Wind Power News from Around the World.
Wind Power:
Phantom Loads
While working to improve the
energy efficiency of our homes
we came upon a little known
but very common problem, the
“phantom load.” A phantom
load is, simply put, the amount
of electricity an appliance uses
when turned OFF. Many of
today’s appliances feature
remote control operation,
clocks, timers or some other
convenience we tend to
overlook. For instance, your
television is ready for you to
push the remote control ‘ON’
button and instantly you have
a picture. Well that feature
uses energy to be ready for
that moment.
A 27” remote controlled
standard television uses about
28 watts of electricity waiting
for you to turn it on. That 28
watts is 24 hours a day, 365
days a year, equaling 245,280
watts a year or 245 kilowatts of
power wasted a year. That is
one television in a country
where many households have
two or more, usually much
larger televisions. Our nation
wastes about 43 billion kilowatt
hours a year on phantom
loads, enough power to supply
electricity to over 2,300,000
average homes a year.
A decrease in the phantom
load of only 1% could save the
equivalent of about 55 million
barrels of oil per year, worth
around $1 billion dollars and
help reduce green house gas
emissions from the coal
burning energy facilities. To
help reduce your phantom load
we suggest unplugging any
unused appliances and using
switched power strips to turn
off electrical equipment not in
use, such as televisions, cable
boxes, DVD players,
computers, game consoles and
cell phone chargers. We also
suggest using Energy Star
appliances whenever and
wherever possible. Energy Star
appliances have been
designed to be energy efficient
and minimize the phantom load.
energy efficiency of our homes
we came upon a little known
but very common problem, the
“phantom load.” A phantom
load is, simply put, the amount
of electricity an appliance uses
when turned OFF. Many of
today’s appliances feature
remote control operation,
clocks, timers or some other
convenience we tend to
overlook. For instance, your
television is ready for you to
push the remote control ‘ON’
button and instantly you have
a picture. Well that feature
uses energy to be ready for
that moment.
A 27” remote controlled
standard television uses about
28 watts of electricity waiting
for you to turn it on. That 28
watts is 24 hours a day, 365
days a year, equaling 245,280
watts a year or 245 kilowatts of
power wasted a year. That is
one television in a country
where many households have
two or more, usually much
larger televisions. Our nation
wastes about 43 billion kilowatt
hours a year on phantom
loads, enough power to supply
electricity to over 2,300,000
average homes a year.
A decrease in the phantom
load of only 1% could save the
equivalent of about 55 million
barrels of oil per year, worth
around $1 billion dollars and
help reduce green house gas
emissions from the coal
burning energy facilities. To
help reduce your phantom load
we suggest unplugging any
unused appliances and using
switched power strips to turn
off electrical equipment not in
use, such as televisions, cable
boxes, DVD players,
computers, game consoles and
cell phone chargers. We also
suggest using Energy Star
appliances whenever and
wherever possible. Energy Star
appliances have been
designed to be energy efficient
and minimize the phantom load.
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Alternative Energy
Energy that Renews Itself Everyday
Wind power is the conversion of wind energy into useful form, such as electricity, using wind
turbines. In windmills, wind energy is directly used to crush grain or to pump water. At the
end of 2007, worldwide capacity of wind-powered generators was 94.1 gigawatts.[1] Although
wind currently produces just over 1% of world-wide electricity use,[2] it accounts for
approximately 19% of electricity production in Denmark, 9% in Spain and Portugal, and 6% in
Germany and the Republic of Ireland (2007 data). Globally, wind power generation
increased more than fivefold between 2000 and 2007.[1]
Wind power is produced in large scale wind farms connected to electrical grids, as well as in
individual turbines for providing electricity to isolated locations.
Wind energy is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, and reduces greenhouse gas
emissions when it displaces fossil-fuel-derived electricity. The intermittency of wind seldom
creates insurmountable problems when using wind power to supply a low proportion of total
demand, but it presents extra costs when wind is to be used for a large fraction of demand.
History of wind power:
The earliest historical reference describes a windmill used to power an organ in the 1st
century AD.[4] Windmills were used extensively in Northwestern Europe to grind flour
beginning in the 1180s, and many Dutch windmills still exist.[5]
In the United States, the development of the "water-pumping windmill" was the major factor in
allowing the farming and ranching of vast areas of North America, which were otherwise
devoid of readily accessible water. They contributed to the expansion of rail transport
systems throughout the world, by pumping water from wells to supply the needs of the steam
locomotives of those early times.[6]
The multi-bladed wind turbine atop a lattice tower made of wood or steel was, for many
years, a fixture of the landscape throughout rural America.
The modern wind turbine was developed beginning in the 1980s, although designs are still
under development.
turbines. In windmills, wind energy is directly used to crush grain or to pump water. At the
end of 2007, worldwide capacity of wind-powered generators was 94.1 gigawatts.[1] Although
wind currently produces just over 1% of world-wide electricity use,[2] it accounts for
approximately 19% of electricity production in Denmark, 9% in Spain and Portugal, and 6% in
Germany and the Republic of Ireland (2007 data). Globally, wind power generation
increased more than fivefold between 2000 and 2007.[1]
Wind power is produced in large scale wind farms connected to electrical grids, as well as in
individual turbines for providing electricity to isolated locations.
Wind energy is plentiful, renewable, widely distributed, clean, and reduces greenhouse gas
emissions when it displaces fossil-fuel-derived electricity. The intermittency of wind seldom
creates insurmountable problems when using wind power to supply a low proportion of total
demand, but it presents extra costs when wind is to be used for a large fraction of demand.
History of wind power:
The earliest historical reference describes a windmill used to power an organ in the 1st
century AD.[4] Windmills were used extensively in Northwestern Europe to grind flour
beginning in the 1180s, and many Dutch windmills still exist.[5]
In the United States, the development of the "water-pumping windmill" was the major factor in
allowing the farming and ranching of vast areas of North America, which were otherwise
devoid of readily accessible water. They contributed to the expansion of rail transport
systems throughout the world, by pumping water from wells to supply the needs of the steam
locomotives of those early times.[6]
The multi-bladed wind turbine atop a lattice tower made of wood or steel was, for many
years, a fixture of the landscape throughout rural America.
The modern wind turbine was developed beginning in the 1980s, although designs are still
under development.
Wind Power:
Facts and Myths about Wind Power
Myth: Wind turbines are loud and create noise pollution.
Fact: An operating modern wind farm at a distance of 750 to 1,000 feet is no noisier than a
kitchen refrigerator.
Myth: Wind turbines harm property values.
Fact: There is no evidence that the presence of a commercial wind farm within sight of a
property decreases that property’s value. Better yet, a nationwide study conducted in 2003
surveyed property near multiple wind farms and found that not only do wind farms not harm
property values, but in some cases they actually increase them.
Myth: Wind turbines kill birds and bats.
Fact: Regardless of how extensively wind is developed in the future, bird deaths from wind
energy are unlikely ever to be more than a small fraction of bird deaths caused by other
sources, such as cats and buildings.
Myth: Wind farms fragment wildlife habitats.
Fact: Wind farms are typically built in areas close to transmission lines, where habitat has
already been modified and fragmented.
Myth: Wind turbines operate only a small fraction of the time.
Fact: Wind turbines generate electricity between 65% and 80% of the time, though the
amount of output is variable. The fact is, no power plant generates at 100% nameplate
capacity 100% of the time. The only thing that comes close is geothermal, which is about
98%.
Myth: Wind energy only provides a small amount of electricity.
Fact: The US Department of Energy estimates America’s wind energy potential to be larger
than the total US electricity consumption today.
Myth: Wind turbines are loud and create noise pollution.
Fact: An operating modern wind farm at a distance of 750 to 1,000 feet is no noisier than a
kitchen refrigerator.
Myth: Wind turbines harm property values.
Fact: There is no evidence that the presence of a commercial wind farm within sight of a
property decreases that property’s value. Better yet, a nationwide study conducted in 2003
surveyed property near multiple wind farms and found that not only do wind farms not harm
property values, but in some cases they actually increase them.
Myth: Wind turbines kill birds and bats.
Fact: Regardless of how extensively wind is developed in the future, bird deaths from wind
energy are unlikely ever to be more than a small fraction of bird deaths caused by other
sources, such as cats and buildings.
Myth: Wind farms fragment wildlife habitats.
Fact: Wind farms are typically built in areas close to transmission lines, where habitat has
already been modified and fragmented.
Myth: Wind turbines operate only a small fraction of the time.
Fact: Wind turbines generate electricity between 65% and 80% of the time, though the
amount of output is variable. The fact is, no power plant generates at 100% nameplate
capacity 100% of the time. The only thing that comes close is geothermal, which is about
98%.
Myth: Wind energy only provides a small amount of electricity.
Fact: The US Department of Energy estimates America’s wind energy potential to be larger
than the total US electricity consumption today.
Copyright 2008 Harold R Muxlow