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Technology Spotlight: Wind Turbines

By Eize de Vries, Wind Technology Correspondent
April 9, 2009   |   10 Comments

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Marseille, France [RenewableEnergyWorld.com] At the recently held EWEC 2009 wind energy conference and exhibition most exhibitors agreed that while there has been a substantial business slowdown due to problems linked to obtaining wind project financing, an upturn in demand during the second half of 2009 is beginning to play out, at least in the U.S. Other exhibitors were a bit more cautious pointing out that substantial numbers of unsold turbines from framework contracts failing to secure project finance are now floating on the wind market.

Most interesting from a wind technology point of view is the V112-3.0MW switch away from a compact V90-3.0MW integrated gearbox and main bearing assembly to a 3-point gearbox support. The application of a permanent magnet (PM) type generator with full converter system in the V112-3.0MW is new for Vestas but not for the wind industry.
10 Reader Comments
Comment
1 of 10
April 10, 2009
Hi,
Please declare the conventional wind turbine design obsolete !
Dare to think beyond the concept of "Turbine" !!

I am a technology enthusiast, and tend to think differently.
In my opinion, the conventional wind turbine design is extremely inefficient. It can tap at the max, only 40 % of incident wind energy.
My radical idea will help tap at least 60% or more.
Check my blog at http://www.transformideas.blogspot.com
valuable comments solicited
Comment
2 of 10
April 10, 2009
What do people feel is wrong with PM generators? Are they more expensive?

Gauridutt, I looked at your blog and couldn't find any tangible ideas. Do you have some other link to your ideas?
Comment
3 of 10
April 11, 2009
Gauridutt Sharma. I have also referenced your site and agree with Ron Peterson. You have stated:

"All I can tell you is that it is devoid of any rotor, or blades (horizontal, or vertical axis) which you see in the traditional/conventional design.
My design will significantly increase the energy efficiency of the device by tapping at least 60 % of the incident wind energy. Maybe, more !
I am keen to sell it to deserving genuine company/ies or individual/s."

Yet, you do not state your technology or even its cost per watt as compared with conventional wind turbines. Even if it should prove to be more efficient, if the cost is more per watt, I doubt if it would prove of interest. It would be good of you to describe your ideas a bit more concretely in order that a valid evaluation may be made.

My own personal idea was to funnel wind into turbines or to make turbines with a dual set of blades, spaced at the top of the tower but connected to the same shaft. However, I must admint that the funneling devices are impractical and that the multiblade turbine would add weight and stress on to the turbine axle as we are speaking in terms of large blades so that the present method of turbine wind capture seems, at the present, to be the most effective solution.

Although Eize has pointed out that "substantial numbers of unsold turbines from framework contracts failing to secure project finance are now floating on the wind market", I believe the situation is because of the present overall economic conditions prevailing at this time. It is not because the technology is undesirable.

As I have previously stated, my belief is that several hundred billion from the stimulus package should have been allocated to renewable energy rather than to banks. You just don't throw good money after bad as is being done. It is a better economic approach to strengthen that which is already benefitting our nation than to one which has caused us to spiral down.

adrianakau2aol.com
Comment
4 of 10
April 15, 2009
I Agree with Adrian Akau that if only a small part of the banking stimulus was applied to the renewable energy market it would have spin-off effects that would and could start to make movement in economies of many countries & increase the impetus to invest more as this is the only viable way ahead! Not bombs and bullets but technology to fuel the minds of people which in turn will fuel breakthrough's in our technology to move us further ahead.

As to the over production of turbines & no investment? No such thing exists its just a blip & when those who can see a little way through the financial fog, will once again clamour for the technology & deployment.

As to the thought of PM generators, the units themselves are more expensive but are far more powerful and require very little servicing. The problem is the engineering & the air gaps between stators and generator face also the strengthening required holding the units in situ and as a college in the industry has mentioned it's a question of Kw installed.

However this is about to change very shortly with a lightweight unit which is far more powerful, light weight, cheaper to produce with the minimum of engineering. The units could be installed in kit form on site.

This would make the cost of Kw installed more practical.
Comment
5 of 10
April 15, 2009
The wind turbine achieves its optimum performance point when the wind speed is slowed down by the blade to its 1/3, which means that 2/3 of the wind energy is absorbed by the blade, in ideal conditions that makes 66%. The variable speed turbines are doing exactly that, adapting to the wind speed to stay at optimum point.

You may have noticed that when talking wind power, the "KW" is always followed by "installed" and newer "produced". The sad fact is that the wind is highly intermittent power source and the situation is aggravated even more by the wind power to wind speed relationship, when speed drops to 1/2, power drops to 1/8. The studies in German wind installations showed that only 10% of the installed capacity is actually produced. You pay for 2MW turbine and in reality get only 200KW energy, perhaps this could be a reason why turbines are not selling well.

To learn more look http://www.windenergy-the-truth.com/ or search the net for "the truth about wind power"
Comment
6 of 10
April 15, 2009
In ideal condition, wind speed is decreased to its 1/3 of the free velocity but the maximum wind energy which can be absorbed by the blades is 59% (Betz's Limit). In practice, modern turbine blades are able to extract around 50 % of the wind energy and this value has almost touched the saturation point if we consider the unaviodable losses.
Comment
7 of 10
April 15, 2009
Hi Eize: My company is intent on commercializing a Next Generation series of wind turbines. They are considerably less expensive and more efficient than competition, they are also scalable. We have some interesting vertical applications where their electricity is used to create more economic value and payback. Any suggestions? We will be building pre-production prototypes for absolute confirmation. Lots of foreign interest, the US seems asleep at the switch, an NIH attitude. Are there any companies that are not inbreed regarding designs, JVs, innovations? Jay Rosenberg CEO Sannerprojects, Inc Sannerwind@gmail.com
Comment
8 of 10
April 18, 2009
The posting above by Stepan Tatulian is very misleading and contains a number of inaccuracies. Statements such as "turbines are not selling well" is completely inaccurate, as is the statement about wind being "highly intermittent". Both statements are erroneous.

Wind turbines are designed to capture wind energy and are optimized for the particular wind resource at a given location. The term "capacity factor" is very often misunderstood, as in Stepan Tatulian's comments above. The term has nothing to do with any "inefficiency" of the wind turbine design itself, but has everything to do with how often and how much the wind resource blows in a particular location. (Does Stepan somehow think that a wind developer would be somehow "surprised" that the wind does not blow at rated wind speed 100% of the time ?). Because the fuel (the wind) is free, there are no inefficiencies at play whatsoever -- the wind speeds at a given location are extensively measured and correlated to determine if a given project will be successful economically (and whether financing from a bank, for instance, will even occur). The developer and financing organizations are very diligent in determining the viability of the wind resource and the ability of the project to recoup the investment and produce electricity at a rate that will repay the capital investment.

Allegations in the posting above by Stepan Tatulian are both misleading and full of half-truths and/or misunderstandings. Readers are advised to avoid any content on the website provided above in his posting as well.

Better sources of information:

www.20percentwind.org
www.nrel.gov
www.awea.org/utility

Jeff Anthony, American Wind Energy Association
Comment
9 of 10
April 19, 2009
Adding to what has been mentioned by Jeffrey Anthony on capacity factor of the wind turbines in his comment on Stepan Tatulian. Capacity factor shows the share of the so-called effective working hours out of all hours. It means that all the physical working hours are recalculated into the full power hours and shared. In fact wind turbines work actually (rotate) close to 97-98% at decent sites. But not all these hours are obviously "good" enough.
Comment
10 of 10
April 21, 2009
Jeffrey Anthony, I am not inventing facts, just commenting what I have read in the article: "Other exhibitors were a bit more cautious pointing out that substantial numbers of unsold turbines from framework contracts failing to secure project finance are now floating on the wind market."

My statements are not allegations but based on information available to everyone, on web sites, or formulas describing the laws of nature, like wind power is directly proportional to the cube of the wind speed. That is not a misunderstanding or half truth.

I am not an anti-wind activist and I wish you all the success selling your turbines, but when you write a comment please follow the rules stated below, " be respectful to others".
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Eize de Vries

View Eize de Vries's Profile
About: Eize de Vries was from 2001 to March 2010 Wind Technology Correspondent for Renewable Energy World magazine. He currently works as a Technology Writer and Techn... more »

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