Energy carrier wind
Wind power is a sustainable and renewable Energy, and has a much smaller Impact on the Environment compared to Burning fossil
Disadvantage of using wind
A first disadvantage is the unreliability of energy production by wind. A wind turbine can only produce electricity if it is moved by the wind. The production of wind energy is therefore dependent on the presence of wind. This means that no reliably constant amount of energy can be produced. Another negative aspect in the production of wind Energy is the fact that wind as an Energy source cannot be stored, but must be converted directly into electricity. In Addition, a large number of wind power plants are necessary to ensure the supply of an area.
Advantage of using wind
The first major advantage is the sustainability of wind energy. In contrast to fossil resources, no limited resources are consumed in the production of energy by wind. As the most important form of power generation with renewable energy, wind energy has the advantage over other forms of renewable energy production that wind is almost always available at the right locations and is available free of charge.
2 Examples where wind is used as an Energy carrier:
- Power generation from wind energy on land (Onshore wind energy)
- Power generation from wind energy at sea (Offshore wind Energy)
Development of wind energy
Of all the energies used to generate electricity in Europe, wind energy has grown the fastest in the last decade. During this period, it has brought the largest power plant capacity to the grid, overtaking even nuclear and coal-fired power. As a result of this development, wind energy has now grown to become the largest power plant capacity in Europe.
In Switzerland, wind energy can still develop strongly: by 2020, wind turbines should produce around 600 GWh of electricity per year. By 2050 it should be 4'000 GWh. Suitable sites are located on the Jura heights, but also in the Alps and foothills of the Alps and in the western Central Plateau.
for your understanding: 1 GWh = 1 Mio. kWh
Quiz Question:
How many rotor blades are attached to a wind turbine?
possible answers:
a) 3
b) 4
c) 5
Sources
Types of use of the wind, 2020 (www.energieatlas.bayern.de)
The advantages and disadvantages of wind energy, 1996-2020 (praxistipps.focus.de)
Development of wind energy in Switzerland, 2019 (www.suisse-eole.ch)
Vocab
rotor blades = Rotorblätter
sustainability = Nachhaltigkeit
unreliability = Unzuverlässlichkeit
foothills = Vorgebirge
Team
Sangeetha & Yllza