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"Wind Yield" -- The Discovery Files

The Discovery Files
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The power output of wind farms can be increased by an order of magnitude--at least tenfold--simply by optimizing the placement of turbines on a given plot of land, say researchers at the California Institute of Technology.

Credit: NSF/Karson Productions

Audio Transcript:

(Sound effect: wind sound) Inherit the Wind.


(Sound effect: wind farm sound) Welcome to the farm, a wind farm, where giant turbines make capturing energy a breeze. Well, sort of. Though harnessing wind power has improved since the early days the farms are not really that efficient. But new research out of Caltech just may blow all that away.

It could increase energy yield tenfold. Recent conventional improvements have dealt with bigger blades placed higher up. The Caltech group is focusing instead on the design and layout of the wind farm itself.

The team contends there's enough wind power at lower heights, say around 30 feet if you place the turbines in a proper array and use the right design. They favor "vertical axis wind turbines" or "VAWTS" that look more like egg beaters sticking out of the ground than propellers.

You can place the VAWTS closer together--tests showed just 16 feet apart. They don't have as big a 'wake.' By having each VAWT turn in the opposite direction from its neighbors, the researchers reduced the drag on each turbine, so they spin faster. In field tests the VAWTS produced up to 47 watts of power per square meter (PSM). A comparably-sized propeller-style wind farm generates just 2 to 3 watts PSM.

(Sound effect: wind sound) While there's still more to learn about turbine placement and design, this new research could signal a shift in the wind.


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