The advantages and disadvantages Of wind energy are, today, a topic of debate when applying it as an energy producer for society.
To provide some data about its expansion, note that the global average of wind energy growth has been 34% per year between 2000 and 2005 (Archer & Jacobson, 2005).
The total installed capacity at the end of 2003 was 39,000 MW, with 14,609 MW in Germany (37%), 6,374 MW in the United States (16%), 6,202 MW in Spain (16%) and 3,110 MW In Denmark (8%). It currently provides 20% of electricity in Denmark and 6% in Germany respectively (AWEA, 2004; (Archer & Jacobson, 2005).
Advantage
1- Environmental advantages
It is a source of clean energy that has no impact on the environment because its use is by the wind and without the use of energy sources based on fossil fuels.
The generation of this type of energy does not imply imminent dangers to either health or the environment as in other cases of energy generation.
It reduces greenhouse gas effects by being a clean energy source in which the material for its subsoil generation is not extracted (Monteiro et al., 2009).
The land on which the wind farms are established is not greatly disturbed, since only small spaces are needed for the establishment of wind turbines.
Minimal impact on global warming or CO2 emissions as a source of clean energy, unlike the use of hydrocarbons, which is the method most commonly used to obtain electricity.
It may be a viable option to curb the extraction of fossil components that deteriorate the environment and become increasingly scarce.
There is no accumulation of radioactive waste, being a clean energy does not run the risk of generating some of these pollutants.
There is no need to remove the land surface, this way it does not affect the biodiversity of the places where this energy is extracted.
There is no alteration of water channels, which can subsequently result in natural catastrophes or human injustices by depriving communities of a vital element to benefit a few.
Wind farm facilities are easily reversible; Unlike other methods of extracting resources for the generation of electrical energy, this method would only require to remove its infrastructure avoiding to cause environmental damages that could recover after millions of years in the best of cases in which those resources could recover.
Finally, note that:
- Its generation does not produce toxic gases.
- It does not contribute to the greenhouse effect; Because it does not generate CO2.
- It does not destroy the ozone layer.
- It does not create acid rain.
- Does not give rise to dangerous by-products.
- It does not originate polluting residues.
2- Economic advantages
The forecasts of costs and quantity of energy generation are easy to quantify, which benefits farmers who produce it as it has a competitive participation in the electricity market (Monteiro, et al., 2009).
Costs for infrastructure and power generation have been declining over time (Archer & Jacobson, 2005) so that today producing this type of energy becomes feasible for nations.
Because wind power generation is through parks, the number of jobs generated by this industry is very significant for the locations where these are established.
Generation of wind energy is usually done away from urban cities where the countryside predominates. This can be a benefit for the peasants living in these communities by becoming a stable source of employment in places where these opportunities Are very scarce.
In producing this type of energy, it is not necessary to pay governments common greenhouse gas emission rights in this area.
3- Advantages of your consumption
It may be a viable option for those remote communities in which there is no infrastructure for the provision of some other type of energy, because for the generation of this energy there is no need for wiring or transportation, just a wind turbine that in many communities is handmade, A battery and a converter.
The amount of wind energy storage is quite predictable through climate and wind forecasting mechanisms, taking into account variables such as height, position, time, among others.
Wind power is widely accepted by people who know its mechanism compared to other kinds of energy (Wolsink, 2000)
It is the energy source whose technology has grown the fastest in the world, since several studies have been developed to test its technique, reliability, low cost, economic scale and without environmental repercussions (Yazhou, 2003). Further, Is the fastest growing renewable energy source in the world (Archer & Jacobson, 2005).
Wind energy is a feasible method for obtaining electric energy because the raw material to obtain electrical energy is wind, a source of inexhaustible energy and abundant in the environment.
Its technology allows other activities to be carried out, whether they be grazing or livestock, which are to be practiced in the field where the wind turbines are established.
Wind turbines only need water to clean the blades in dry areas when the rain does not.
The wind turbines are easy to maintain, because their mechanism is simple, they use simple maintenance programs, which make their execution inexpensive and simple.
Wind energy also contributes to strengthening energy self-sufficiency through indigenous resources.
Disadvantages
1- Disadvantages of your consumption
Cities often grow faster than the development of infrastructure for wind power generation and consequently their supply becomes insufficient (Wolsink, 2000)
Wind is the main element necessary for the generation of energy and it is known that there are certain times of the year in which this factor decreases so that the energy generation also decreases (Wolsink, 2000).
Although wind is available everywhere, it is believed that it is not enough to generate enough energy to supply the demands of any city (Wolsink, 2000).
The greater the windmill turbines, the more likely it is that the system will fail, ie the more energy the windmill wants to use, the higher the maintenance costs (Ribrant & Bertling, 2007).
Power generation is not constant, it depends on the time of day and the season of the year. (Weisser & Foxon, 2003)
Their power generation and voltage variability depend on natural conditions (Chen & Spooner, 2001)
Because each wind turbine generates a very small amount of electrical energy and that to be profitable it is necessary to incorporate several wind turbines, the lands destined for this work must be very wide.
2- Environmental disadvantages
This type of energy generates a high degree of noise pollution due to the constant movement of its blades causing discomfort to the environment close to such infrastructures (Wolsink, 2000).
The establishment of the infrastructure where energy is generated is in green areas, away from the city that have to be modified and generate a modified landscape in which the beauty of nature is impacted (Wolsink, 2000).
Because wind turbine structures have to be very high to capture the strength of the wind generated, this makes it a threat to migratory birds that are unfamiliar with these structures (Wolsink, 2000). ).
The factories for the development of wind turbines are not as sustainable as wind farms; Because in their processes they use a few sustainable methods and resources, this in the long run and translated into industry can become a serious environmental problem.
3 - Economic disadvantages
Installation costs are very high, unattainable for most of the world's citizens; Making the wind energy business viable only for the industry or large entrepreneurs.
In order to be a cost-effective energy generation method, industrial wind farms have to be created which lead to all the disadvantages generated by the industry (pollution, inhumane treatment in most cases, etc.).
The wind can not be transported to places where there is more energy consumption, so it is necessary to invest a considerable sum of money to transport the electricity generated to urban places where there is greater demand.
How does wind power work?
The wind originates from the energy of the sun as a source of heat. The cold air coming from the atmosphere is drawn by the gravitational forces to the surface and collides with the hot air rising from the earth's surface when the sun's rays strike the earth and by the effect of radiation the hot air expands; Creating zones of high and low pressures due to the difference of the atmospheric pressure.
In areas of low pressures accumulate hot air masses that rise, while the masses of cold air that descend are contemplated in the areas of high pressure.
Subsequently, the masses of air are transported from the areas of high pressures to those of low pressures and it is this movement that is known as wind.
By day, air masses over the oceans, seas and lakes remain cool relative to neighboring areas on the continental masses.
The continents absorb a smaller amount of sunlight, therefore the air that is on the earth expands and becomes lighter and rises.
In order to take advantage of wind energy, it is important to know the diurnal and nocturnal and seasonal variations of the winds.
There are three components to consider to determine the available power of a conversion system in electrical energy:
- Wind speed: wind turbines require a minimum wind speed of 3 m / s or its equivalent of 3 km / h and a maximum of 25 m / s or 90 km / h to operate without risk of damaging the system; If the wind speed exceeds this, the wind turbine automatically shuts off.
- Wind turbulence: is a product of eddies or fluctuations in wind speed or direction
- Air density: expressed as air mass / volume unit: the heavier the air the more energy the turbine will receive from the wind turbine.
Currently wind turbines are used to extract wind energy, which consists of a machine that transforms wind into usable energy that comes from the action of wind force on oblique blades attached to an axis.
The wind turbines consist of the following parts:
- Rotor blades: where the rotary movement occurs due to the wind.
- Shaft: acts as a adjustment mechanism of the blades.
- Multiplier: increases the rotation speed of the shaft.
- Drive shaft: rotate the generator rotor.
- Generator: converts the mechanical movement of the rotor into electrical energy.
- Drivers: carry the electricity produced to the station.
- Post: is the support of the wind turbine.
The generation of wind energy is a method of obtaining renewable energy that consists of an energy system that transforms kinetic energy from the wind into electrical energy.
This forces an aerodynamic rotor to rotate, thus transforming wind energy into mechanical energy.
Subsequently, the mechanical energy in the slow rotating rotor axis of the wind blades slowly rotate the rotor shaft adapted to a high speed shaft which is connected to a generator.
This rotational mechanical energy is transformed into electrical energy and it is then that the electric energy is transported to the connected network (Ribrant & Bertling, 2007).
References
- Archer, C., & Jacobson, M. (2005). Evaluation of global wind power. Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres, 110 (D12).
- Chen, Z., & Spooner, E. (2001). Grid power quality with variable speed wind turbines. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ENERGY CONVERSION, 16 (2), 148-154.
- Monteiro, C., Bessa, R., Miranda, V., Botterud, A., Wang, J., & Conzelmann, G. (2009). Wind power forecasting: state-of-the-art 2009. Chicago: Argonne National Laboratory.
- Ribrant, J., & Bertling, L. (2007). Survey of failures in wind power systems with focus on Swedish wind power plants during 1997-2005. Power Engineering Society General Meeting, 1-8.
- Weisser, D., & Foxon, T. (2003). Implications of seasonal and diurnal variations of wind velocity for power output estimation of a turbine: a case study of Grenada. International Journal of Energy Research, 27 (13), 1165-1179.
- Wolsink, M. (2000). Wind power and the NIMBY-myth: institutional capacity and the limited significance of public support. Renewable energy, 21, 49-64.
- Yazhou, L. (2003). Studies on wind farm integration into power system. Automation of Electric Power Systems, 8 (17), 17.