ScienceDaily: Wind Energy News

Engineers design, test taller, high-strength concrete towers for wind turbines

Wed, 15 May 2013 09:48:48 EDT

Engineers have designed and tested a concept for concrete towers to replace the steel towers used for wind turbines. The concrete towers could be a practical way to raise turbine towers from today's 80 meters to the better winds at 100 meters or higher.

Storage power plant on the seabed

Wed, 15 May 2013 08:53:53 EDT

A group of scientists aims to store electricity at the bottom of the sea. The energy will be stored with the help of high water pressure.

New battery design could help solar and wind power the grid

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:06:06 EDT

Researchers have designed a low-cost, long-life battery that could enable solar and wind energy to become major suppliers to the electrical grid.

Innovative self-cooling, thermoelectric system consumes no electricity

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 07:54:54 EDT

Researchers have produced a prototype of a self-cooling thermoelectric device that achieves “free” cooling of over 30ºC in devices that give off heat. It is a piece of equipment that acts as a traditional cooler but which consumes no electricity because it obtains the energy it needs to function from the very heat that has to be dissipated.

Ionic thrusters generate efficient propulsion in air

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 12:20:20 EDT

Thrusters powered by ionic wind may be an efficient alternative to conventional atmospheric propulsion technologies. When a current passes between two electrodes -- one thinner than the other -- it creates a wind in the air between. If enough voltage is applied, the resulting wind can produce a thrust without the help of motors or fuel. Researchers have now found that ionic thrusters may be a far more efficient source of propulsion than conventional jet engines.

Discovery opens door to efficiently storing and reusing renewable energy

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:23:23 EDT

Researchers have developed a ground-breaking way to make new affordable and efficient catalysts for converting electricity into chemical energy. Their technology opens the door to homeowners and energy companies being able to easily store and reuse solar and wind power. Such energy is clean and renewable, but it's available only when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing.

Using fluctuating wind power

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 10:15:15 EDT

Incorporating wind power into existing power grids is challenging because fluctuating wind speed and direction means turbines generate power inconsistently. Coupled with customers' varying power demand, many wind-farm managers end up wasting power-generation capacity and limiting the service life of turbines through active control -- including fully stopping turbines -- in order to avoid any possible damage to the power grid from spikes in supply. In a new paper, researchers propose a new strategy to optimize power-generation efficiency and so better control wind farms.

Breakthrough in electricity storage: New large and powerful redox flow battery

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 10:50:50 EDT

More and more electricity is being generated from intermittent sources of power, such as solar and wind energy. Powerful electric energy storage devices are necessary to level out corresponding irregularities in the power supply. Scientists have recently made an important breakthrough with the development of a redox flow battery that reaches stack power up to 25 kW, with a cell size of 0.5 square meters. This is eight times larger than the previous A4-sized systems.

Researchers map out an alternative energy future for New York

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 09:26:26 EDT

A new study outlines a path to statewide renewable energy conversion, and away from natural gas and imported fuel.

Windmills at sea can break like matches

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 08:10:10 EST

Medium-sized waves can break wind turbines at sea like matches. These waves occur even in small storms, which are quite common in the Norwegian Sea.

Rethinking wind power

Mon, 25 Feb 2013 12:19:19 EST

“People have often thought there’s no upper bound for wind power—that it’s one of the most scalable power sources,” says an applied physicist. After all, gusts and breezes don’t seem likely to “run out” on a global scale in the way oil wells might run dry.

Cassini sheds light on cosmic particle accelerators

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 16:32:32 EST

During a chance encounter with what appears to be an unusually strong blast of solar wind at Saturn, NASA's Cassini spacecraft detected particles being accelerated to ultra-high energies. This is similar to the acceleration that takes place around distant supernovas.

Endurance test of an offshore wind turbine in the laboratory

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 07:55:55 EST

Scientists are testing the complex control system of wind turbines under real conditions in the laboratory before they are built into offshore wind energy plants. This way, software and hardware faults can be found and eliminated before the costly installation of the turbine.

Spotting the invisible cracks in wind turbines

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 07:52:52 EST

A new approach is available for real-time monitoring of the structural health of wind turbine components during exposure to turbulence.

High-voltage vacuum power switch for smart power grids: World's first successful power switch using diamond semiconductor

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 08:48:48 EST

New technology may contribute to a new energy strategy for offshore wind energy, efficient power transmission across the Japanese archipelago, and more.

A new point of reference for offshore energy development

Tue, 08 Jan 2013 12:30:30 EST

A new Department of Energy research facility could help bring the U.S. closer to generating power from the winds and waters along America's coasts and help alleviate a major hurdle for offshore wind and ocean power development.

'Gusty winds' in space turbulence: First direct measurement of its kind in the lab

Mon, 17 Dec 2012 15:25:25 EST

Imagine riding in an airplane as the plane is jolted back and forth by gusts of wind that you can't prove exist but are there nonetheless. Similar turbulence exists in space, and a research team has directly measured it for the first time in the laboratory.

Engineer looks to dragonflies, bats for flight lessons

Thu, 13 Dec 2012 12:11:11 EST

Scientists are using wind tunnels and imaging tests to learn the aerodynamics that allow dragonflies and bats to get off the ground in the slow-speed, high-drag conditions of small-scale flight.

Wind and solar power paired with storage could power grid 99.9 percent of the time

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 13:35:35 EST

Renewable energy could fully power a large electric grid 99.9 percent of the time by 2030 at costs comparable to today's electricity expenses, according to new research. A well-designed combination of wind power, solar power and storage in batteries and fuel cells would nearly always exceed electricity demands while keeping costs low, scientists found.

Electricity from water mains: Inline hydropower system generates power from water pipelines

Mon, 10 Dec 2012 08:04:04 EST

A novel inline hydropower system generates power from water pipelines. In full operation, an array of in-pipe turbines is expected to save 700kWh of electricity and reduce 560 kg of carbon dioxide emission per year.

Greener storage for green energy

Thu, 29 Nov 2012 10:34:34 EST

Renewable energy solutions like wind and solar operate on nature’s timetable. When the sun blazes or when the breeze blows, power is plentiful—but not necessarily at the moments when consumers need it, like on a hot, calm summer night.

The energy of stunt kites

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 09:05:05 EST

It may seem as though the German plains are all but tapped out when it comes to wind energy production. To refute this theory researchers are sending stunt kites into the skies to harness the wind and convert the kinetic energy generated into electricity.

Gannets could be affected by offshore energy developments

Fri, 09 Nov 2012 09:12:12 EST

Scientists have discovered that proposed offshore renewable energy developments in the English Channel have the potential to affect the foraging behavior of northern gannets from Alderney in the Channel Islands.

Americans use more efficient and renewable energy technologies

Wed, 24 Oct 2012 15:08:08 EDT

Americans used less energy in 2011 than in the previous year due mainly to a shift to higher-efficiency energy technologies in the transportation and residential sectors. Meanwhile, less coal was used but more natural gas was consumed according to the most recent energy flow charts.

Turbulent flows in 2-d can be calculated in new model

Tue, 23 Oct 2012 11:25:25 EDT

Turbulent flows have challenged researchers for centuries. It is impossible to predict chaotic weather more than a week in advance. Wind resistance on a plane cannot be calculated precisely, since it is determined by atmospheric turbulence. Now, however, researchers have succeeded in developing a statistical model that can replicate the chaotic flows and thereby provide a better understanding of the process.

Military safety is blowing in the wind

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 10:29:29 EDT

A command doctrine used by the US military and NATO designed to warn personnel of Nuclear, Chemical and Biological hazards could be overly conservative and degrade war fighting effectiveness or, under certain conditions, risk lives because it is susceptible to changes in wind direction and speed.

Sandia Labs benchmark helps wind industry measure success

Thu, 04 Oct 2012 16:30:30 EDT

Sandia National Laboratories published the second annual 2012 Wind Plant Reliability Benchmark on Oct. 1, 2012, and the results should help the nation's growing wind industry benchmark its performance, understand vulnerabilities and enhance productivity.

Hummingbirds make flying backward look easy

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 09:19:19 EDT

Animals that move backwards usually require a lot of energy, so a biologist was surprised when he realized that hummingbirds execute this maneuver routinely. Wondering how hummingbirds perform the feat, he analyzed their flight and the amount of oxygen they consume and found that reversing is much cheaper than hovering flight and no more costly than flying forward.

New airport system facilitates smoother take-offs and landings

Wed, 19 Sep 2012 12:48:48 EDT

For airline passengers who dread bumpy rides to mountainous destinations, help is on the way. A new NCAR turbulence avoidance system has for the first time been approved for use at a U.S. airport and can be adapted for additional airports in rugged settings across the United States and overseas.

World’s first transformable historic organ can span centuries

Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:26:26 EDT

Cornell University's new baroque organ has become the world's first organ with multiple historic wind systems. The $2 million organ is the culmination of more than seven years of research, and more than two years of work by 21st-century craftsmen, who used authentic 17th- and early 18th-century methods to build the instrument.

Wind power not enough to affect global climate, researchers find

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 14:34:34 EDT

Though there is enough power in the earth's winds to be a primary source of near-zero emission electric power for the world, large-scale high altitude wind power generation is unlikely to substantially affect climate, according to new research.

Predicting wave power could double marine-based energy

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 14:34:34 EDT

A scientist says that his new computer algorithm improves the functioning of Wave Energy Converters used in producing electrical energy from ocean waves. And, with improvements in the converters themselves, it could make marine-based energy more commercially viable.

More accurate wind energy forecasts

Mon, 10 Sep 2012 11:23:23 EDT

Wind power is one of the most important forms of renewable energy. In order to exploit inland wind as effectively as possible, turbines must be optimally positioned and dimensioned. A 200-meter high wind measuring mast delivers precise data that can also be used to forecast energy yields.

Enough wind to power global energy demand: New research examines limits, climate consequences

Sun, 09 Sep 2012 15:04:04 EDT

There is enough energy available in winds to meet all of the world's demand. Atmospheric turbines that convert steadier and faster high-altitude winds into energy could generate even more power than ground- and ocean-based units. New research examines the limits of the amount of power that could be harvested from winds, as well as the effects high-altitude wind power could have on the climate as a whole.

Albatross 'dynamic soaring' achieved by repeated curve-altitude oscillation

Wed, 05 Sep 2012 17:16:16 EDT

Albatrosses leverage the energy of the wind to fly with essentially no mechanical cost to themselves, very rarely flapping their wings, and new work offers insight into how exactly they accomplish this feat.

Smooth sailing: Space launch system giving Marshall, Langley wind tunnels a workout

Thu, 23 Aug 2012 15:17:17 EDT

Since well before the inception of NASA, engineers used wind tunnels and scale models to test how vehicles would respond and interact with the atmosphere. At the Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., and Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., engineers are using wind tunnel testing to enhance the development of NASA's Space Launch System, a heavy-lift launch vehicle that will propel science and human exploration into deep space and launch NASA's Orion spacecraft to expand human presence beyond low Earth orbit.

US wind power market riding a wave that is likely to crest in 2012

Tue, 14 Aug 2012 12:11:11 EDT

Facing looming policy uncertainty beyond 2012, the US remained one of the fastest-growing wind power markets in the world in 2011 -- second only to China -- according to a new report. Driven by the threat of expiring federal incentives, new wind power installations are widely expected to be substantially higher in 2012 than in 2011, and perhaps even in excess of 2009's record build.

A model designed to balance the bolting load of wind turbines developed

Tue, 14 Aug 2012 10:02:02 EDT

A researcher has built a simplified simulation model for wind turbines. All one has to do is enter the characteristics that the tower and its parts will have, and in a matter of seconds the model predicts the load that has to be given to each of the bolts, which leads to great advantages in the construction and maintenance process.

Wind farms: A danger to ultra-light aircraft?

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 13:05:05 EDT

Airfields for ultra-light aircraft are typically constructed on level ground -- and so are wind farms. However, do wind power plants generate turbulence that could endanger lightweight planes? A simulation can compute how these power plants influence aircraft at various wind speeds and wind directions.

Solar power day and night: New storage systems control fluctuation of renewable energies

Thu, 09 Aug 2012 12:46:46 EDT

Energy storage systems are one of the key technologies for the energy turnaround. With their help, the fluctuating supply of electricity based on photovoltaics and wind power can be stored until the time of consumption. A number of pilot plants of solar cells, small wind power plants, lithium-ion batteries, and power electronics are now under construction to demonstrate how load peaks in the grid can be balanced and what regenerative power supply by an isolated network may look like in the future.

Usain Bolt could break his own record with the help of altitude and the wind

Thu, 02 Aug 2012 10:12:12 EDT

Imagine the following situation. The 100 meters finals in the London Olympic Games. The Jamaican Usain Bolt wins. Up to this point everything sounds normal except for the fact that he would break his own record again with a time of 9.48 seconds. According to the New Zealand researchers, this would be his record if there were a two meter per second tailwind (maximum allowable wind) and the race took place at an altitude of 999 meters. The 100 meter final will take place on Sunday at London 2012.

Breaking the barriers for low-cost energy storage: Battery could help transition to renewable energy sources

Wed, 01 Aug 2012 15:48:48 EDT

Scientists have developed an air-breathing battery that uses the chemical energy generated by the oxidation of iron plates that are exposed to the oxygen in the air -- a process similar to rusting.

Offshore use of vertical-axis wind turbines gets closer look

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 20:46:46 EDT

Wind energy researchers are re-evaluating vertical axis wind turbines (VAWTs) to help solve some of the problems of generating energy from offshore breezes.

Turbulences at a standstill

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 09:55:55 EDT

Energy flowing from large-scale to small-scale places may be prevented from flowing freely in specific conditions. For one theoretical physicists, devising models of chaos and turbulence is his bread and butter. He has found an exception in a model of turbulence, indicating that there are energy flows from large to small scale in confined space.

New method to encourage the formation of virtual power plants for efficient renewable energy production

Wed, 25 Jul 2012 09:09:09 EDT

Researchers have devised a novel method for forming virtual power plants to provide renewable energy production in the UK. In the last decade, small and distributed energy resources (DERs), like wind farms and solar panels, have begun to appear in greater numbers in the electricity supply network (Grid). To ensure that energy demand is met without interruptions, the Grid requires power suppliers to provide an estimate of their production and the confidence in meeting that estimate.

Go-fast 'dimples' may be the secret to running success

Fri, 20 Jul 2012 08:30:30 EDT

In the run-up to London’s 2012 Olympic Games, research revealed by a sports science expert has highlighted how the design of running shoes could boost an athlete’s performance.

No matter the drilling method, natural gas is a much-needed tool to battle global warming

Tue, 10 Jul 2012 13:29:29 EDT

No matter how you drill it, using natural gas as an energy source is a smart move in the battle against global climate change and a good transition step on the road toward low-carbon energy from wind, solar and nuclear power according to a new study.

Winds played important role in keeping oil away from South Florida

Mon, 09 Jul 2012 13:35:35 EDT

Winds played an important role in keeping oil from the Gulf oil spill away from South Florida.

German wind farms can kill bats from near and far, research suggests

Mon, 02 Jul 2012 13:35:35 EDT

Wind turbines may have large-scale negative effects on distant ecosystems. New research demonstrates that bats killed at German wind turbines originate mostly from northeastern Europe.

Thunderstorms have longer reach than thought: Storm researcher calls for new air safety guidelines

Tue, 26 Jun 2012 11:49:49 EDT

Aircraft turbulence guidelines should be rewritten after new research revealed thunderstorms could produce unexpected turbulence more than 100 km away from storm cells.

Work starts on fossil fuel free cargo ship

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 11:25:25 EDT

Development is underway to design the modern world's first 100 per cent fossil fuel free sailing cargo ships. With rising fossil fuel prices and the global challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, this project is set to change the shipping industry by providing efficient and affordable low-carbon shipping. The project combines proven technology, using the state of the art dyna-rig sail propulsion system with an off the shelf Rolls-Royce engine powered by waste derived liquid biomethane (liquid gas).

Toward super-size wind turbines: Bigger wind turbines do make greener electricity

Wed, 20 Jun 2012 11:33:33 EDT

In a study that could solidify the trend toward construction of gigantic windmills, scientists have concluded that the larger the wind turbine, the greener the electricity it produces.

Wind-driven Mars tumbleweed rover to roll through rocky terrain?

Wed, 23 May 2012 11:48:48 EDT

New research shows that a wind-driven "tumbleweed" Mars rover would be capable of moving across rocky Martian terrain -- findings that could also help with designing the best possible vehicle.

Night-warming effect found over large wind farms in Texas

Mon, 30 Apr 2012 15:20:20 EDT

Large wind farms in certain areas in the United States appear to affect local land surface temperatures, according to a new article.

Wind pushes plastics deeper into oceans, driving trash estimates up

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:28:28 EDT

Decades of research into how much plastic litters the ocean, conducted by skimming only the surface, may in some cases vastly underestimate the true amount of plastic debris, according to an oceanographer.

Engineers unlock secrets of beetle flight

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:35:35 EDT

Mechanical engineers are using remote-controlled rhinoceros beetles to study the mechanics behind their ability to fly. Research findings could inform the next generation of aircraft design.

Fish thriving around wind farms

Tue, 10 Apr 2012 09:33:33 EDT

The first Danish study into how one of the worlds largest wind farms affects marine life is now completed. It shows that the wind turbines and the fish live quite happily together. Indeed some species of fish have actually increased in number.

Wind turbines that learn like humans

Tue, 27 Mar 2012 15:29:29 EDT

A control algorithm inspired by human memory may increase wind turbine efficiency while requiring less computational power than other control methods.

Brown liquor and solar cells to provide sustainable electricity

Thu, 22 Mar 2012 14:21:21 EDT

A breakthrough for inexpensive electricity from solar cells, and a massive investment in wind power, will mean a need to store energy in an intelligent way. According to new research batteries of biological waste products from pulp mills could provide the solution.

Engineers enlist weather model to optimize offshore wind plan

Tue, 20 Mar 2012 11:57:57 EDT

Using a sophisticated weather model, environmental engineers have defined optimal placement of a grid of four wind farms off the US East Coast. The model successfully balances production at times of peak demand and significantly reduces costly spikes and zero-power events.