A wind power plant is a station where many still towers are placed to hang wind turbines or wind blades to catch air. Wind kinetic energy is converted into AC electrical energy with the help of a wind turbine and induction generator which is called a wind power plant. Wind is considered the best sustainable energy source and it may be the best source of energy for the future. However, the wind power plant working process is straightforward. All the turbine connections are made a parallel connection and transferred to the nearest electrical substation through underground cable and then send the power to the various distribution stations for the users.
What is a Wind Energy Power Plant?
Wind power is one of the primary energy source in the world. Wind energy power plants made of a group of wind turbines that are used to generate electricity. The wind turbine is a rotating device that converts the kinetic energy of the air into electrical energy. Basically, wind turbines are designed in the wide ranges of the blade with the vertical or horizontal axis, and wind energy power plants operation and working principle is not difficult.
Wind power plants are being used more due to a lot of advantages power plants. The world’s reserve energy sources (coal, oil, natural gas) are depleting day by day. For this reason, engineers and scientists are looking for renewable energy sources. In this case, wind energy power plants can be the biggest renewable energy source in the future.
Wind Power Plant Working Process
The wind power plant working process consists of several essential stages. In that case, fundamentals of building construction materials and methods are used to convert wind kinetic energy into alternating electrical energy. Let’s see the working principle of wind power plant with a wind energy conversion system diagram.
1. Wind Energy Capture
The wind energy hits the turbine blade and drives turbine blades and wind kinetic energy is converted into electricity. These blades are designed with an aerodynamic style. This aerodynamic style allows turbine blades to capture maximum wind force and spin efficiently. It is noted that each wind tower has 3 blade system for rotational balance and it also maintains 360 electrical degrees.
2. Rotor and Main Shaft Rotation
The rotating blades are connected to the main shaft of the generator. The main shaft transmits this mechanical energy through the nacelle (the housing on top of the turbine tower). Inside the nacelle, the main shaft is connected to a gearbox. This gearbox increases the rotational speed from about 30 rpm to 60 rpm. This speed range may increase with increasing the airflow or atmospheric pressure. The gearbox is connected to the rotational shaft. In that case, the gearbox may increase rotational speed from 200 to 1800 rpm.
3. Power Generation Process
The high-speed shaft connects to an electrical generator (synchronous or asynchronous). This induction generator converts the rotational mechanical energy into electrical energy and then generates alternating current (AC). It is noted that some turbines use permanent magnet generators as well.
4. Voltage Adjustment and Transmission System
The output electricity is sent to a transformer-based electrical substation to step up to a voltage level for transmission. The electricity is then transferred to the power grid and transmitted to the various stations to step down the voltage level. This process is done to send the power to the customer end.
What do You Mean by Wind Turbines?
The wind turbine is a rotating device that catches the wind with its propeller (blade wings) like an airplane wing. A wind turbine works based on the wind pressure whenever the wind blows, a pocket of low-pressure air forms on one side of the blade the low-pressure air pocket then pulls the turbine towards it. For this reason, the rotor starts rotating. It works by following simple principles.
The wind energy turns two or three propellers (like blades) around the rotor. The wind turbines are connected to the main shaft of the generator and the generator rotates with the turbine and generates electrical energy. Basically, a wind turbine consists of bolting aluminum sheets. It is noted that wind energy is converted into DC electrical energy and this DC energy is converted into AC energy by the inverter. It works like a solar panel.
How does a Wind Turbine Generate Electricity?
A wind turbine power plant is a natural energy source power plant. A wind turbine consists of some wind turbines. The wind turbine looks like a blade that is used to collect the kinetic energy of the wind. The wind flows over the blades and creates lift (it is performed like airplane wings), which causes the blade to turn. Turbines are connected to the shaft and drive the shaft of the generator at the same speed as the wind turbines.
The electric generator shaft rotates same speed as the turbine speeds and the generator converts turbine energy into electrical energy. An electrical generator produces Alternating Current (AC) power. This energy is transmitted to the high voltage by using a step-up power transformer at a reasonable stage if long-distance transmission is required.
If some user needs DC power they can convert it from AC to DC by using a rectifier. Wind energy is utilized in wind pumps, wind battery charges, wind electricity generators, and others.
How do Wind Turbines Work Step by Step?
Wind turbines operate on a general principle e.g., wind turbines use the wind to generate electricity instead of using electricity to generate wind like a fan. The wind rotates the propeller-like blades of a turbine around a rotor, which rotates a generator and generates electricity. The wind is a form of solar energy created by a combination of three simultaneous events, such as
- The sun unevenly heating the atmosphere
- Irregularities of the Earth’s surface
- The rotation of the earth.
The whole world varies greatly and is changed by differences in water and vegetation. People use this wind power or kinetic energy of the wind for different purposes, such as power generation, sailing, kite flying, and others. Both wind power and wind energy describe the process by which wind is used to generate mechanical energy and mechanical energy is converted into electricity.
Most of the wind turbines are mounted in a tower made of tubular steel and consist of three aluminum blades. At 100 feet or more above the ground, the tower is designed to allow turbines to take advantage of high wind speeds at higher altitudes. Turbines capture wind power with their propeller-like blades, which act much like aircraft wings.
When the wind blows, a pocket of depressed air is created on one side of the blade. The low-pressure air pocket then pulls the blade towards it, causing the rotor to rotate clockwise. This is called a lift. The lifted ball is much stronger than the wind force in front of the blade, which is mainly called drag. The combination of lift and drag rotates the rotor like a propeller.
A series of gears rotate the rotor from about 18 revolutions per minute to about 1,800 revolutions per minute which allows turbine generators to produce AC power. Another key element is the turbine controller, which keeps the rotor speed at more than 55 miles per hour to avoid high wind damage. An anemometer continuously measures the wind speed and transmits the information to the controller.
How do Wind Turbines Turn Wind Energy?
Using aerodynamic force from the rotor blade into electricity acts like an airplane wing or helicopter rotor blade. When air flows across the blade, the air pressure on one side of the blade decreases. The difference in air pressure across the two sides of the blade creates both lift and drag.
The lifting force is stronger than the drag and this causes the rotor to rotate. The rotor is connected directly to the generator (if it is a direct drive turbine) or to a shaft and a series of gears (a gearbox) that accelerates rotation and allows physically smaller generators. This translation of the aerodynamic ball generates electricity by rotating the generator.
Types of Wind Energy Power Plants
The turbine is an essential element of power plants because electrical energy is generated from mechanical energy into electrical energy. A wind turbine converts some other forms of energy (steam, wind, etc.) into mechanical energy. The turbine is one of the crucial components of wind energy power plants. There are two types of wind turbine
- Horizontal axis wind turbine.
- Vertical axis wind turbine.
Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine
Horizontal-axis wind turbines have pilot-like blades and they usually have three blades. The largest horizontal-axis turbines are as tall as a 20-story building and have blades over 100 feet long. Longer turbines with longer blades generate more electricity. Almost all wind turbines currently in use are horizontal-axis turbines.
Vertical Axis Wind Turbine
Vertical-axis turbines have blades attached to the top and bottom of a vertical rotor. The most common type of vertical-axis turbine is the Darius wind turbine, named after the French engineer Georges Darius who patented the design in 1931. It looks like a giant, two-bladed egg beater. Some versions of vertical-axis turbines are 100 feet long and 50 feet wide. Very few vertical-axis wind turbines are used today because they do not work like horizontal-axis turbines.
The Efficiency of Wind Power Plant
The efficiency of the electrical power plants is not very high. The thermal power plant efficiency is quite high usually 35 to 49% due to the heat losses or exhausted steam. The wind power plant’s efficiency is usually 30 to 35%, but it sometimes rises to 50% at the time of peak wind. The wind is a more efficient source of energy than solar energy.
Compared to solar panels, wind turbines release less CO2 into the atmosphere, consume less energy, and produce more energy overall. A wind turbine can generate the equivalent of about 48,704 solar panels per kilowatt-hour. China Gansu Wind Farm Power Plant is the largest wind power plant in the world, with a target of 20,000 MW by 2021. Shepherds Flat Wind Farm is an 845 MW wind farm in the US state of Oregon.
Is Wind Power Plant Generate DC Power?
No Dc power is not generated into wind station. AC power is generated in the wind power plant. All the wind power station synchronous or asynchronous (induction) generators are used. They generate AC power from the wind kinetic energy. Wind is one of the biggest clean energy solution but requires hilly area to get more air flow.
Final Thought
The wind power plant working process is simple. It is not like solar power plants. Because solar panels generate DC power and need to convert into AC to use. However, it is a most efficient green energy source in the world. Its future is prominent and it may be the best source of sustainable energy. So, use clean energy and minimize the use of commercial energy.