World's First Floating Wind Turbine

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World's First Floating Wind Turbine
by Asmita Pramanik \| 29-11-2017 22:27 1
I've been reading about a lot of innovations and inventions lately, and would like to address one of the innovations that I found extremely fascinating which could be an innovation greatly beneficial to our environment. *FLOATING WIND TURBINES* Scotland is a country which just isn't wonderful in its natural scenic beauty but also in its scientific developments. Scotland has been making major developments for the conservation of energy within the past few months. I came across this unique idea of floating wind farms as I was surfing through the net and I've provided the link below.The country recently announced a goal to become zero-carbon by 2020 and they are using the full gamut of clean energy generating sources to help meet that lofty goal. One of the recent adaptions for the sustainability of energy sources adapted by Scotland on 18th October 2017, are floating wind turbines. It is a fine example of how simple but creative ideas can be implemented in such an amazing way in order to conserve the usual energy sources that have been resulting in the emission of carbon-dioxide. Wind turbines are impressive structures, towering higher than some of the world's tallest buildings. When installed offshore, the extent of the construction beneath the surface is just as impressive (and costly). The enormous turbines were assembled in Norway by Norwegian oil company Statoil and ferried about a thousand miles south to Scotland. Statoil partnered with my country, U.A.E.'s company Masdar to create the massive structures. Three huge suction anchors, which stand 52 feet tall and 16 feet in diameter, secure the turbine to the seabed. Some 111 tons of weight in each anchor ensure that the turbines stand upright. Wind turbines have been constructed in water since the 1990s, but they can only be fastened to the ground in water depths of about 200 feet. The floating turbines in Scotland, however, are anchored at 255 feet, and they can be rigged at depths of over 2,600 feet. Once upright and operating, cables then connect the turbines to the town's energy grid. According to Statoil, the turbines are capable of powering 20,000 homes. Each turbine is capable of pumping 6 megawatts of energy into the grid, meaning the project can contribute 30 megawatts in total. When not used, all this power is stored in lithium batteries, which have a capacity of more than two million iPhones. These emerging technologies could have an enormous impact on the availability of clean energy for many parts of the world. Innovators are continuously discovering new ways to tap into the raw potential of some of the most promising avenues of energy generation. For example, a new study from researchers at *KING ABDULLAH UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY* is helping to make it possible for energy generation to literally reach new heights with high-altitude wind farms. Being assigned a project on global climate change from school, it has helped me to understand the effects and effective alternatives to combat climate change better. It is crucial for every citizen to understand that fighting climate change may not be so hard as long as we work with unity and to our complete potential. Please visit the link below for a visual demonstration of the wind turbine. LINK-https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PUlfvXaISvc

Dormant user Asmita Pramanik

2 Comments

says :
Hi, Asmita! I also find the concept of floating wind turbines to be fascinating. I agree that this surely is an innovation, as it overcomes one of the original drawbacks of wind turbines: that it is hard to find land that is adequate for installation of the turbines. By using these floating turbines, we not only overcome the problem of finding perfectly adequate land, we also save a lot of material, as the underwater parts of turbines usually require a lot of material to be built big and strong. Thank you for introducing the project to us! P. S. the video helps a lot with understanding this concept!
Posted 01-12-2017 15:23

Eco Generation

Eco Generation says :
This project is amazing! I recommend all of you to watch the youtube clip Asmita linked! Thanks for introducing such a great project! :)
Posted 30-11-2017 09:39