Opinion Forum

Back to the Future: Wind Power

October 28th, 2009

Sometimes a good innovation comes from an old idea—such as windmills. Invented more than 1,000 years ago in Persia, their whirling sails and spinning blades harnessed wind power to draw water and grind grain from China to Holland to farms across America. Replaced by electric motors powered by high-voltage electric grids, the ancient windmill is making a comeback as a 21st century source of energy.

Enormous windmill farms generating megawatts of electricity have popped up in California, Texas, New York and several other states, as well as in Europe, China, India and many other countries. Innovative uses of small scale windmills have also grown.

My favorite is a farm-type windmill that spins atop a cell phone relay tower next to an interstate highway in New Jersey. Imagine if every cell phone tower sprouted a windmill to generate electricity to run its relay equipment. That could be the very model of modern energy self-sufficiency.

Another innovative use of wind power caught my eye on a trip this summer: At a newly renovated rest stop on an interstate highway in Missouri, the state highway agency is using a Windspire—a lattice-work cylinder that reminded me of the efficient tines of an electric eggbeater—to power the lights for the visitors center.

Quinnipiac University in Connecticut, some quick Internet research found, is installing 25 of these wind generators to power outdoor lights around the campus. “We have designed many state of the art initiatives on this new seminal ‘green’ campus for Quinnipiac University, but the wind turbine terrace will be the most prominent and exciting statement about the University’s commitment to sustainable practices,” said Jeff Riley of Centerbrook Architects, which is lining the main walkway with the spinning aluminum devices. “The technology and vertical axis design of the Windspire allowed us to place wind power right in the center of campus.”

The compact size of these wind-catchers, created by Mariah Power of Reno, Nevada, could make them an appealing alternative to lining every scenic ridge and ocean front with humongous arrays of giant windmill propellers.

“Some green energy advocates say the Windspire, a power turbine that spins in an upright position in a confined space, could represent a major breakthrough for wind energy. Instead of using towers 100 feet tall or higher for conventional windmills, the Windspire is just 30 feet tall,” Raleigh, North Carolina News and Observer reporter John Murawski noted in a recent feature story. “The Windspire—with its comparatively low price tag and a design that works on office rooftops and in suburban open spaces—also offers a potential solution for those who just want to supplement their power supply.”

Besides contributing to the replacement of more expensive, environmentally hazardous sources of electric power such as burning coal and oil, coming up with new windmill designs must be fun.

For more information:

Windspire, Mariah Power, Inc.
‘Windspire’ turbine could be breakthrough in wind power, HeraldTimesOnline

(This article was also posted at Earth Legacy.)

Articles written by Jan Barry
Tags: environment, green energy, windmill, windspire
Categories: Life, News | Comments (4) | Home

4 Responses to “Back to the Future: Wind Power”

Brian | October 28th, 2009 at 10:19 am

I’m all for solar and wind power, but presently, it costs more to generate commercial quantities (measured in megaWatts) of electricity using those forms than it does to burn natural gas or oil.

On the individual, residential level, these things can make a lot of sense. An investment of about $6000 in the supplies to make solar panels (it isn’t difficult, only time-consuming) will pay for itself within about 2 or 3 years. After that, any electricity you generate in excess of what you use (your meter will literally spin backwards), the power company will pay you.

Tom | October 28th, 2009 at 10:51 am

This windspire thing looks interesting. I don’t know if it could ever be put to large-scale use, but anything would be better than those giant wind farms with huge propellers whopping around, generating not much electricity, killing birds, and looking quite ugly.

Kevin | October 28th, 2009 at 11:10 am

One potential problem with wind power is the concern that Climate Change May Mean Slower Winds.

Brian | October 28th, 2009 at 11:29 am

I thought global warming was going to generate more storms and more intense storms. More tropical cyclones. More tornadoes. More storms means more wind. It takes moving air currents to have storms – both vertical as well as horizontal movement. Weather systems move along pressure gradients that span hundreds, sometimes thousands of miles. Pressure differentials generate wind all along the gradient boundaries.

If there is to be an increase in the number and intensity of severe storms, it follows with as much certainty as gravity that the number of moderate and mild weather systems are likely to increase as well, all of which generate wind.

Over time, the number and intensity of “storms” follows a pretty clear Gaussian distribution. The last 30 years have consistently followed that distribution as well.