Wind Turbines Could Theoretically Power the Entire World, and Then Some

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Sleek, streamlined wind turbines have become the icons of the green movement, but for all the growth in wind power — it accounted for 42% of all new electricity generation added to the U.S. grid last year — wind still makes up less than 3% of America's total electricity generation [Time]. Its marginal role has led many to wonder whether the technology is worth investing in, and whether wind power is capable of supplying enough electricity to meet our needs. To answer those questions, researchers analyzed wind patterns around the world and found that wind power could theoretically supply the entire world with energy, and then some. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, isn't being presented as a realistic plan to achieve a renewable energy nirvana; it's simply an attempt to provide a sense of what's possible [Ars Technica]. But the researchers' reckoning of what's possible is quite impressive: maxing out deployment of current-generation technology could produce five times the total energy used in the world today, and 40 times the electricity [Ars Technica].

The research group first sectioned the globe into areas of about 1,300 square miles each, and then analyzed NASA data about wind speeds in the non-urban, non-forested and non-ice covered areas where turbines could realistically be built [Boston Globe]. They assumed the use of 2.5 megawatt turbines on land and larger 3.6 megawatt turbines off shore, and conservatively estimated that the wind would blow hard enough for the turbines to reach their maximum capacity only 20 percent of the time. Under these constraints they still found that in the United States, scattering turbines across the Great Plains would produce more than 16 times the energy the nation now consumes, and off shore turbines could add considerably to that tally.

While the study is a helpful thought experiment, no one expects the world to adopt wind power on such a large scale. That's because wind still faces a slew of obstacles. It's still more expensive than traditional energy sources. It is intermittent and is at its lowest often in the U.S. during the summer when we hit peak demand in part from all the air conditioners switching on. And many of the greatest wind resources are far away from where people live – meaning we need to develop more transmission lines and a smarter grid to be able to tap into the wind at the right time [Boston Globe]. Finally, researchers note that building a massive number of wind turbines could disrupt wind patterns in ways that are impossible to predict.

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/...-and-then-some/

[Bobby+Umit 161]

Until they kill some endangered multi-colored bird or something, (the kind that only mate every 20 years, with one paticular mate)

then they will all have to be shut down....

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Until they kill some endangered multi-colored bird or something, (the kind that only mate every 20 years, with one paticular mate)

then they will all have to be shut down....

Urban myth.

[GaryC 7]

The future look of America?

[NickD 203]

Won't all those windmills stop the wind? I mean if mans 1-5% contribution, depending upon whom you believe with these numbers is going to cause the end of this world as we know it, what effect would all these windmills have?

Don't get me wrong, I do not have the answers, but do like to question. For those concerned about killing birds, clear window glass is a major killer of birds, let's condemn that instead of windmills. Besides, it's much cheaper for you to go outdoors, than to try to bring it inside of your home.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

The future look of America?

A stark difference...

[one...two...tree 2,762]

Oh no...please don't ruin our view with wind turbines...

[Bobby+Umit 161]

The future look of America?

A stark difference...

Uhm - you would still have those -- how do you think they will pass along the power generated? (since most wind generators are up in hills/desolate areas)

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Have you seen how big some of those turbine farms are?

They have one off the coast of Norfolk in England - it looks like a scene from War of the Worlds, with tripods about to come ashore and wreak havoc.

[Bobby+Umit 161]

Until they kill some endangered multi-colored bird or something, (the kind that only mate every 20 years, with one paticular mate)

then they will all have to be shut down....

Urban myth.

No matter if people think it's a myth or not, get some tree hugger with enough cash to push it through the courts - and... oopsie...

There was a story where tree huggers were trying to stop a wind farm, because of some rare bat was in the same area or something - I will see if I can stop it.

Kinda ironic - tree huggers want cleaner sources of power, but when given that, they find something to try to stop it...

butter/bread

Have you seen how big some of those turbine farms are?

They have one off the coast of Norfolk in England - it looks like a scene from War of the Worlds, with tripods about to come ashore and wreak havoc.

Sweeeeet

Do they have A/C anti-collision lights on them?

Someone should put a "Thunderchild" attacking them as art project or something.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

Wouldn't tidal or geothermal be a bit more efficient than wind turbines?

[Bobby+Umit 161]

Wouldn't tidal or geothermal be a bit more efficient than wind turbines?

I think all three together would be more efficient - but I haven't looked into it that much.

(Wind seems easier to setup though)

Found the link on those bats: Bats

[Peikko 1,575]

You could at least have found a pic of an open cast coal mine or something Colonel

[scandal 951]

Wouldn't tidal or geothermal be a bit more efficient than wind turbines?

I think all three together would be more efficient - but I haven't looked into it that much.

(Wind seems easier to setup though)

Found the link on those bats: Bats

This was a great report on NPR a few years ago about harnessing the Gulf Stream off of Florida with massive turbines anchored to the bottom. Really cool idea. Similarly to the bat concerns for wind-turbines, look here for the concerns about the Cuisinart effect:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.p...toryId=16713781

Harnessing the Power of the Gulf Stream

by Greg Allen, NPR

Morning Edition, December 3, 2007 · In Washington recently, Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne made an announcement that clears the way for a new and largely untapped renewable energy resource — the oceans.

He announced regulations that would "guide the use of wind, wave and current resources on the 1.8 billion acres of Outer Continental Shelf on the coasts of the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf Coast."

In South Florida, researchers are already working to harness the power of one of the ocean's most energy-dense currents — the Gulf Stream.

The Center of Excellence in Ocean Energy Technology is only a little more than a year old, but it's in a great location. It's just off the beach and, as director Rick Driscoll points out on a map, it is just 15 miles from the Gulf Stream.

"This is actually the closest location of any place on the planet of a major ocean current by a load center that needs the power now," he says. "We have no place to build power plants and yet we're growing. Florida is growing by a thousand people a day."

8 Billion Gallons Per Minute

Driscoll's answer: underwater turbines moored in the heart of the Gulf Stream. He believes that ultimately, the current — which flows at 8 billion gallons per minute — could yield as much energy as several nuclear plants, providing one-third of Florida's power.

Florida Atlantic University established the center last year for one purpose: to explore ways to tap the ocean's potential as a renewable energy resource. It was started with a $5 million grant from the state of Florida.

Inside, the center's offices and workshop area share a common space. Desks and cubicles sit alongside scientific equipment, giant floats, and what looks like a large propeller. It's 10 feet in diameter, but as turbine rotors go, that's actually quite small, Driscoll says.

The full-sized turbines will be much larger — with rotors 100 feet in diameter.

This rotor is for the small prototype Driscoll and his team are building. Pieces of it — the generator, pressure tank and housing — are laid out on the floor. It's nearly ready for testing.

The 'Cuisinart Effect'

Driscoll eventually envisions a field of turbines moored 1,000 feet below the surface, just off the Florida coast in the heart of the Gulf Stream. Dozens of energy companies are developing plans to harness the Gulf Stream, he says. The researchers at the Center of Excellence in Ocean Energy Technology are studying the best ways to do it and looking for possible negative consequences.

"Some of the worst-case things we can see is what people have coined the 'Cuisinart effect' in which fish come through and get chopped up," Driscoll says. "The bait would then attract more fish and you've got a sustaining Cuisinart effect. We don't think that's going to happen, but it's a possibility, and we need to monitor it."

Driscoll says his team is also looking to see what effect the turbines could possibly have on the power and flow of the Gulf Stream. He cites hydrographic data reassuringly, and says it looks unlikely that it will have much of an impact. And even the most optimistic researchers don't hope to extract more than one-third of the Gulf Stream's total energy.

A few steps outside, welders are working on one of the most massive parts of the Gulf Stream turbine. It's a huge steel buoy that, as project director Gabriel Alsenas points out, is shaped like a ship so it remains stable in the current.

The buoy is part of a system — tethered to a 30,000-pound anchor — that Alsenas says will hold the prototype turbine right in the heart of the Gulf Stream. The turbine will be about 30 feet under water, spinning approximately 60 revolutions per minute, he says.

"This gives us a great exercise in figuring out exactly what effects the ocean's going to have on it and what effect this is going to have on the ocean and its environment," Alsenas says.

Other Potential Uses

Weather and federal regulations permitting, researchers hope to begin testing their prototype turbine in January or February. If all goes well, they eventually will develop a full-sized turbine and maintain an area in the Gulf Stream that will be used as a test field.

For Driscoll, the center director, this project is just the beginning of an industry that he believes has great potential not just for Florida, but for the world. Elsewhere, some energy companies have already begun to explore the use of tidal currents as a power source.

Driscoll says his center is beginning to study an even more powerful potential energy source — the large reservoir of cold water deep in the oceans. One obvious use would be to use the cold water in air conditioning.

But there's even greater potential he says, in using the temperature difference between the cold bottom water and the warm surface water to generate electricity.

"That ocean thermal resource is probably the largest renewable energy source available anywhere," he says.

Driscoll says that by investing in ocean energy technology, Florida will do more than just fill its power needs. It will create jobs and make the state a leader in an emerging industry.

[one...two...tree 2,762]

You could at least have found a pic of an open cast coal mine or something Colonel

My blood sugar was low...now that I have eaten...

Oh beautiful for spacious skies...