We review wind power from its beginning – then evaluate its future – once again, we use the Levelized Cost Of Energy to get past all the emotional fan-hype. We talk briefly about the analysis a small farm might use to decide whether a personal-scale wind turbine would be worth it.
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References:
- From Persia to the present – how have we harnessed the wind?
http://www.thirdplanetwind.com/energy/history.aspx - Base load and peaking power – always a concern for renewables
Base Load and Peaking Power
https://www.kcet.org/redefine/explainer-base-load-and-peaking-power - Wind turbine payback: Environmental lifecycle assessment of 2-megawatt wind turbines
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/06/140616093317.htm - Small Wind Economics
For a small wind system determining the payback of a project plays a large factor in determining if owning your own system makes sense for you. In order to do this you will need several pieces of information:- a reasonable estimate of the wind resource at your site
- the height of the tower
- the turbine model’s power curve (can be obtained from the manufacturer)
- the installed cost of the system
- annual costs that include maintenance, added insurance, fees paid to the utility, etc.
- the cost of energy at your site as well as historical electricity consumption on a monthly basis, if available.
- information from your utility about system size limits, net metering structure and rate for compensation for energy sold back to the utility
- interest rate on loan for equipment purchased
- information about grants and incentives available to you
http://www.windustry.org/small_wind_economics
- Or, Small Wind Financial Calculator for Minnesota Net Metering Situations
Spreadsheet allowing a user to input values and estimate project costs. The tool provides estimates using a Bergey, Jacobs, or Endurance model of turbine.
http://windlibrary.org/items/show/1021
