Topic 3
Which renewable is 'best'? 1
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Learning aims
Learning aims
To consider the advantages and disadvantages of wind by by direct experimentation.
To consider the factors which affect wind turbine efficiency.
(Why am I doing this?)
(Why am I doing this?)
So that I can gain an appreciation of the challenges facing scientists and engineers when designing wind turbines.
So that I can understand how energy efficiency determines how successful a wind turbine is.
Watch the inspirational William Kamkwamba, the boy who harnessed the wind' give his TED talk. where he tells about his amazing inventive journey.
Lesson vocabulary
Lesson vocabulary
Hypothesis
Hypothesis
noun: hypothesis; plural noun: hypotheses
a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation.
Turbine
Turbine
noun: turbine; plural noun: turbines
a machine for producing continuous power in which a wheel or rotor, typically fitted with vanes, is made to revolve by a fast-moving, linear, inward flow of water, steam, gas, air, or other fluid.
Voltage
Voltage
noun: voltage; plural noun: voltages
an electromotive force or potential difference expressed in volts.
Activities
Activities
How does a wind turbine work?
How does a wind turbine work?
Let's watch this video to learn more.
How-Does-a-Wind-Turbine-Work.mp4How does a wind turbine work?
Here is a 3d CAD model of the experiment you are going to carry out. It consists of a stand, a DC motor and a plastic turbine blade. You will measure the voltage produced by the turbine at a range of distances and angles away from a wind source.
What do a jet engine and a wind turbine have in common?
What do a jet engine and a wind turbine have in common?
The word used to name a single propeller blade is called an airfoil. Since the early days of aircraft Wind turbine propellers work on the same principle as aeroplane propellers.
Whereas the blades on a propeller aeroplane are driven (turned) by the petrol engine, in a jet engine they act as a turbine. This means they are driven by air which is forced over them. This only works if air is forced through the blade, producing a resultant turning force.
In a jet engine they compress the air so that it can be ignited and forced out the exhaust again at high speed but in a wind turbine the turning force is used to turn a 'rotor' which drives a gearbox. This gearbox is used to increase the output rotation speed. It is then connected to a 'generator'. The generator creates electricity through electromagnetism. Watch the DC motor video to see how this process works.
How does an Electric Motor work_ (DC Motor).mp4How does a DC motor work?
How much electricity does the UK generate from wind power?
How much electricity does the UK generate from wind power?
The United Kingdom consumed about 290 terawatts of power in 2020. That's 290,000,000,000,000 Watts, or to put it another way two hundred and ninety thousand, billion watts. An incredible number by any interpretation!
The UK currently has a wind generation capability of approximately 14,073MW from onshore wind farms and 10,463MW from offshore wind farms. That's a about 24,536MW, enough to power 18,145,037 homes for a whole year.
This statistic does not include any generators under 100kW.According to government statistics, wind power in the UK contributed 24% of total electricity generated in 2020.
Class task - Using the statistics above, together we will calculate:
The total electricity generated by the UK power network in 2020.
How many megawatts does a single, average home require in a year?
What is this measurement in kilowatt hours, kWh?
Click the link below to view up to the hour statistics for the UK and Europe
Developing wind farms in the UK.
Developing wind farms in the UK.
Wind farms being developed in the UK.
What does kilo, mega, giga, tera mean?
What does kilo, mega, giga, tera mean?
kilo = 1,000 = 1 thousand = (1 x 10^3)
mega = 1,000,000 = 1 million = (1 x 10^6)
giga = 1,000,000,000 =1 billion = (1 x 10^9)
tera = 1,000,000,000,000 = 1 thousand billion (1 x 10^12)
1 watt of electrical energy is equivalent to 1 volt-amp (1VA)
Task
Task
How much electricity does your house consume? How much of that is supplied by wind energy?
How much electricity does your house consume? How much of that is supplied by wind energy?
It might seem like magic but by using readily available tools on the internet, it is possible to accurately measure how much energy is being produced by the UK national grid on a real-time basis. This is measured against the demand - how much people and businesses need. We can extract reliable information about how much of this is produced by wind energy.
By making some relatively simple conversions we can compare our own individual needs against national levels.
Being better informed about our own lives helps us to make better choices.
What is a kWh.mp4
The spreadsheet tool below will estimate electrical energy supply and demand for you, showing you the process along the way.
Note - If the calculator is not displaying correctly, try opening it in Google Sheets, full screen (click the link).
If you get frustrated because other people are using the same tool at the same time and it is constantly changing, click here to make your own copy in your Google Drive which no-one else can edit.
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