HOME CATEGORIES CONTACT ABOUT WRITE FOR US

YOU ARE HERE: HOME / ENERGY / WIND ENERGY SYSTEM FOR ELECTRICITY
GENERATION: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW

Wind Energy System for Electricity

Generation: All You Need to Know
Last Updated on November 6, 2018 by Amna Ahmad — Leave a Comment (Edit)

Sharing is Caring!

Wind energy is a renewable energy resource blessed by nature. It is one the most abundant
form of renewable energy resource, which is available throughout the year. It is cost-effective
and a reliable source of energy. Unlike fossil fuels, it is environment-friendly, clean, and free
from greenhouse gases. Wind energy system is more popular than a solar energy system
because it can generate electricity 24 hours a day while solar systems can generate electricity
only when the sun shines. The energy crisis faced by the world can be eradicated by the good
utilization of renewable energy resource.

In this detailed post, you will get to know how wind energy is converted to electrical energy,
various components a wind energy system and integration of a wind energy system into the
conventional power system. Various parts of a typical Wind Energy Conversion System
(WECS) are mentioned and elaborated.
Table of Contents 
1. Outline:
2. Historical Background:
3. What is a Wind Energy System?
4. Causes of Wind:
5. Important terms:
6. Wind Turbines:
7. Wind Farms
8. Types of Wind Turbines:
9. Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWT):
10. 1. Foundation
11. 2. Connection to grid
12. 3. Tower
13. 4. Stairs to access top of tower
14. 5. Yaw mechanism
15. 6. Nacelle
16. 7. Electrical generator
17. 8. Anemometer and wind vane
18. 9. Braking mechanism
19. 10. Gearbox
20. 11. Rotor blades
21. 12. Blade pitch control
22. 13. Rotor hub
23. 14. Low speed shaft
24. 15. High speed shaft
25. 16. Controller:
26. Factors Affecting Wind Energy System:
27. 1. The shape and the length of blades
28. 2. Height
29. 3. The direction and speed of wind
30. 4. Air density
31. Frequently Asked Questions:
32. Difference between a windmill and a wind turbine/Wind Energy Sytstem
33. Do wind turbines produce noise?
34. How do wind turbines work when there is no wind?
35. Bibliography:
36. Final Words

Outline:
Brief historical background
 What is a wind energy system?
Explanation of important terminologies
Conversion of wind energy into electrical energy
Factors affecting wind energy system
Small wind energy system (for households)
Frequently asked questions

Historical Background:
The concept of wind energy system as a source of power is as old as human beings. Men used
to sail boats with the power of wind. The people in past used wind energy in milling
machines. Chinese used to pump water with long tower windmill. There were sawmills for
cutting logs and lumbers. Men had to harness the nature, coming up with brilliant ideas to
make his life full of comforts.

Today, scientists are using wind energy as a renewable source of energy to generate
electricity.

What is a Wind Energy System?

Wind is movement different gasses or air in the horizontal direction flow from higher
pressure to lower pressure region. Speed and direction are two parameters to specify wind.
Have you ever thought, what causes the wind to blow?

Causes of Wind:
The wind blows because of the difference in air pressure and the rotation of the earth. Due
to the uneven heating of the earth because of solar radiation some regions of the earth get
warmer while the rest of the regions are colder. Warmer regions receive more light and heat
from the sun while colder regions receive less light and heat from the sun. Warmer regions
have warm air (lighter in weight) while colder regions have cold air (denser in weight). This
causes a difference in air pressure and air temperature. Of course, higher the difference in
atmospheric pressure, the higher the speed of the wind.

Wind energy or wind power is the process of generating electricity with the help of wind.
As we discussed, air in motion is called wind. You know everything in motion possesses
kinetic energy. So, wind also has kinetic energy. Men harness this kinetic energy of winds and
used to generate mechanical energy which in turn converts into electrical energy.
Important terms:
Wind Turbines:
It is a power generating device, which converts kinetic energy of wind into mechanical
energy, which is then converted into electricity and send to the grid. It is one of the most
efficient way to convert wind energy into mechanical energy. Wind turbines can either be
Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWT) or Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWT).
The difference between the two categories is the rotational axis.

Wind Farms
Wind farms are the dedicated area of land, where a large number of wind turbines are
installed for generating electricity. The wind farms are designed in such a way that the land
should not waste. For example,the two turbines are separated from each other by a calculated
distance, tominimize mutual interference. Also, the land can be used to agriculturalpurpose
and livestock rearing.

There is a calculated distance between the two turbines. The two turbines are apart from each
other by 5 to 10 times the diameter of blades. For example, if the diameter of the turbine
blades is approximately 15 meters. The two turbines are approximately 150 meters apart. The
spacing between the turbines agricultural purposes visible in the figure below.
Offshore wind farms:
Offshore (on the sea) winds arise from the sea. Offshore farms generate electricity from sea
breeze or install near the sea.

Onshore wind farms:

Onshore (on land) winds arise from land. Onshore farms generate electricity from offshore
winds.

Types of Wind Turbines:

There are variety of designs available for a wind turbine. Turbines are classified according to
the axis of rotation. In horizontal axis turbines, the axis of rotation (rotor’s rotation) is
parallel to the ground or rotor shaft is pointed in the direction of the wind. In vertical axis
turbines, the axis of rotation (rotor’s rotation) is perpendicular to the ground. In this article,
we are going to discuss commonly used wind turbine that is Horizontal Axis Wind
Turbines (HAWT).

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWT):

HAWT is further classified according to the number of blades. That is single blade rotor, two
blades rotor and three blades rotor.

Another classification of HAWT according to the position of a rotor. Upwind turbines and
downwind turbines.

I am not going into the details of various kinds. You can easily understand the design and its
properties here .

The article covers the design of 3 blades, upwind horizontal axis wind turbine.

So, let’s get started.

You have seen a wind turbine is mounted on a tower with a strong foundation. The
connection to the grid is provided at the foundation. The nacelle and rotor are at the top of
the tower. To access nacelle and rotor there are stairs inside the tower. The rotor consists of
blades, blade pitch control and rotor hub.
 Figure 2. Wind Turbine and it’s parts

1. Foundation
Wind turbines have heavy, bulky and very tall structure, they need a strong foundation.
Modern turbines are even taller, heavier and powerful. Onshore and offshore wind turbines
need different types of foundations. Of course, the foundation should be strong and rigid
 enough to support such a huge structure. For example, GE-1.5 megawatt model whole
assembly weighs 164 tons and a total height of 328 feet [5].

2. Connection to grid
Connection to the grid is necessary because if the wind is not enough to generate electricity.
Grid supplies your electricity needs. When the wind blows, the excess power is fed back to the
grid.

3. Tower
Tower height consists of 40m to 100m. Taller towers capture more energy and hence
generating more electricity. If the tower height doubles then its diameter is also going to be
doubled. Tubular steel, lattice steel or concrete towers are popular. For HAWT the tower
height must be two to three times greater than blades length.

4. Stairs to access top of tower

In order to access the top of the tower, for maintenance and repairs, stairs are provided
inside the tower.

5. Yaw mechanism
Yawning is the movement of the turbine along the vertical axis. Yaw mechanism consists of
the yaw motor. Yaw mechanism orients turbines to move according to the wind direction
and speed. It is a part of upwind turbines only. The yaw mechanism communicates with the
wind vane (through the controller) and turns the nacelle with the help of motors.

6. Nacelle
The Nacelle is nothing but the housing of generator, gearbox, braking system, shafts etc. It is
a lightweight box made from glass fiber. It connects the tower to the rotor.

7. Electrical generator
Of course, another most important part of wind turbines. Electrical generator gets input from
high-speed shaft which rotates at the speed of (1000-1800 rpm). The generator converts
rotational motion into electrical energy. The electrical generators used in turbines are either
asynchronous generators or induction generators. Modern turbines can generate 600-3000
kilowatts (kW).
 In a wind power system, we cannot alter wind speed and hence we cannot speed up the prime
mover (rotor blades).

Induction Generator
The frequency of the generator is proportional to the speed of prime mover. So modern
turbines utilize induction generators. Also, induction generators have a simpler structure, low
investment costs, and low maintenance. Majorly, two types of induction generators are used
in the wind energy system: Self Excited Induction Generators (SEIG) and Doubly Fed
Induction Generators (DFIG).

The frequency of electricity generated is proportional to wind speed. The output of

the generator is AC (having variable frequency or mismatched with transmission line) is
converted to DC. The DC voltage is then converted to AC (frequency matched with the power
grid).

8. Anemometer and wind vane

As you know anemometer is used to measure the speed of the wind. And wind vane tells us
the direction of the wind. Of course, this is an important part for controlling the turbines
automatically.

Wind turbines are designed to work in moderate weather. If there is wind speed greater than
25m/s then a signal from anemometer to the controller and controller shuts off the turbine.
Similarly, turbines don’t work if the wind speed is as low as 5m/s. This system automatically
takes the decision and protects the turbine in extreme weather.

9. Braking mechanism
Braking mechanism also provides safety of turbines in case of malfunctioning, over-speed
(wind speed is unpredictable), overheating (generator).

Two types of braking mechanism available. These are aerodynamic and mechanical braking
mechanism. Both of them work independently. Mechanical brakes are situated on between
generator and gearbox. They are used as parking brakes

Aerodynamic brakes are used to turn the rotor blades perpendicular to the direction of
the wind. All commercial HAWTs control pitch angle of their rotor blades, to minimize
rotation speed.
10. Gearbox
The Low-speed shaft is connected to the left of gearbox. And the gearbox is connected to the
braking mechanism and high-speed shaft. The gearbox transforms the low shaft speed (30-
60 rpm) into faster speed (about 1000-1800 rpm). This speed is necessary to drive the
electrical generator.

11. Rotor blades

The blades are foremost part of a turbine. Rotor blades are connected to the rotor hub. They
face the wind, as the wind blows, blades try to rotate and lift according to the wind speed and
power. The blades transmit power to the rotor hub.

12. Blade pitch control

Blade pitch control or blade angle adjustment. It is used to adjust rotation speed. Wind
turbines have maximum and minimum speed limits. If the wind blows above or below these
ranges turbines shut down. Pitch is an important part of large turbines. Wind turbines are
designed to produce optimum output. But how this optimum output can be generated if the
wind blows faster or slower than the optimum range. The speed and power of wind change
frequently. The purpose of blade pitch is to adjust the blades (blades turn along the
longitudinal axis) according to wind condition. For faster winds, it exposes less surface area
to the wind.

13. Rotor hub

Rotor hub connects the rotor blades to the rest of the system. Rotor hub and rotor blades
collectively called rotor. The rotor hub is connected to the nacelle.

14. Low speed shaft

The rotor is connected to the low-speed shaft. And low-speed shaft is connected to the left of
the gearbox. As the rotor spins, the low-speed shaft spins as well. In this way, the rotor
transfers its mechanical energy (which is in the form of rotation) to the low-speed shaft. It
can rotate up to low speed at 30-60 rpm.

15. High speed shaft

Gearbox low-speed to a high-speed shaft. And high-speed shaft drives the electrical
generator. The high-speed shaft rotates at 1500-1800 rpm. Most of the generators require
 to speed up to 1800 rpm. It is equipped with an emergency braking system. Mechanical as
well as an aerodynamic braking system. The Mechanical brake disc low-speed when there is
the failure of the aerodynamic braking system.

16. Controller:
This is an electronic controller effectively controls the turbines. You can optimize or control
the power output of turbines by these control methods.

Generator torque and speed

Blade pitch control
Rotation of the turbine (yaw mechanism)

Factors Affecting Wind Energy System:

There are certain parameters that can affectthe performance of the wind energy system

The shape and the length of turbine blades

Height
The speed of the wind
Air density

1. The shape and the length of blades

The output of a wind turbine is directly proportional to the size of blades. Larger the size of
blades, the higher the output power. Of course, large blades can capture more wind energy
than smaller once. Or you can say that the larger blades can translate more kinetic energy of
wind into mechanical energy and hence increase electrical power output.

2. Height
At higher altitudes, there are less obstruction like tree, buildings etc. At higher altitudes wind
is more consistent. Doubling the height of tower doubles the output power. It doesn’t mean
you can erect a wind turbine on the mountain. Because at higher altitudes air density
decreases.

3. The direction and speed of wind

 The output of the wind turbine is dependent on both the speed and density of the wind. Of
course, higher wind speeds tend to rotate blades faster. Due to the faster rotation, more
mechanical energy converts into electrical energy.

P = 0.593*½*ρAV3

Where P = wind power

V = wind speed
A = rotor area
ρ = density of air

Betz Limit on Efficiency of a Wind Energy System

The constant 0.593 in the above equation is the Betz Limit . It was introduced by Albert
Betz, a German physicist, in 1919. According to Betz’s law, no turbine can capture more than
16/27 (59.3%) of the kinetic energy in wind. The factor 16/27 (0.593) is known as Betz’s
coefficient. So, the efficiency of a wind energy system can not surpass the theoretical limit of
59.3%. Practical utility-scale wind turbines achieve at peak 75% to 80% of the Betz limit.

The faster the wind speed, the greater the output of the turbine. It means wind speed is a
major factor that can affect the efficiency of the whole system. Whenever someone decides to
erect wind turbines, it is advisable to look into wind conditions at that place, for at least one
year.

4. Air density
The third factor is air density, which is dependent on temperature, pressure and altitude.
Colder air is denser and it exerts more pressure on rotor blades and hence increases output
power.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Difference between a windmill and a wind turbine/Wind
Energy Sytstem
In essense, there is no difference in between the windmill and wind turbine. The windmill is
an ancient term when wind energy used to drive mills (that is why it is named as windmill)
and pump water. While a wind turbine (being a part a Wind Energy System) is used to
generate electricity by converting wind energy into electrical power. Wind turbines have
 fewer blades than windmills. Windmills have to do more physical work, that’s why they are
provided with more blades. Windmill converts wind energy into mechanical energy. While
the wind turbines convert wind energy into electricity.

Do wind turbines produce noise?

HAWT are noisy and are popular in areas away from downtown. Commercial wind turbines
produce noise just like a small jet plane. It causes health problems and noise pollution. In
urban areas or home-based wind turbine systems utilize vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT).
Vertical axis turbines are the first choice for homes because it requires less space and is less
noisy. But the efficiency of a VAWT may be less that of a HAWT in a wind energy system.

How do wind turbines work when there is no wind?

If there is no wind, no electricity is produced. To derive a turbine the wind speed should be
greater than the cut-in speed (that is approximately 4m/s). The anemometer is there to
measure the speed of the wind.

Although, the Capacity Factor of a wind energy system is higher than many other renewable
energy resources; but still it is much less than that of a conventional power plant. So,
typically, a wind energy system is backed up with other renewable or conventional energy
resources to keep a continuous supply of electrical power to the consumers.

Bibliography:
[1] Wikimedia online
[2] Small wind electric system
[3] Wind energy foundation
[4] Energy education
[5] Windturbine FAQs
[6] Electrical Academia

Final Words
We hope you’ve found out about the basic functioning of a wind energy system and how they
convert wind energy into electric energy. There are other energy resources that need to be
discussed in detail.
 You may also want to read how electric energy is transmitted from generating stations to
consumers and Load flow analysis of a power network.

If you liked this article, then please subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video tutorials
and project descriptions. You can also find us on Facebook . Give us your feedback
in the comments section.

Sharing is Caring!

Filed Under: Energy

Tagged With: Energy Resources, Renewable Energy, Wind Energy

RELATED POSTS

Solution to Energy
Crisis in Pakistan

Power System: Basic

Basic Energy Structure and
Resources for Functioning
Electrical Energy
Generation

About Amna Ahmad

Amna Ahmed is a passionate writer. She has been an educational blogger since 2012. She
belongs to Karachi, Pakistan. She has completed her B.E. electronics engineering from a
reputable institution in 2011. She loves electronics and loves to read and write anything related
to electronics. She is good at writing literature reviews, lecture notes, technology reviews. She
blogs at Basic Electronics Guide .
« Basic Energy Resources for Electrical Energy Generation
NEMA Enclosure Ratings for Electrical Equipment »

Leave a Reply
Logged in as Muhammad Sarwar. Log out?

Comment

POST COMMENT

SUBSCRIBE

Receive latest articles in your Inbox!

E-Mail Address

SUBSCRIBE

SEARCH
 Search the site ...

CATEGORIES

BSEE (2)

Education (1)

Energy (5)

FYP (2)

General (1)

Power (1)

Simulations (2)

Softwares (2)

Tutorials (6)
MATLAB (1)

Wind (1)

RECENT POSTS

Single Line Diagram of a Power System

January 15, 2019

10 Best Electrical Engineering

Universities in Pakistan January 13, 2019

Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine: Working

Principle November 12, 2018

NEMA Enclosure Ratings for Electrical

Equipment November 5, 2018
 Wind Energy System for Electricity
Generation: All You Need to Know
November 1, 2018

FOLLOW US

ABOUT EE POWER SCHOOL PARTNERS

EE Power School provides a platform for learning

Electrical Power Engineering. Feel free to learn,
Mechanical 360
contribute and share. Happy Learning.
Doksi
Scholarship Forum

NEVER MISS A POST

Receive latest articles in your Inbox!

E-Mail Address

SUBSCRIBE

© 2018 EE Power School · Powered by Muhammad Sarwar · About · Write for Us · Sitemap ·
Privacy Policy · Contact · Log out