Living Green St Louis
Learn about living Green
Wind Power
Small wind
– wind-powered electric systems sized for homes, farms, and small
businesses – as an industry has experienced major growth in the past
decade. These turbines, which are defined as 100 kilowatts in
capacity and below, have seen their market grow significantly and
the industry has set ambitious
growth
targets continuing at 18-20% through 2010. The U.S. is the leading
world producer of small wind turbines, the vast majority of which
are manufactured on U.S. soil. These machines are used by
individuals to lower their electric bills, become independent of
their electric grid, and to avoid the unpredictability of
traditional energy prices.
A wind turbine, which is installed on top of a tall tower, collects kinetic (motion) energy from the wind and converts it to electricity that is compatible with a home's electrical system. See one company that is using small wind turbines that need only 5 mph of wind to produce energy - PacWInd.
In a normal residential application, a home
is served simultaneously by the wind turbine and a local utility. If
the wind speeds are below cut-in speed (7-10 mph)
– the minimum speed to spin the blades - there will be no output
from the turbine and all of the needed power is purchased from the
utility. As wind speeds increase, turbine output increases and the
amount of power purchased from the utility is proportionately
decreased. When the turbine produces more power than the house
needs, many utilities institute a policy called “net metering”
whereby the extra electricity is sold back to the utility. All of
this is done automatically. There are no batteries in a modern,
grid-connected residential wind system.