Wind energy or wind power is the extraction of kinetic energy from wind and the conversion of it into mechanical energy. Man has harnessed the power of the wind for many centuries. Wind is a type of solar energy. The sun heats the earth’s surface and the warmer air begins to rise. Cooler air flows into the area below the rising air causing wind. The Egyptians utilized the wind as early as 5000 B.C. by attaching sails to propel boats across the Nile River. For many years sailing ships on the open seas were powered by capturing the wind with sails. The Dutch adapted the windmill and used it to drain the lakes and the marshes of the Rhine River. Windmills are used in food production such as grinding grain. Since the early 1800s, windmills in the United States have been pumping water from the ground. The windmill was instrumental in the development of dry land farming in the Midwest after the Civil War. Hundreds of windmills are still pumping today to provide water for grazing cattle.
Today huge modern wind turbines are used all over the world to generate electricity. The process of generating electricity from a wind turbine consists of the turbine blades capturing the wind and rotating a shaft inside a generator which produces electricity. Many of these wind turbines are grouped together to form a wind farm which can generate large amounts of electricity that can be added to the power grid. Since the Industrial Revolution the majority of electricity generating plants are powered by non-renewable fossil fuels such as coal and more recently natural gas. Fossil fuel plants release greenhouse gases into the atmosphere causing global warming. With the threat of global warming being very real, many nations are turning to a...
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....: American Wind Energy Association, n.d. What Does Wind Power Mean for America? Web. 01 Dec. 2013
Delucchi, Mark A., and Mark Z. Jacobson. "Meeting The World’s Energy Needs Entirely With Wind, Water, And Solar Power." Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists 69.4 (2013): 30-40. Academic Search Complete. Web. 28 Nov. 2013.
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With concern over global warming growing, people are starting to turn a more serious eye toward cleaner sources of energy. Instead of solar power making a comeback as the ideal form, we are seeing a growth in the use of wind power. Wind farms are beginning to crop up all around the country. This new trend has gathered significant attention. Questions are being raised concerning the effects wind farms may have, from critics and supporters alike. Michelle Nijhuis, in the article “Selling the Wind” discusses the arguments on behalf of and in opposition to the increasing use of wind power, addressing what the consequences may be on the United States.
Shafer, Leah R. "Address on the Energy Crisis (15 July 1979)." Dictionary of American History. Ed. Stanley I. Kutler. 3rd ed. Vol. 9. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2003. 492-94. U.S. History in Context. Web. 18 Apr. 2014.
In everyday life, there are things that one needs to survive. And sustainability problems arise every day. One such problem is energy loss. The world is using up a lot of energy and new ideas need to be formed to help the rest of the world and the future of the generations that are to follow, to survive. With that the problem is that people use up energy and they do not use it efficiently. Therefore scientists are needed to find ways to deal with the sustainability problem that is arising. That is where wind turbines are used to generate this energy but the actual wind-turbines are very large, loud and they kill birds, thus new designs need to be found in order to help energy usage and to bring the size and structure of the wind turbines to a smaller scale to prevent injuries to nature and the species around it.
The first type of renewable energy is hydroelectric energy or well known as hydropower. In greek word, hydro means water and thus hydroelectric energy refers to electricity generated using flowing water at high velocity. Lutgens and Tarbuck (1992, p. 163) stated that “running water is of great importance to people as we depend upon rivers for energy, travel and irrigation”. Continuous availability of water in universe made water to be the main source of hydroelectric energy. Water has been widely utilized by mankind since the beginning of civilization and wate...
Rotman, David. "Finding a Solar Solution." Technology Review 2 (2012): 48-51. Print. 22 November 2014.
The “Hydropower” National Geographic. n. d. a. d. a. d 1 April 2014. http://environment.nationalgeographic.com/environment/global-warming/hydropower- profile /.> “Hydropower as a Renewable Energy Source” naturalresources.house.gov. Web.
"Wind and Water Power Program: Hydropower Resource Potential." EERE: EERE Server Maintenance. U.S. Department of Energy, 13 Dec. 2010. Web. 04 Oct. 2011. .
Wind turbines are a great source of energy around the world. Wind turbines produce wind energy that can be used to power our homes. Wind turbines convert kinetic energy into mechanical power. Then this mechanical power gets generated into electricity. Wind turbines make energy by the wind turning the large blades, which spin a shaft that is connected to the large blades, which then operates the generator making electricity.
Wind power is one of the most sustainable ways of generating electricity as no toxic emissions are produced; it does not add to global warming and is one of the most available sources of renewable energy and theoretically it is an infinite source of energy. On sufficiently windy areas, wind turbines are one of the most economical methods of generating electricity, which makes it appealing to many individuals, governments and organizations. Due to this it is the fastest growing source of electricity in the world (Union of Concerned Scientists, 2014) with a 10% increase in yearly additions installed in 2012 compared with 2011 (Global Wind Energy Council, 2012). However the proportion of energy that can be harnessed through wind power is restricted by the cost of the infrastructure needed, construction, the amount of wind that occurs and that there are only a narrow number of sites within the UK that are windy enough for the wind turbines to be worth installing.
Delucchi, Mark A., and Mark Z. Jacobson. "Meeting the World's Energy Needs with Wind, Water, and Solar Power." Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (2013): 31-40. Web.
Wind is a form of solar energy. The term wind energy describes the process by which the wind is used to generate electricity or mechanical power. Wind turbines convert mechanical energy from the wind into electrical power. Wind turbines usually have three main parts. There are blades that connect to a central hub, a box behind the blades that contains the generator, and a long stem that connects to the ground. The way how it works is that the wind turns the blades, which spins a shaft that connects to a generator making electricity. After the electricity is produced it is sent through transmission lines to a substation that is sent to business and homes. For the sake of our planet, we must promote a renewable energy economy. Wind power can be a foundation of that sustainable energy future because it provides jobs in states that are building wind turbines, is a renewable energy source, and does not damage our environment. The environment will not be damaged by the pollution, the natural resources will not be used up, and there won’t be generating of hazardous wastes. Welcoming wind energy today will lay the foundation for a healthy tomorrow that will affect everyone in the United States. There are obstacles and challenges that will make it more difficult, but the environmental impact is well worth it to invest more money into wind energy.
Deal, W. (n.d.). Wind power: An emerging energy resource.Technology & Engineering Teacher, 70(1), 9-15. Retrieved from http://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?sid=a747d6c4-9f9f-4066-be3e-d7d26a427ef2@sessionmgr115&vid=1&hid=114&bdata=JkF1dGhUeXBlPWNvb2tpZSxpcCxjcGlkJmN1c3RpZD1zc2Mmc2l0ZT1laG9zdC1saXZlJnNjb3BlPXNpdGU=
Alternative Energy - Wind, Solar, Hydro and Other Alt Energy Sources for Home Power. Web. 07 Dec. 2011. .