Generating energy from wind:
Wind energy can be used for a number of things. For example, the energy in the wind has been used in sailboats for thousands of years now. Wind is a source of wave power, a way of generating useful work by harnessing the energy in the motion of ocean waves. A wind turbine takes the energy received by the wind and transfers that into electricity.
Kinetic energy is captured by the turbine from the wind and causes the blades on the turbine to rotate. When the blades begin to rotate from the wind the kinetic energy is transferred by the rotor shaft to the generator. When the rotor begins to spin the power is then transferred by the drive shaft and a gearbox. When the energy is transferred to the generator, it converts the kinetic energy from the turbine into electrical energy. The electricity is sent to the substation, where it is converted and transported out.
http://energyinformative.org/how-wind-turbines-generate-electricity/
Below is an image that shows how the kinetic energy from the wind is transferred into electricity. This image is also how our wind turbine is set up.
Blades:
There are essential components to a wind turbine, these components are: the rotor, drivetrain, supporting structure, and the electrical components. These components each serve an important role of the wind turbine and together help function the turbine to work in its entirely. The rotor component includes the blades and the hub of the windmill. The hub is the central part of the rotating system in this case it’ll be the part of the windmill that the blades are connected to. The drive train includes the generator, gearbox, and drive shaft. These parts that make up the drivetrain are all included in the motor that the rotor is connected to. The supporting structures are the tower and foundation of the windmill. The tower is what the drivetrain and rotor sit on. Lastly, the electrical components include the PCB board that help for the grid connection and control of the turbine.
The blades on the wind turbine all have a general shape and design to them that help pick up the most wind. The design of the blades help generate the most energy that a turbine can. When the wind blows the blades begin to move round and round, increasing in speed. There’s a pocket of low-pressure air forms on the downwind side of the blade. This low-pressure air pocket is what pulls the blade toward it the windmill which causes the rotor to turn. This is called lift. The force of the lift is actually much stronger than the wind's force against the front side of the blade, which is called drag. The combination of lift and drag causes the rotor to spin like a propeller, and the turning shaft spins the generator to make electricity [1].
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| Visual explanation of lift and drag |
