In recent years, clean and renewable energy has become a popular substitute for power plants. We want to reduce our reliance on limited resources like coal and fossil fuels as we work to lessen the global carbon footprint. Wind power is one of these green energy sources.
Due to its rising popularity and the development of offshore wind farms, wind energy will undoubtedly play a crucial role in the global energy transition. This article presents 15 facts about wind energy to help you further understand wind power and how it leads to a more sustainable planet.
15 Facts About Wind Energy
Wind Energy Is The Most Viable Alternative To Fossil Fuels
Currently, just 11% of the world’s energy comes from renewable sources like wind. By taking the place of fossil fuels in the generation of power on a global scale, these clean energy sources can help to reduce the effects of climate change.
However, wind power is the best option among all renewable energy sources for replacing oil, fossil fuels, and natural gas as it is limitless and requires no fuel. In addition, wind power facilities can offset 327 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.
There Are Two Distinct Types Of Wind Turbines
Utility-scale and offshore wind are the two main types of wind turbines. Utility-scale wind turbines account for most installed turbines, with offshore wind turbines contributing a more minor but rapidly increasing share.
Wind companies typically build utility-scale wind turbines in remote locations. They can be as large as several megawatts or as small as 100 kilowatts. On the other hand, offshore wind farms are in vast bodies of water, usually on coastlines. Offshore wind turbines can capture more wind energy than land based ones.
Wind Energy Is The Fastest-Growing Source Of Electricity Production Worldwide
The wind is a clean, renewable energy source that does not pollute the air or the water. Turbine prices are falling due to mass production and technological advancements. Many countries are providing tax breaks to encourage the growth of wind energy. Additionally, once a turbine is built, operational costs are almost minimal as wind is a free resource.
Renewable energy is expanding rapidly, with wind energy leading the charge due to international initiatives to prevent climate change, such as the Paris Agreement. Global wind power capacity rose from 17,000 megawatts in 2000 to more than 430,000 megawatts in 2015.
According to industry experts, if the current growth momentum continues, wind energy will be able to provide one-third of the world’s electricity demands by 2050. That is over 2,000,000 megawatts!
Wind Power Could Meet All Global Energy Demands
According to a recent assessment by the International Energy Agency, wind turbines in offshore locations could provide 11 times as much electricity as the world needs. According to the agency’s evaluations, offshore wind has the potential to produce a remarkable 420,000 terawatt-hours of electricity annually all over the world. The organization estimated that the world used 23,000 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2018.
Solar And Wind Energy Are Related Sources Of Energy
The sun’s uneven heating of the earth’s surface is what generates the wind. As hot air rises, it leaves a vacuum, and cooler air moves in to fill it. The world can harness energy as long as the wind blows and the sun shines.
Wind Turbines Are Enormous
A typical wind turbine has blades typically close to 200 feet in length, and turbine towers are generally 295 feet tall. These modern turbines are about the Statue of Liberty’s height. More efficient generators are increasing the average wind turbine name plate capacity. The average turbine’s capacity in 2020 is 2.75 megawatts, an 8% increase from 2019.
Humans Have Used Wind Turbines For Thousands Of Years
In the ninth century AD, windmills with sails rotating in a horizontal plane became common in central Persia, marking one of the earliest advancements in windmill technology. These early windmills had six to twelve sails wrapped in reeds. These wind mills would grind grain or pump water.
Wind Turbines Compensate For Their Carbon Footprint In Less Than Six Months
The idea that manufacturing and constructing a wind turbine consumes more energy than the turbine produces is a common misconception. A typical wind turbine will offset substantial amounts of greenhouse gases for the next 20 to 30 years, paying back its carbon footprint in less than six months.
Albert Betz, A German Physicist, Discovered Wind Energy Theory
The German Physicist Albert Betz conjectured what is known today as the Betz limit, or Betz Law. The Betz limit is the maximum efficiency for a turbine. Betz concluded that this value is 59.3 percent, meaning that, at most, only 59.3 percent of the kinetic energy from the wind can be used to generate electricity. Modern turbines harness 35 to 45 percent of the wind’s power, far from reaching or exceeding the Betz limit.
James Blyth Built The First Modern Wind Turbine Used For Electricity Generation
The windmill did not produce electricity until the nineteenth century. After developing the first electric generator in the 1830s, engineers started experimenting with harnessing the wind’s kinetic energy to generate electricity.
In 1887, James Blyth, a Scottish engineer and physicist, built a 10-meter-tall wind turbine that could harness the kinetic energy of the wind and used it to power his Marykirk home.
China Has Manufactured The World’s Largest And Most Powerful Wind Turbine
The Chinese company MingYang Smart Energy developed the MySE 16.0-242. It is currently the world’s largest and most powerful offshore wind turbine. It has a diameter of 794 feet, 387-foot-long blades, and a swept area of 495,000 square feet.
The MySE 16.0-242 is reported to have the largest rotor and greatest nominal rating in the wind energy industry. For a year, the turbine may produce up to 80,000 megawatt-hours of electricity, which is more than enough to power 20,000 houses. In comparison, the MySE 11.0-203, the company’s previous turbine model, generates 45 percent less energy.
The Largest Turbines Can Generate Enough Electricity To Power 940 Homes
Wind turbines are known for their outstanding energy efficiency. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, an average utility-scale wind turbine in the United States can generate over 843,000 kilowatt-hours a month, enough to power 940 homes.
Backyard Wind Turbines Can Power Homes And Small Businesses
Smaller turbines erected in a backyard with a capacity below 100 kilowatts can directly power a home, farm, or small business without being connected to an electric grid. An average home uses 10,649 kilowatt hours of electricity annually (about 877 kilowatt hours per month).
Depending on the local average wind speed, a wind turbine with a power output of between 5 and 15 kilowatts would be sufficient to contribute to this need significantly. In an area with an average annual wind speed of 14 miles per hour (6.26 meters per second), a 1.5-kilowatt wind turbine can supply the electricity demands of a home that needs 300 kilowatt hours per month.
China Is The World Leader In Wind Energy Production
With a total installed capacity of 221 gigawatts, China is the world’s top producer of wind energy. China contributes more than one-third of the global wind energy capacity. The country also boasts the largest onshore wind farm, Jiangsu Qidong Offshore Wind Farm, with 7,965 megawatts (MW).
With 96.4 GW of wind energy capacity, the United States comes in second. Six of the ten largest onshore wind farms are located here, including the Alta Wind Energy Centre in California, the second-largest onshore wind farm in the world with a capacity of 1,548 MW
Wind Power Creates Millions Of Employment Opportunities
According to the International Renewable Energy Agency, the wind sector has already created close to 1.2 million jobs. In 2020, there were approximately 550,000 wind energy workers in China alone. There are approximately 260,000 more in Brazil, 115,000 in the United States, and 63,000 in India.
The Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) stated in 2021 that due to considerable growth in the renewable energy sector, the industry might create 3.3 million new wind power jobs in the next five years. This number comprises direct employment in the wind industry. It encompasses all aspects of the sector, from developing wind projects to maintaining power lines and turbines.