AIR - Small Wind Turbines

Wind-powered electric systems sized for rural and urban areas – 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.

In addition to meeting the dreams of Americans for clean energy, the small wind turbine industry is also positioned to help the 2 billion people around the world who do not have access to electric power

The long-term industry vision is of a major new category of home energy appliance. In order to achieve 50,000 mega watts (MW), the small wind turbine industry will have to grow to over $1 billion per year and employ over 10,000 people in manufacturing, sales, installation, and support. This is possible due to the sheer number of homes (15 million) and small businesses (1 million) that could effectively use small wind systems if the economics were favorable.

How does it work?

Smaller wind turbines (vertical or horizontal axis) are usually installed on top of tall structures such as towers, office buildings, home rooftops, stadiums, and the like. These turbines collect kinetic energy (motion) converts it to electricity that is compatible with the structure’s electrical system. If the structure does not need the electricity, then the excess is directed to the grid-system, generating revenue for the owner or parties involved.

Small wind systems for remote (off-grid) applications operate somewhat differently and often charge batteries, so electricity is available when the wind is not blowing.

Developing countries: India

Small wind turbines are better because they are more sustainable and offer a number of other socioeconomic benefits. Wind systems come in smaller sizes than diesel generators and have a shorter construction lead time than extending the utility lines ("grid"). For grid extension distances as short as one kilometer, a wind system can be a lower cost alternative for small loads. While wind turbines cost more initially than diesels, they are often much better from the user's point of view because of typical foreign aid practices. They are also better in the long-run, since smaller wind turbines cost less than larger turbines. For this reason, investors have a faster rate of recovery from the initial expense of purchasing a small turbine, all while generating free energy.

Comparison with other Renewable Energy Technologies

Wind power is very competitive with solar photovoltaics (PV), biomass, and diesel generators, but is usually more expensive than micro-hydro power.

Generally speaking, wind power complements these other power sources by providing a least cost approach under certain conditions. This expands the range of potential projects, pointing to the day when decentralized electrification projects will be implemented on the same scale as current utility line extension projects. In many situations, the lowest-cost centralized system will be a hybrid system that combines wind, photovoltaics, and diesel.

Environment

Wind turbines produce no air, water, or thermal pollution and emit no greenhouse or smog-causing gases. By using wind power, we will also be offsetting pollution that would have been generated by the local utility company. Over its life, a small residential wind turbine can offset approximately 1.2 tons of air pollutants and 200 tons of greenhouse gas pollutants (carbon dioxide and other gases which cause global warming). There are global calls to reduce carbon dioxide in our air by 2 tons per person by 2050. Small wind turbines will be a strong contender in reducing these emissions.

Small wind turbines do not affect wildlife

While no such studies have been performed specifically for small wind turbines, anecdotal evidence indicates that birds occasionally collide with small wind turbines as they do with any other type of structure. However, such events are rare and very unlikely to have any impact on bird populations. Large, utility-scale wind turbines account for less than 0.003% of all human-caused bird deaths, and small wind turbines have even less of an impact. House cats in the U.S., by contrast, are estimated to kill roughly one billion birds each year. Statistically, a single house cat, a window pane, or an automobile is a much greater threat to birds than a wind turbine of any size.

Economics

The cost of buying and installing a small wind energy system typically ranges from about $3,000-$5,000 per kilowatt for a grid-connected installation, less than half the cost of a similar solar electric system. The length of the payback period (or, the time it takes to "break even") depends on the system you choose, the wind resource at your site, your power provider’s electricity rates, and financing and incentives available. Small wind owners with strong average wind speeds who can take advantage of rebate programs can usually recoup their investments within 15 years.

Many states have rebate or tax credit programs in place to encourage small wind and other renewable energy applications. American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) state-by-state pages provide information specific to buying and installing a small wind turbine in each of several U.S. states, including the availability of net metering, local or state incentive programs, and utility incentives.

Source: http://www.awea.org/smallwind/states.html

The cost of a wind system has two components: initial installation costs and operating expenses. Installation costs include the purchase price of the complete system (including tower, wiring, utility interconnection or battery storage equipment, power conditioning unit, etc.) plus delivery and permitting costs, installation charges, professional fees and taxes.

Chakra Vision

We welcome an opportunity from small wind turbine manufacturers for a Joint Venture or distribution of their products nationally and internationally.

We aim to find the most efficient and economically viable technology for deployment in a various number of our projects, and also for village / rural communities electrification mainly in India.