Traveling through Kansas last week, we came across these giant wind turbine blades. They were huge. The pictures don't do the size justice. Later we saw the wind farms where they were heading to. There were probably 200 towers awaiting blades like these. Does anyone know how much power these generate.
The power generated depends on the output of the turbine/generator that the blades are hooked to. From the size of the blade I would guess anywhere from 1 MW to 100 MW or more. Just a guess.
If you had to bet, Go with GE 1.5 MW turbines. They're the most common in NA but they're a little dated now. Vestas has a pretty popular 2.0 MW turbine. Could be those as well. Chances are they're either GE or Vestas, but there are other players in the game too. The rated capacity output is probably between those two numbers I mentioned above. Land based turbines are starting to push past the 2.0 MW barrier, but 1.5, 1.65, and 1.8 are also common ratings still. Offshore turbines are considerably larger because of the costs of installation. To make the installation worthwhile, the output needs to be as large as possible. GE makes a 3.6 MW offshore turbine and I know Vestas has a few varieties as well, don't know the outputs but they're similar or even larger.
At least as recently as Wikipedia was updated, the largest single turbines were 5-6MW: Wind turbine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Yeah, a 100MW turbine would be truly enormous and wildly impractical. But he did say it was just a guess... Bestmapman, nice pics BTW.
My dad would know. They have a bunch of them along the MN/SD border where they live, and they come in two varieties - black and white, depending on the company. I can't remember which one was which however. The windmills that were first put up there were part of Enron, but were probably sold off as one of the few real assets Enron really had. There's a couple hundred there easily, about the size you say. The first towers were maybe 80 feet high, now they're over 100 feet high (plus the blade length). Pretty awesome standing right underneath one and hearing it 'woosh-woosh-woosh' as the blades go by.
Okay, dug up an old picture of my son and mother-in-law in front of a blade awaiting assembly, and zoomed in on the letters - this white one starts with GE (gotta love iPhoto!). Not sure if that's true of all white ones however. In the background you can see both white and black bladed windmills. This picture was downsized a bit, probably can't read the letters too well.
The below is from an article about a Crookwell Windfarm in regional New South Wales. wind farm facts & figures The Crookwell Wind Farm has eight 45 metre-high generators. The three-bladed rotors on each turbine have a 44 metre diameter and a rotational speed of 28 revolutions per minute (rpm). Each generator is comprised of a 36 tonne steel tower and 27.5 tonne worth of hub, blades and casing. The generator towers or turbines are set in 105 cubic metres of reinforced concrete foundation. The wind farm's turbines automatically start turning when wind speed is greater than 15 km/hr. The turbines reach maximum power at wind speeds of 54 km/hr and automatically shut down in very high winds greater than 72 km/hr. The turbines are also protected by a lightning protection system. how the wind farm works 1. Blades The turbine blades are made of fibreglass. The profile and shape of the blade is designed for maximum efficiency and minimum noise. 2. Hub The hub is made of cast iron and connects the turbine's blades to the main shaft. When the wind blows, the blades and hub rotate at 28 revolutions per minute (rpm). The hub and blades together weigh 8.5 tonnes. 3. Gearbox The main shaft, rotating at 28 rpm, is connected to the gearbox. The gearbox increases the speed of rotation to 1,500 rpm and drives the generator. 4. Generator The generator (3-phase, 690 volt) is driven by the high-speed shaft and also turns at 1,500 rpm, supplying electricity through a low voltage transformer to a high voltage transmission transformer and into Country Energy's distribution grid. 5. Nacelle This is the steel and fibreglass casing that supports and covers the gearbox and generator. The nacelle can move though 360° and is turned into the wind using "yaw" motors that are controlled by the wind vane. The nacelle and equipment weigh 19 tonnes. 6. Weather instruments These are attached to the back of the nacelle. A 3-cup anemometer spins to measure the wind speed and the wind vane records the wind direction. 7. Yaw motors These are controlled by the information from the wind vane and ensure that the nacelle is always facing into the wind. 8. Parking brake This is used to stop the blades rotating in gale force winds or for maintenance purposes. It is hydraulically operated using the same principles as found in a car's disc brakes. 9. Hydraulic power pack This operates the parking brake and the yaw brake. From Country Energy - wind farms Sorry, no mention of power output.
Another wind farm, this one is about 80km from my home in South Australia. Starfish Hill Wind Farm The Starfish Hill Wind Farm will reduce Australia’s greenhouse gas emissions by up to 2.1 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent during its forecast 25-year operating life. The $65 million, 34.5 megawatt (MW) wind farm near Cape Jervis on the Fleurieu Peninsula is South Australia’s first wind farm. Starfish Hill Wind Farm provides enough energy to meet the needs of about 18,000 households, representing 2% of South Australia’s residential customers, and will add 1% to the available generation capacity in South Australia. The Project was developed by Starfish Hill Wind Farm Pty Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tarong Energy. The wind farm has two major elements: A 34.5 MW wind farm comprising 23 turbines each of 1.5 MW capacity. A 25 km overhead transmission line to connect the wind farm to the ETSA Utilities electricity distribution network at Yankalilla. The wind farm is located across two hills, Starfish and Salt Creek, with 8 turbines on Starfish Hill and 15 on Salt Creek Hill. The wind turbine towers have a "hub" height of 68 metres and a "ground to blade tip" height of 100 metres. From Starfish Hill Wind Farm - wind turbines, power generation, renewable energy and electricity, South Australia, Tarong Energy For reference 100 metres is about 330 feet.
My Alma Mater, in south eastern MN (Carleton College) has a single Vestas V.82 turbine which has a rated capacity of 1.65MW. The turbine was down for repair (had a defective part in the gearbox) for a couple of months (they couldn't get the part because of a backlog) but in general it has performed well. I was back for a reunion in '05 and stood underneath it. Very impressive as you say. The thing is massive, but remarkably quiet. It will pay for itself in 12 years and then the college will actually make money on it. They're thinking about putting in another 2 turbines at that location. The Fools on the Hill (St. Olaf College) also have a turbine (they copied us) but I don't know the specs on it. I'm sure it's pretty similar.
There are hundreds of them in west Texas, south of Lubbock. What I noticed, or didn't notice, Were the transmission lines. I guess they have to be buried so as to not get in the way of the props? Still, looks very strange to see all that electricity being generated and no poles and wires to send it off to happy homes..... jf
Wow. Thanks for the info, even though it does not cover the power output. I have seen these in Spain, and parts of the US, and really had no idea of the true size and weight of the setup.
Texas has installed about 4GW of wind turbines. 30% of the countries wind power capacity is in Texas.
A 34.5 MW wind farm comprising 23 turbines each of 1.5 MW capacity. If turbines are along a ridge the power is transmitted under ground to the side of the hills least visible to passers by where there will normally be above ground transmission lines.
