Wind Turbines

There are forces on the earth that can be harnessed and turned into some form of energy. Wind is one of those forces. It is especially viable in areas that are flat. Wind energy is an up and coming form of renewable energy that will thrive as technology advances. Wind energy is produced by wind turbines. These turbines work kind of like a fan in reverse. Instead of have electricity turn the blades of the fan, wind turns the blades in order to produce electricity. The blades are connected to a shaft inside the turbine and when the wind turns blades, the blades turn the shaft. The shaft is connected to a generator in which makes the electricity. (How Do Wind Turbines Work?) The turbines are connected to transmission grids in order to carry the electricity generated to the areas needed. (Block) Wind turbines come in multiple sizes that range from big commercial sizes to residential sizes. There are two different types of commercial wind turbines, vertical-axis and horizontal-axis. Horizontal-axis has two or three blades and vertical-axis looks like an egg beater. The towers can range from 200 to 320 feet in height, with the blades ranging from 80 to 100 feet in length. (Commercial-Scale Wind Turbine Generators in the OPPD Service Area, 2006, p.1)These turbines can produce between 10 kilowatts to several megawatts. (How Do Wind …show more content…
One of the biggest things I learned is how much power can actually be generated by wind turbines. I was always skeptical of wind energy because of the fact that wind comes and goes. As technology advances, wind turbines will become less expansive to install. They will also be able to generate more power, since the generators will keep improving and the blades will become lighter. I have only seen one wind farm in my life time and that was in Oregon. I was amazed on how big the wind turbines are. I would have to say that if I had a choice, I would not want to see them from my