New technique 'banks' wind farm energy

UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MILWAUKEE - A high-tech way of "banking" extra energy from high winds can improve wind power's ups and downs and make it more efficient, U.S. university researchers said.

The method uses an algorithm, or sequence of finite instructions, to take advantage of high winds and wind gusts, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee electrical engineers and computer scientists said in the International Journal of Power Electronics.

The algorithm adjusts a wind turbine's rotor speed so that when wind speeds are greater than average, the rotor speeds up and stores the excess energy, they said.

This energy is then released when the wind power falls below average.

The approach ends any need for external batteries or capacitors to store electricity for bad days and the additional infrastructure and engineering they entail, the researchers said.

The method also captures wind energy more effectively and therefore improves wind farming's overall efficiency, potentially reducing the number of turbines required on a given wind farm, they said.

The United States has added more wind energy to its grid than any other country, growing 45 percent to 16.8 gigawatts in 2007 and is now the world's largest wind power producer, due in part to its better average winds.

U.S. wind-power capacity could reach 300 gigawatts — or 300 billion watts — by 2030, meeting a fifth of all U.S. electricity demand, the U.S. Department of Energy says.

Related News

powerlines

Kyiv warns of 'difficult' winter after deadly strikes

KYIV - Ukraine has warned that difficult winter months lay ahead after a massive Russian missile barrage targeted civilian infrastructure, killing three in the south and wounding many across the country.

Russia launched the strikes as Ukraine prepares for a third winter during Moscow's 19-month long invasion and as President Volodymyr Zelensky made his second wartime trip to Washington.

"Most of the missiles were shot down. But only the majority. Not all," Zelensky said, calling for the West to provide Kyiv with more anti-missile systems.

The fresh attack came as Poland said it would honour pre-existing commitments of weapons supplies to Kyiv, a…

READ MORE
national grid

UK Emergency energy plan not going ahead

READ MORE

amazon wind power

Amazon Announces Three New Renewable Energy Projects to Support AWS Global Infrastructure

READ MORE

PGE logo

Poland’s largest power group opts to back wind over nuclear

READ MORE

Abu Dhabi

Abu Dhabi seeks investors to build hydrogen-export facilities

READ MORE