to
25 m.
 PROPELLOR TYPE WIND MACHINE
 This machine is normally used for generating electricity, capacities
ranging from a fraction of a kilowatt to a few hundred kilowatts
being available. The main elements of the machine as seen from
the outside are the rotor, the nacelle and the tower.
 The power extracted from the wind by the blades is transmitted
through the hub to a gear train and then onto a generator and
housed inside the nacelle. The nacelle also houses various control
systems. These include the braking mechanism and the roller
assembly permits rotation of the nacelle about a vertical axis and
helps to align the rotor with the direction of the wind.
 This design is usually adopted for large capacity machines. In some
cases, the diameter is large enough to permit ascent through an
internal staircase. For small capacity machines, a steel truss design
is used.
BLADES OF HORIZONTAL AXIS WIND
TURBINE
BLADES OF HORIZONTAL AXIS WIND
TURBINE (contd…)
Wind turbines lining ridge tops in The Altamont Pass, with fog rolling in from
San Francisco Bay to the west.
TYPES OF WIND MACHINES

Vertical axis machines

 SAVONIUS ROTOR

 The Savonius rotor consists

essentially of a hollow
cylinder (approximately
elliptical in shape) sliced in
half, the two halves being
fixed to a vertical axis with a
gap in between to make an S-
shape.
 Torque is produced by the
pressure difference between
the two sides of the half
facing the wind.
 DARRIEUS ROTOR
 This consists of a number of
aerofoils usually vertically
mounted on a rotating shaft
or framework.
 Darrieus type is theoretically
just as efficient as the
propeller type if wind speed
is constant
 There are also major
difficulties in protecting the
Darrieus turbine from
extreme wind conditions.
DARRIEUS ROTOR (contd…)
FACTORS AFFECTING THE NATURE OF THE
WIND AND SUITABLE SITES
 The factors which affects the nature of the wind close to the
surface of the earth are:
 Latitude of the place.
 Altitude of the place.
 Topography of the place.
 Scale of the hour, month and year.

 Suitable Sites:
 The best site: at off shore and on the sea coast.
 The second best sites are in mountains.
 The lowest level of the wind energy is found in plains.
 WIND POWER IN INDIA (contd…)
 Major work carried out by Centre for Wind Energy
Technology, Chennai, Established in 1998

 In India the cost of wind energy varies from

Rs 3.60/kWh to Rs 4.10/kWh

 There are approximately 10500 WECS (Wind Energy

Conversion System) installed all over the country
which are owned by private owners, whereas the
total numbers of WECS owned by the government
are approximately 400.
WIND POWER DENSITY MAP OF INDIA
 POWER FROM WIND
The kinetic energy of a mass m moving at a speed v is
K.E. = ½ mv2 (1)
Power Potential = ½ (Mass flow rate)v2 (2)

The mass of air passing in unit time through an area of

A with speed v is
Mass flow rate = ρAv
ρ is the density of air

Substituting this in equation (2)

Power Potential = ½ (ρAv)v2 = ½ ρAv3
 POWER FROM WIND (contd…)
It is not possible to convert all the wind energy into another form
of energy because this would reduce the wind speed to zero.
Finally stopping (no motion to) the machine.
It has been calculated theoretically that for a wind turbine, the
maximum conversion rate is 0.593 of the energy available in the
wind. Albert Betz (1929), 59.3 % (16/27)
Wind turbine power is given by the following expression ;
P = ½ ρ Av3 Cp
Where, the fraction of the available energy that is converted to
useful is called the power coefficient (Cp).
Energy extracted from air
Power coefficient, Cp 
Energy available in the air
Now, P = kAv3
where k is a constant (= ½ ρ Cp ≈ 0.37)
 POWER FROM WIND (contd…)
There are other losses to be encountered before the
energy is delivered–due to bearings, gears and other
transmission system, represented by ηm i.e. mechanical
efficiency. Further the conversion factor like ηE and ηT
electrical and transmission efficiencies.

The wind power density P* is related to the wind speed

by the empirical formula.
P* = 0.37 ηm· ηE · ηT (v/10)3

Where P* is in kW per square meter area normal to the

direction of the wind, and v is in m/s.
This is the energy from air which we can tap.
 PERFORMANCES OF WIND MILL
The efficiency of a wind generator depends upon the design of a wind rotor and the
rotation speed expressed as the ratio of blades tip speed to wind speed.

Blade tip speed m / s 

Tip Speed Ratio  TSR  
Wind speed m / s 
The term tip-speed-ratio will be used instead of rotor rpm to help for compare
different rotor. For any given wind speed, higher rpm means higher TSR. Typical
values of TSR range from 1 to 15. By using the TSR we can ignore the rotor rpm and
diameter, and consider rotor performance in a more generalized discussion.
If we know the wind speed, the rotor diameter and its operating RPM we can calculate
the TSR, or speed ratio (SR) at any fixed radius between the centre of rotation and the
tip. 2 rN
Tip Speed Ratio  TSR  
60v
r : radius at which SR is calculated
N : RPM
v : wind speed in m / sec
 Cost of Wind Energy
12
COE (¢/kWh [constant 2000 $])

10

8
Low wind speed sites

6 Bulk Power Competitive

High wind
Price Band
speed sites
4

2
0
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020
Future of Wind Energy