The conversion of wind energy to electricity

Abstract

The wind close to ground level contains in inexhaustible supply of energy. This energy is abundant enough to significantly alter the bleak future of our energy supply that some exerts predict.

The technology for converting wind energy to electricity exists today. Other related technologies such as energy storage and controlling the electricity are also advanced enough to allow large scale production of the equipment for those tasks. The source of energy, the wind, is free and it is not subject to taxation or foreign control. Also, the ecological impact of extracting energy from the wind is minimal.

Improvements are still needed, however. The cost to generate electricity from the wind is just now becoming competitive with conventional methods. New technology is needed to overcome the inherent weakness of wind energy that contribute to this high cost: its unsteady supply and relatively low energy density. Equipment, installation, operation, and maintenance costs must be analyzed further, also. This thesis will examine these points and briefly discuss the preliminary design for one particular windmill installation.