The Future of Wind Turbines

Floating Wind Turbines

The future of wind turbines as a realistic power supply in the UK is in the spotlight at the moment as an enormous wind turbine is being built in the North Sea. The very first one of many planned is called Britannia and will be more than 175 metres tall, the diameter of it’s blades is to be over 30 metres which is in fact larger than that of the London Eye. The massive offshore turbine will generate an enormous 10kw of power but there is every reason to think that in the future, offshore wind turbines will be even larger and will generate even more power. The Britannia is due to be completed in 2012 and will produce enough power to supply 10,000 households with electricity. The future of wind power is growing brighter daily as research goes on to uncover better solutions to the power crisis.

Wind Turbines Invigorate Job Market

As the future of wind power grows, so does investment and with investment comes employment opportunities. Offshore turbines need building and it is very likely that the UK will soon see the opening of production plants for the massive structures needed to populate the planned marine wind farms. As the need for the UK to source more environmentally friendly power, so it becomes clear that the country will soon be a world leader in the field. Working closely with German companies, it is predicted that within a very few years many jobs will be created in the UK within wind turbine factories and related fields.

Wind Turbines without Gears: Are Direct Drive Turbines the Future?

One of the most unwieldy parts of traditional wind turbines are the gearboxes but new technology is changing this and the latest wind turbines are not reliant on gearboxes. Larger low speed generators are replacing gearboxes and smaller high speed generators; low speed generators do not need geared transmissions and so this is the reason for the “direct drive” moniker. Direct drive mechanisms do not need nearly as many parts as traditional mechanisms used for wind turbines and so can be produced at a far lower cost. Less parts also makes for a more reliable system...with less in the structure to go wrong there is less need for repairs and in the world of energy supply, reliability is paramount.

Eco Homes and Wind Turbines

More and more UK residents are building eco homes and small, domestic wind turbines are a part of the related growth. Just as the growth within massive wind farms is gathering momentum, so the growth for the housing industry follows. For those people who are building in rural areas, wind turbines are a particularly attractive option. Quieter models situated in unobtrusive spots are becoming a more and more common sight in the UK as people realise the potential saving which come hand in hand with wind turbines. Government incentives to encourage and promote the utilisation of renewable energy sources are also paving the way for the future of wind power.