Student 1
A Student
A Professor
INFO 1001
22 June 2011
Wind Power
Alternative energy sources have been an issue for many years. With the rising costs of
gasoline, new sources for energy production are being investigated. According to statistics from
the website, Energy Information Administration: Official Energy Statistics from the U.S.
Government, gas prices have continued to rise over the past five years. Figure 1 is a graphical
representation in cents per gallon of the rising gas prices over the past ten years (Dept of
Energy). To help alleviate
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these hefty prices, officials
are turning to alternate
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energy power. One such
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energy source is wind
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power. For many years this
U.S. Regular
Conventional Retail
Gasoline Prices
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U.S. Midgrade
Conventional Retail
Gasoline Prices
U.S. Premium
Conventional Retail
Gasoline Prices
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U.S. No 2 Diesel
Retail Sales by All
Sellers
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become more popular. In order
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05
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03
20
01
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more recently it has
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has been looked at, but
Figure 1: Rising gas prices over the past ten years
to become more informed
about wind energy, how it works will be investigated, the technological advances will be
explored, and the pros and cons of wind energy will be revealed.
Student 2
To help better understand wind power, the way it works needs to be described. The
article “Alternative Energy Sources,” in the Congressional Digest, calls wind energy a clean
source of fuel that uses wind turbines to convert wind into electricity. The blowing wind causes
the blades to turn, which makes a shaft spin, states the article, and this connects to a generator
that makes the electricity. This particular resource cannot be used up and thus the nation’s wind
supply is plentiful, concludes the article (Dept of Energy). According to the article “Catching
the Wind,” many wind turbines (see fig. 2)
have three-bladed rotors which stretch to
eighty-seven yards. As the blades increase in
length, the production of the wind power also
increases, states the article. With this increase
in blade length, the turbines must also endure
the stress of the winds, closes the article
(Wilson Quarterly). The author of the article
“Keeping Wind Turbines Spinning,” Steve
Blankinship, writes the average wind farm has
hundreds of towers or turbines that hold more
Figure 2: wind turbines
than
sixty-five tons of equipment. The blade tips spin
at speeds of approximately two hundred miles per hour, Blankinship continues, for typical wind
conditions. A typical turbine contains a lubrication system with filters for the oil and the
lubricant is either pumped through or gravity is used to move it through the system, finishes
Blankinship (p 50-4). Now that the way this technology works has been examined, the
technological advances can be delved into.
Student 3
As with all technology, new discoveries are constantly being made to help improve the
product’s overall performance. The author of “The Element That Could Save the World,” Robert
Johnstone, comments that one invaluable advance for wind energy is the invention of a storage
device. This device is called the vanadium battery (see fig. 3), indicates Johnstone, which is able
to absorb and release large amounts of electricity over and over. The vanadium battery uses
electrolytes to store the energy collected by
wind turbines; then when two electrolytes
exchange charges, an electric current is
produced, finishes Johnstone (24-30).
According to Fred Hapgood author of the
article “Windmills in the Sky,” new
Figure 3: Vanadium battery
technological advances are being made in the form
of wind-power kites. These kites, Hapgood states, are designed with rotors and fly like
helicopters a mile or more into the air. At such altitudes, continues Hapgood, the winds are the
strongest, so the rotors switch on and send the currents down their many mile worth of cord.
Then as the winds change, the kites just move to pursue them, concludes Hapgood (21). Even
new turbine prototypes are being created, exclaims the article “Catching the Wind.” One such
prototype has two blades instead of the traditional three, continues the article, and spans around
forty-four yards to help make the turbine a lighter weight. These blades are flexible and hinged
with downward positioned rotors to avoid blades slamming into the tower, completes the article
(Hapgood 21). Technological advances are very helpful with making a product more effective
and solving problems, but as with all innovations there are pros and cons.
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All progress must have the pros and cons weighed to see how valuable it will be.
Johnstone claims an unfortunate disadvantage of wind power is wind turbines cannot be turned
on and off whenever needed. The wind blows when it will, states Johnstone, no matter how
much is needed. This can lead to instability with a state’s power even if only a little wind energy
is being used, finishes Johnstone. Weather conditions can cause problems, which makes
maintenance an important aspect in operating wind turbines, declares Blankinship.
Unfortunately, writes Blankinship, there are not enough trained professionals to maintain the
number of wind turbines needed for massive energy production. Thus technical training
programs are being established in areas with large operating wind farms, reports Blankinship. In
addition, some parts required for working turbines are unique and thus very costly, but overall
maintenance costs are lower than those of many other forms of power generation, closes
Blankinship (50-4). As with all technology, the vanadium battery has positive and negative
components, states Johnstone. It solves the problem of storing wind energy and the issue of not
being able to turn the wind on and off when needed, Johnstone exclaims, and thus it is more
reliable in avoiding power surges and shortages. However, the vanadium battery is very large,
Johnstone says, and a battery that is about the size of a refrigerator stores enough power to work
a high definition television for approximately three days. The battery costs about two and a half
billion dollars to run a city of 250,000 for twenty-four hours, concludes Johnstone (24-30).
Obviously the vanadium battery comes at a cost, but the question is if its advantages outweigh its
price tag. Porter Hoagland, author of “Which Way Will the Wind Blow? Marine Scientists Have
a Key Role to Play in the Debate Over Wind Farms in the Coastal Ocean,” writes wind energy is
advancing towards the ocean, since winds are usually more powerful and consistent in open
areas. Also, Hoagland states that it is cheaper to place turbines in the ocean since the area is not
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publicly owned. However, people are worried about ruining the seascapes, continues Hoagland,
as well as the environmental consequences this could have on the oceanic ecosystem. The
seascape issue could be solved by placing turbines in remote areas, but they need to be close to
existing transmission lines, thus there are still concerns that need to be worked through,
concludes Hoagland (56). According to William Tucker, author of the article “Tilting We Will
Go?” the building of windmills will require a new cross-country transmission system to be built.
Most demand for energy is on the coasts, however Tucker reports, most wind energy production
is in the Midwest. Since the regular transmission lines lose around ten to fifteen percent of the
wattage for every one thousand miles traveled, a new infrastructure of lines much be built to
transfer the power across the country, ends Tucker (35-8).
Obviously there is much more to wind energy than just what is presented on the surface.
Not only is the production of this energy type fairly complex, but new advances are constantly
being made in this area. New ways to collect this type of energy, and ways to make it more
efficient and cost effective are being investigated. Of course with every type of energy
production there are pros and cons that must be discussed and evaluated. There is usually not one
simple answer and it takes work to solve the present obstacles, but knowing the facts is a good
way to start. It may take more than one answer to make the cost of energy decrease. In fact,
maybe the only way to alleviate these high costs of energy is to implement more that one specific
type of energy production.
Student 6
Works Cited
“Alternative Energy Sources.” Congressional Digest. September 2008: 196-224. Academic
Search Elite. Metro Community College Lib., Omaha, NE. 28 Sept. 2008.
Blankinship, Steve. “Keeping Wind Turbines Spinning.” Power Engineering Aug. 2008: 50-4.
Academic Search Elite. EBSCO. Metropolitan Community College Lib., Omaha, NE.
28 Sept. 2008.
“Catching the Wind.” The Wilson Quarterly 26.4 (2002): 103- . Opposing Viewpoints Resource
Center. Gale. Metropolitan Community College Lib., Omaha, NE. 4 Oct. 2008.
Garber, Kent. “A Mighty Gust From Texas.” U.S. News & World Report 1 Sept. 2008: 24-5.
Academic Search Elite. EBSCO. Metropolitan Community College Lib., Omaha, NE.
28 Sept. 2008.
Hapgood, Fred. “Windmills in the Sky.” Discover Oct. 2008: 21-21. Academic Search Elite.
EBSCO. Metropolitan Community College Lib., Omaha, NE. 28 Sept. 2008.
Hoagland, Porter. “Which Way Will the Wind Blow? Marine Scientists Have a Key Role to
Play in the Debate Over Wind Farms in the Coastal Ocean.” Oceanus 43.1 (2005): 56 - .
Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale. Metropolitan Community College Lib.,
Omaha, NE. 4 Oct. 2008
Johnstone, Robert. “The Element That Could Save the World.” Discover Oct. 2008: 24-30.
Academic Search Elite. EBSCO. Metropolitan Community College Lib., Omaha, NE.
28 Sept. 2008.
Tucker, William. “Tilting We Will Go?” National Review Aug. 2008: 35-38. Academic Search
Elite. EBSCO. Metropolitan Community College Lib., Omaha, NE. 28 Sept. 2008.
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United States. Dept. of Energy. Energy Information Administration: Official Energy Statistics
from the U.S. Government. Weekly Retail Gasoline and Diesel Prices. Oct. 2008. Web.
20 Oct. 2008.