Proposal for Airborne Wind Turbines

Proposal
English 415
26 September, 2012

Wind Energy Solutions
9237 Juliette Dr.
El Paso, TX 65485
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(345) 444-5924
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TO: Mike Molt, Design Engineer Manager
FROM: Bron Herson, Design Engineer Intern
DATE: 26 September, 2012
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SUBJECT: Proposal to research airborne wind energy generation to compare and contrast the difference between wind turbine systems and airborne systems.

INTRODUCTION: Wind Energy Solutions has built the standard for creating clean green wind energy production products all across the continental United States. For the past fifteen years, our company has produced more than 100,000 quality wind turbine products. Recently, local communities have been signing petitions to have wind farms be moved farther away from towns. This is because of the noise produced and depreciated value of the view caused from installing turbines. Wind Energy Solutions is determined to produce responsible clean energy and desires to keep good relations with the public. This means that Wind Energy Solutions needs to rethink how it helps produce energy.

I request permission to research airborne wind energy (AWE) systems, as an energy production product allowing us to add to our production line.

PROBLEM:
With wind turbines we have only scratched the surface of this large and vast renewable resource. The amount of power the wind carries in the atmosphere “is roughly 100 times the power used by all human civilization. Total power dissipated in winds is about 1015W. Total human thermal power consumption is about 1013 W. Removing 1% of high-altitude winds’ available energy is not expected to have adverse environmental consequences” (Roberts 2007).
Wind turbines are a great start at harvesting energy from the wind. However, “developers have to consider noise issues, in terms of impact on residential areas; bird issues, in terms of migratory routes and sensitive species; and landscape designations such as National Parks” (Fry 2005). These are only a few issues that wind turbines have caused in energy generation. For Wind Energy Solutions to spread its influence across the globe, we need to advance our production line to gain more access to the large potential wind energy resource more efficiently, while still considering the general public and environment. We can accomplish this by expanding our production line to another wind energy generation product. A reasonable solution to making a better product than the wind turbine will address the following:

1) The current wind turbines do not draw out the full potential of the available energy in the wind.

2) The wind turbines are not popular with the general public community, because they take up a lot of room and create noise pollution.

3) The aerial wildlife is put at risk from running into the wind turbines blades.

4) Wind turbines have an enormous startup cost, Wind Energy Solutions has to look at other technologies available.

Problem 1: Lower Energy Wind The wind energy that is currently harvested from the atmosphere by one of our wind turbines is only about 3MW annually, which is harvested from our turbines at about 80m above the ground. In the order for us to get higher energy winds we need to increase the height of our harvesters. “Taller towers reach higher wind speeds because of decreased effects from vertical wind shear (the rate at which wind velocity changes from one elevation to another) due to surface roughness (from trees, hills, buildings, etc.) contributing to higher wind speeds at higher elevations” (Hoffman 2009). However, building wind turbines too high will result in spending more and producing less energy per height of tower built. Therefore, we must consider another alternative.

Problem 2: Public Disputes Turbines are seen as a nuisance by most local communities. There are two reasons for this: One, they decrease the amount of useable space around the turbine, and two, wind turbines create a lot of noise. The size of wind turbines, which is roughly the size of a small house in diameter, requires that they are built on sturdy and flat ground, which encroaches upon most land used in agriculture. Otherwise, it takes a considerable amount of time and money to build systems into places where it is difficult to grow a farm, like on the side of a cliff. If wind turbines are built too close to the communities then we start to have issues with the general public. The second reason the public doesn’t like wind turbines is that they produce a lot of noise. Under Massachusetts regulations, the sound level must “be within 10 dB(A) of the ambient sound level” (Rogers 2002). For example, to show an approximate 10 dB difference, is about the same as walking outside from your office to outside street traffic.

Problem 3: Wildlife Health at Risk Aerial wildlife located around turbines has been severely impacted by the spinning turbine blades. Though it doesn’t appear that these blades move very fast in some cases they have cleaved a flying bird in half. This can cause some serious issues where there is endangered species or even beneficial species around the turbines, such as the turbines located in the Gulf of Mexico endangering the brown pelicans. “A study published in Science last year estimated that bat deaths could lead to annual agricultural losses in North America of more than US $3.7 billion” (Kumagai 2012).

Problem 4: Wind Turbine Alternatives Expensive The main cost of wind turbines is the construction and installation procedures. “Commercial-scale turbines installed today are 2MW in size and cost roughly $3.5 million” (windustry.org, 2012) when installed. Wind Energy Solution turbines cost $3.75 million. Other types of renewable resources like geothermal, solar, and wave power systems all have about the same installation cost as the wind turbine. However since it would cost Wind Energy Solutions a lot of time and money it may be more beneficial to look at alternatives that they already know a lot about, such as wind generation systems.

OBJECTIVES: My research will provide the following:

1) A synopsis of the environmental impacts our modern wind turbine systems and their impact on the local environment.

2) A detailed report of all current knowledge on AWE system, and the benefits and drawbacks of each category in AWE systems.

3) A report of the geographical areas that will be able to support AWE systems, the required maintenance, and training involved.

4) A detailed comparison of our wind energy generation products to the AWE systems.

5) My recommendation on whether to start production of AWE now, or not.

PRODUCT: My final report will contain an analysis of Wind Energy Solutions’ main product, wind turbines, and provide a better way to harvest energy. The report will also cover the impact our current product has on the environment. My report will include information on the different types of implementation of AWE systems, how it compares to current wind turbine systems, an economic cost analysis of AWE systems, and what sites it would benefit the most from AWE systems. I will present my findings to our engineers and executives in an endorsement on AWE systems as a future or current product for renewable energy harvester.

METHOD: To accomplish my objectives, I will complete the following: 1) Examination all current issues and complaints with wind turbine energy generation systems.

2) Research geography to find the most suitable site of introducing AWE technology. 3) Research all the known applications and methods to introduce AWE systems into acceptable functioning energy harvesting machines

4) Recommendation on the of implementing AWE systems outweigh the drawbacks.

CONCLUSION: Though wind turbines have come a long way, we still can harvest sufficient energy from the wind to produce our needs for electricity. Along with the needs of electricity, we need to be concerned about the environment and wildlife in the areas we want to install our products. If our energy generation systems were 5000m above ground we wouldn’t have to worry as much about the noise, wildlife, or low percent of harvested energy. For example “AWE systems have a capacity factor of about 80%, while a capacity factor of about 35% is found from ground-based wind turbines operating at the best sites (Roberts 2007).” AWE systems are a very feasible opportunity for our company to grow. We must conduct research to better understand AWE’s applications and cost. I request approval of this proposal to research and analyze AWE systems for a potential new product that can maximize efficiencies and minimize damage to the ecosystem.

Works Cited:
Fry, C. (2005). Watch the birdie. Power Engineer, 19(4), 10-14.
Hoffman, D. L. (2009). How new technology developments will lower wind energy costs
How much do wind turbines cost? (2012). Retrieved 10/1/12, 2012, from http://www.windustry.org/resources/how-much-do-wind-turbines-cost
Kumagai, J. (2012). Fixing wind power 's bat problem. IEEE Spectrum, 49(7), 14-14. doi: 10.1109/MSPEC.2012.6221068
Richardson, R. D. (1993). Wind energy systems. Proceedings of the IEEE, 81(3), 378-389. doi: 10.1109/5.241490
Roberts, B. (2007). Harnessing high-altitude wind power. IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion, 22(1), 136-144. doi: 10.1109/TEC.2006.889603
Rogers, A. (2002). Wind Turbine Acoustic Noise, Renewable Energy Research Laboratory Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Additional Reading:
Banakar, H. (2009). Clustering of wind farms and its sizing impact. IEEE Transactions on Energy Conversion, 24(4), 935-942. doi: 10.1109/TEC.2008.2001454 Cost comparisons of energy supply technologies. (2009). Retrieved 10/1/2012, 2012, from http://www.unenergy.org/Popup%20pages/Comparecosts.html
Dvorak, M. (2010). California offshore wind energy potential. Renewable Energy, 35(6), 1244-1254. doi: 10.1016/j.renene.2009.11.022
He, Y. (2009). Wind turbine generator systems. the supply chain in china: Status and problems. Renewable Energy, 34(12), 2892-2897. doi: 10.1016/j.renene.2009.03.018
Kusiak, A. (2010). Design of wind farm layout for maximum wind energy capture. Renewable Energy, 35(3), 685-694. doi: 10.1016/j.renene.2009.08.019
Malik, A. (2009). Economics of wind turbine as an energy fuel saver - A case study for remote application in oman. Energy, 34(10), 1573-1578. doi: 10.1016/j.energy.2009.07.002

Cited: Fry, C. (2005). Watch the birdie. Power Engineer, 19(4), 10-14. Hoffman, D How much do wind turbines cost? (2012). Retrieved 10/1/12, 2012, from http://www.windustry.org/resources/how-much-do-wind-turbines-cost Kumagai, J Richardson, R. D. (1993). Wind energy systems. Proceedings of the IEEE, 81(3), 378-389. doi: 10.1109/5.241490 Roberts, B Rogers, A. (2002). Wind Turbine Acoustic Noise, Renewable Energy Research Laboratory Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering University of Massachusetts at Amherst. Cost comparisons of energy supply technologies. (2009). Retrieved 10/1/2012, 2012, from http://www.unenergy.org/Popup%20pages/Comparecosts.html Dvorak, M He, Y. (2009). Wind turbine generator systems. the supply chain in china: Status and problems. Renewable Energy, 34(12), 2892-2897. doi: 10.1016/j.renene.2009.03.018 Kusiak, A Malik, A. (2009). Economics of wind turbine as an energy fuel saver - A case study for remote application in oman. Energy, 34(10), 1573-1578. doi: 10.1016/j.energy.2009.07.002