Wind power is an efficient way to overcome the energy crisis in the world. It is secure, economical, and eco-friendly energy. Our ancestors have been using wind power to impel sailing ships 5,500 years ago. The architects have used wind-driven natural ventilation in buildings time out of mind.
Wind power transforms the wind energy into electricity with wind turbines. The wind turbines transform the kinetic energy in the wind into mechanical energy. Then, a generator converts mechanical energy into electricity.
Figure 1.1
A wind turbine has typically three propellers-like blades called rotors. The rotor is connected to a tall tower. On ordinary, wind towers in residential surroundings are about 20m high. The purpose why the tower is so tall is that winds are more substantial higher from the ground and there is less of a buffeting effect.
Figure 1.2:
Wind turbines transform wind energy into electricity. The way a wind turbine works:
Ø Blades: The blades rear and rotate when the wind blows.
Ø Shaft and Gears: The shaft twirls a range of gears to speed up the blades’ rotation. Then, it is converting the kinetic energy from the wind into mechanical energy
Ø Generator: The mechanical energy operates the generator. Vice versa, the generator starts to generate electric currents.
Ø Tower: The currents funnel toward the bottom of the tower, where a transformer converts them into electricity that can be used for homes, farms, buildings and businesses.
A wind turbine obtains the wind, which then generates a renewable energy source. The wind causes the rotor to rotate; as the rotor rotates, the movement of the blades makes a generator that generates energy. The movement of the blades turning is kinetic energy, which people convert into electricity.
The wind spins the blades of a windmill-like machine. The rotating blades transpose the shaft to which they are joined. The turning shaft usually can pump or utilise a generator, which generates electricity.
Most wind machines have blades joined to a horizontal shaft. This shaft transfers power through a range of gears, which give power to a water pump or electric generator. These are called horizontal axis wind turbines.
The amount of energy generated by a wind machine depends upon the wind velocity and the size of the blades in the machine. In common, when the wind speed doubles, the energy generated rises eight times. Larger blades catch more wind. As the diameter of the circle created by the blades doubles, the power rises four times.