Portable Wind Turbine

Wind energy is defined as the process in which wind is harnessed to generate mechanical power which is then turned into electricity. The first wind turbine company in the United States was established in 1850. The first windmill was the Halladay Windmill, which was designed for the landscape of the American West. In 1890 more than six million windmills had been erected throughout the countryside of the United States. Wind power made it possible for farmers and ranchers to pump water for irrigation and provide electricity for homes and businesses. Fast-forwarding, the National Wind Technology Center was established in 1993, becoming the nation’s premier wind energy technology facility. By 2012 the United States installed wind turbines had a power generation capacity of 60 gigawatts, enough to power approximately 15 million homes. Wind turbines turn wind into energy. The force of the wind on the blades of the turbine spins a shaft running into the head, or nacelle, of the turbine. This shaft is typically connected to a gear box with an outgoing, high-speed shaft. This high-speed shaft runs into a generator which produces electricity. Utility scale wind turbines range in size from 100 kilowatts to as large as several megawatts. These types of wind turbines are grouped into wind farms that generate large amounts of energy. Wind farms are also being placed in the ocean to generate large amounts of energy from the strong, consistent winds at sea. Small wind turbines are classified as 100 kilowatts and below and are used for homes, TV dishes, and pumping water. Several different designs for wind turbines exist and there is a large amount of ongoing research to increase their efficiency and net value to the production of green energy. This research extends to offshore wind, distributed wind, next generation wind technology, environmental impacts and the development of efficient, effective, portable wind turbines. The objective of this project is to create a lightweight, portable wind turbine capable of supplying power in remote, rural areas. The design must be easy to assemble and disassemble so that inexperienced operators may use the device. In addition the assembly and disassembly of the design must be safe for the operator. Because of these restraints, the design must be able to generate power using 4m/s winds at a height of only 2m. The sponsor of the project has allotted $2,000 for the turbine design and construction.