Verified Document

Wind Farm Grids Wind Farm Term Paper

A wind power -- diesel hybrid typically will have significantly lower operating costs than a primary diesel electric generator. State-of-the-art intelligent microprocessor-based controllers are now making such systems easy to arrange. Stand-alone wind power systems will only provide power when the wind is blowing. Thus, the power output is variable, unless a storage system is available. Also, a hybrid system with a diesel generator makes storage unnecessary. Wind energy is a partial solution to environmental problems created by other power-generating technologies. For example, in 2003, California's wind power plants offset the emission of more than 2.8 billion pounds of carbon dioxide from relatively clean-burning gas fired power plants (Schleede, 2003). These same wind power plants offset 16 million pounds of nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide, and particulates which would have been emitted from California's oil-fired power plants. Also wind energy generation has no adverse effect on water supply (Gardner, 2009).

Once installed, wind turbines have little or no impact on ground-based flora or fauna. Impacts on humans include interference with electromagnetic signals, aero acoustic noise generation, and visual pollution. All of these require careful attention to project design as well as sitting clusters of machines away from highly populated areas. Regulation of noise level is under consideration in some countries. The most recent Danish regulation recommends a 45-decibel (dB) level at a 200-m distance from the nearest dweller (Schleede, 2003). In residential areas a noise level of only 40 dB is permitted. At present, there are no standard maximum permitted noise levels specifically for wind turbines in any Caribbean country. For wind farms, with say 30 turbines of 300 kW each, 45 dB at 500 meters distance is acceptable (Pew Center, 2010).

The majority of wind turbines supplying power to the grid work at a preset speed employing an induction generator. These three-phase generators are connected to the grid by means of suitable transformers. In a number of situations they can be coupled straightforwardly online or by means of uninterrupted thyristors configured to allocate a soft start facility. A little static reparation is incorporated in the bond to reduce...

Wind farms (a collection of wind turbines) are most efficient when linked to well-built sections of the high-voltage grid line. Solitary machines can be linked to the 11 kilovolts (kV) distribution transmission line (Pew Center, 2012). More often than not, no technical difficulties are seen in assimilating into the grid. It is recommended that no less than 15% wind energy diffusions can be held without trouble.
On the other hand, at a local level, incorporation problems turn out to be more important as considerable amounts of wind power are set up in a specific region. According on the fault level of the network at a particular end, if the installed wind capability is excessively high, intolerable voltage fluctuations may happen. Excessive fluctuations in the power production as a result of wind turbulence or wind turbines coming off line will generate voltage flicker. Power electronic boundaries are being used to a greater extent to help in reducing the brunt of wind turbines on the grid (Wind-Farm Placement, 2009).

Conclusion

Wind turbines are also a potential electromagnetic interference source. Telecommunication interference can occur and so plant locations should avoid microwave transmission paths, keeping a 5-km clearance from radio stations and airports (Pew Center, 2012). Safety for people and property is an environmental concern in wind farm installation (Pew Center, 2012). Blades and other structures can fail, so people and property should have proper clearance. In Denmark, regulations forbid roads and buildings to be sited at less than 90 meters plus 2.7 times the rotor diameter from the nearest turbine of a wind farm. A primary impact of wind turbines is visual. This is exacerbated by the need to site wind farms in the windiest areas, usually exposed high areas, which often have a natural beauty. Perhaps wind farms should not be sited within nature reserves and other protected areas or special areas of conservation.

Works Cited

Gardner, D.T. (2009, April 17). Impact of Wind Turbines on Market Value of Texas Rural Land. Presentation.

Pew Center, (2010). Race to the Top: The Expanding Role of U.S. State Renewable Portfolio Standards.

Pew Center. (2012). Renewable & Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards.

Schleede, Glenn R. (2003, April 7). The True Cost of Electricity from Wind Power and Windmill Availability' Factors. Energy Market & Policy Analysis, Inc.

Snyder, Jeff. (2010). Economic Development from Wind Farms in the State of Texas: A Study of Property…

Sources used in this document:
Works Cited

Gardner, D.T. (2009, April 17). Impact of Wind Turbines on Market Value of Texas Rural Land. Presentation.

Pew Center, (2010). Race to the Top: The Expanding Role of U.S. State Renewable Portfolio Standards.

Pew Center. (2012). Renewable & Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards.

Schleede, Glenn R. (2003, April 7). The True Cost of Electricity from Wind Power and Windmill Availability' Factors. Energy Market & Policy Analysis, Inc.
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Wind Turbines the Depleting Fossil
Words: 3239 Length: 10 Document Type: Research Paper

The production of electricity from power plants relying on this varying resource changes considerably. On the other hand the electricity demand does not cope with such variations. (Komor, 2009) • Other forms of barriers: There are some other obstacles like allowing challenges of renewable power plants and technical hazards with regard to transmission connecting to the plant, higher proportion of capital to operating costs and policy instability. (Komor, 2009) The prime

Wind Farm Mother Nature Is Very Powerful
Words: 574 Length: 2 Document Type: Essay

Wind Farm Mother nature is very powerful and is always producing to provide for her many life forms that reside on her surface. The wind is a great resource for harnessing the powers of nature and using them for manmade purposes. The purpose of this essay is to explore the best situation to build a wind farm upon. The essay will first look at the characteristics of local wind before refining

Wind Farms in Canada Insert Subject/Subject Code
Words: 1160 Length: 4 Document Type: Business Plan

Wind Farms in Canada [insert Subject/subject Code] How Will the Use of Wind Farms Benefit Canada? In Canada, the development of helpful energy saving concepts is in debate, because of the issues present in the economy. The primary goal of this proposal is to focus on the benefits of the use of wind farms for Canada. This is a business proposal, related to the researcher's business degree, discussing how the business of creating

Wind Farms in Canada As Pollution and
Words: 5604 Length: 20 Document Type: Essay

Wind Farms in Canada As pollution and global warming threaten our environment, wind farms represent a particularly sustainable response via the creation of energy from wind. In Canada, the wind farms are becoming more and more popular and a question is, at this stage, being posed relative to the means in which these farms generate benefits and costs. Specifically, the question is whether the benefits of constructing such a farm outweigh its

Wind Farms in Nantucket Cape
Words: 4378 Length: 11 Document Type: Term Paper

(Kleekamp, 2005) The agreement between all the countries at Kyoto had clearly specified that all countries were to cut down on their release of heat trapping gases by 5.2% from the levels that they had reached in 1990 by the period of 2008 to 2012. This is also subject to the condition that Australia and United States did not approve of the protocol through approval by their democratic authorities and

Wind Power: One of the
Words: 1623 Length: 6 Document Type: Thesis

In fact, during 2007 alone, the installed capacity of "on grid" small-wind residential generators almost tripled, from 1,300 kilowatts nationwide in 2006 to 3,000 kilowatts in 2007 (Clayton). According to Clayton, the number of residential installations increased from 400 to 1,200 units during 2007 as well. In response to this growing demand, a number of companies have started producing various wind turbine configurations in smaller versions for this market

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now