INTRODUCTION

Wind energy (or wind power) refers to the process of creating electricity using the
wind, or air flows that occur naturally in the earth’s atmosphere. Modern wind
turbines are used to capture kinetic energy from the wind and generate
electricity.

There are three main types of wind energy:

 Utility-scale wind: Wind turbines that range in size from 100 kilowatts to

several megawatts, where the electricity is delivered to the power grid and
distributed to the end user by electric utilities or power system operators.
 Distributed or "small" wind:  Single small wind turbines below 100
kilowatts that are used to directly power a home, farm or small business
and are not connected to the grid.
 Offshore wind: Wind turbines that are erected in large bodies of water,
usually on the continental shelf. Offshore wind turbines are larger than
land-based turbines and can generate more power.
 How wind turbines work
 When the wind blows past a wind turbine, its blades capture the wind’s
kinetic energy and rotate, turning it into mechanical energy. This rotation
turns an internal shaft connected to a gearbox, which increases the speed
of rotation by a factor of 100. That spins a generator that produces
electricity.
 Typically standing at least 80 meters (262 feet) tall, tubular steel towers
support a hub with three attached blades and a “nacelle,” which houses
the shaft, gearbox, generator, and controls. Wind measurements are
collected, which direct the turbine to rotate and face the strongest wind,
and the angle or "pitch" of its blades is optimized to capture energy.
 A typical modern turbine will start to generate electricity when wind speeds
reach six to nine miles per hour (mph), known as the cut-in speed. Turbines
will shut down if the wind is blowing too hard (roughly 55 miles an hour) to
prevent equipment damage.
 Over the course of a year, modern turbines can generate usable amounts
of electricity over 90 percent of the time. For example, if the wind at a
turbine reaches the cut-in speed of six to nine mph, the turbine will start
generating electricity. As wind speeds increase so does electricity
production.
 Another common measure of wind energy production is called capacity
factor. This measures the amount of electricity a wind turbine produces in
a given time period (typically a year) relative to its maximum potential.
 For example, suppose the maximum theoretical output of a two megawatt
wind turbine in a year is 17,520 megawatt-hours (two times 8,760 hours, the
number of hours in a year). However, the turbine may only produce 7,884
megawatt-hours over the course of the year because the wind wasn’t
 always blowing hard enough to generate the maximum amount of
electricity the turbine was capable of producing. In this case, the turbine
has a 45 percent (7,884 divided by 17,520) capacity factor. Remember—this
does not mean the turbine only generated electricity 45 percent of the time.
Modern wind farms often have capacity factors greater than 40 percent,
which is close to some types of coal or natural gas power plants.

 What is a wind farm?

 Oftentimes a large number of wind turbines are built close together, which
is referred to as a wind project or wind farm. A wind farm functions as a
single power plant and sends electricity to the grid.
 How wind energy gets to you
 The turbines in a wind farm are connected so the electricity they generate
can travel from the wind farm to the power grid. Once wind energy is on the
main power grid, electric utilities or power operators will send the
electricity to where people need it.

ADVANTAGES OF WIND ENERGY

 Wind energy offers many advantages, which explains why it's one of
the fastest-growing energy sources in the world. Research efforts
are aimed at addressing the challenges to greater use of wind
energy. Read on to learn more about the benefits of wind power and
some of the challenges it is working to overcome.

Advantages of Wind Power

 Wind power is cost-effective. Land-based utility-scale wind is

one of the lowest-priced energy sources available today, costing 1–
2 cents per kilowatt-hour after the production tax credit. Because
the electricity from wind farms is sold at a fixed price over a long
period of time (e.g. 20+ years) and its fuel is free, wind energy
mitigates the price uncertainty that fuel costs add to traditional
sources of energy.
 Wind creates jobs. The U.S. wind sector employs more than
100,000 workers, and wind turbine technician is one of the fastest
growing American jobs. According to the Wind Vision Report, wind
has the potential to support more than 600,000 jobs in
manufacturing, installation, maintenance, and supporting services
by 2050.
 It's a clean fuel source. Wind energy doesn't pollute the air like
power plants that rely on combustion of fossil fuels, such as coal or
natural gas, which emit particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and
sulfur dioxide—causing human health problems and economic
damages. Wind turbines don't produce atmospheric emissions that
cause acid rain, smog, or greenhouse gases.
 Wind is a domestic source of energy. The nation's wind supply is
abundant and inexhaustible. Over the past 10 years, U.S. wind
power capacity has grown 15% per year, and wind is now
the largest source of renewable power in the United States.
 It's sustainable. Wind is actually a form of solar energy. Winds are
caused by the heating of the atmosphere by the sun, the rotation of
the Earth, and the Earth's surface irregularities. For as long as the
sun shines and the wind blows, the energy produced can be
harnessed to send power across the grid.
 Wind turbines can be built on existing farms or ranches. This
greatly benefits the economy in rural areas, where most of the best
wind sites are found. Farmers and ranchers can continue to work
 the land because the wind turbines use only a fraction of the land.
Wind power plant owners make rent payments to the farmer or
rancher for the use of the land, providing landowners with additional
income.

CHALLENGES OF WIND POWER

 Wind power must still compete with conventional generation
sources on a cost basis.  Even though the cost of wind power has
decreased dramatically in the past several decades, wind projects
must be able to compete economically with the lowest-cost source
of electricity, and some locations may not be windy enough to be
cost competitive.
 Good land-based wind sites are often located in remote
locations, far from cities where the electricity is
needed. Transmission lines must be built to bring the electricity
from the wind farm to the city. However, building just a few
already-proposed transmission lines could significantly reduce the
costs of expanding wind energy.
 Wind resource development might not be the most profitable
use of the land. Land suitable for wind-turbine installation
must compete with alternative uses for the land, which might be
more highly valued than electricity generation.
 Turbines might cause noise and aesthetic pollution. Although
wind power plants have relatively little impact on the environment
compared to conventional power plants, concern exists over
the noise produced by the turbine blades and visual impacts to the
landscape.
 Wind plants can impact local wildlife. Birds have been killed by
flying into spinning turbine blades. Most of these problems have
been resolved or greatly reduced through technology development
or by properly siting wind plants. Bats have also been killed by
turbine blades, and research is ongoing to develop and improve
solutions to reduce the impact of wind turbines on these species.
Like all energy sources, wind projects can alter the habitat on which
they are built, which may alter the suitability of that habitat for
certain species.