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Power

A Turbine Prototype Just Broke a 24-Hour Wind Power World Record (electrek.co) 272

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Electrek: Siemens Gamesa's 14-222 DD offshore wind turbine prototype has, according to the Spanish-German wind giant today, set a world record for the most power output by a single wind turbine in a 24-hour period: 359 megawatt-hours. This would be enough energy, according to the company, for a mid-sized electric vehicle -- think a Tesla Model 3 -- to drive around 1.12 million miles (1.8 million km). Siemens Gamesa's huge wind turbine achieved this power output milestone only 10 months after it produced its first electricity and delivered it to the grid at the test center in Osterild, Denmark.

The SG 14-222 DD is a 14 megawatt (MW) offshore wind turbine with a capacity of up to 15 MW with Power Boost. It features a 222-meter (728 feet) diameter rotor, 108-meter-long (354-feet-long) B108 blades that are cast in a single piece and can now be recycled, and a swept area of 39,000 square meters (419,792 square feet). The SG 14-222 DD can provide enough energy to power around 18,000 households annually. In June, Siemens Gamesa was awarded a firm order for 60 of its SG 14-222 DD offshore wind turbines, which will be installed at the 882-megawatt (MW) Moray West offshore wind farm in Scotland. It will be the first installation of this model.
Siemens Gamesa writes: "By increasing the rotor diameter to 222 meters with 108 meter-long blades, the SG 14-222 DD delivers more than 25% [annual energy production] AEP compared to its predecessor."
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A Turbine Prototype Just Broke a 24-Hour Wind Power World Record

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  • Impressive (Score:5, Interesting)

    by AmiMoJo ( 196126 ) on Tuesday October 11, 2022 @09:03AM (#62956073) Homepage Journal

    Not only does it have 222m diameter blades, it is an offshore turbine too so operates in a harsh environment. Their website claims it operates in all wind conditions, no stopping for high winds.

    Offshore and with the rotor 150m off the ground the wind is going to be very consistent. We need to build and deploy these things as fast as possible.

    • We need to build and deploy these things as fast as possible.

      They've been building them for years, this one is just a bit bigger than the previous generation (25% more output).

    • Not only does it have 222m diameter blades, it is an offshore turbine too so operates in a harsh environment. Their website claims it operates in all wind conditions, no stopping for high winds.

      Would this thing survive strong hurricanes, like Ida and Ina recently?

      • by Joce640k ( 829181 ) on Tuesday October 11, 2022 @09:27AM (#62956161) Homepage

        Would this thing survive strong hurricanes, like Ida and Ina recently?

        I don't think they have those in Scotland.

        • I don't think they have those in Scotland.

          Sometimes they do:

          Hurricane Katia [wikipedia.org]

          Hurricane Bawbag [wikipedia.org]

        • Re: (Score:2, Informative)

          by Anonymous Coward

          There are European windstorms. They're cold core systems, obviously, but they do produce hurricane force winds. The North Sea is not exactly a placid body of water.

        • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

          They do occasionally have extreme weather, but the web page for the turbine claims it will operate in all weathers and all wind speeds. Presumably they feather the blades and have a mechanical brake for such situations.

      • Re:Impressive (Score:5, Informative)

        by gweihir ( 88907 ) on Tuesday October 11, 2022 @09:37AM (#62956195)

        Likely. They can reduce them to zero output by blade pitch and everything besides the blades has very little wind resistance. Just to give you an idea, the nacelle at the top is "lightweight" at 500t (metric). This is not some ElCheapo wood building.

      • by genixia ( 220387 )

        I wonder how many people have seriously considered whether enough turbines in the right areas could suck enough energy out of a developing storm to slow its growth into a high category hurricane. We see how quickly the power of a hurricane diminishes once it hits land. Perhaps barrier strings of turbines could protect land.

        At the moment, engineers are designing for efficiency in low winds, with the aim to extract as much energy as possible from a calm environment. If we had suitable ecologically friendly

    • by e3m4n ( 947977 )
      what is the impact of something like a CAT3/4/5 tropical cyclone on them? Will it trash them entirely? Watching how fast Ian went from a TD to CAT3 tells me there is a lot of stored energy in that area near cuba and puerto rico we could extract with OTEC. Both wind and ocean thermal energy are indirect forms of solar energy and work regardless of cloud cover or time of day. Even if that power only went to islands like PR and cuba, everyone still wins if it lowers the water temps in that area.
      • 160MPH winds would likely be beyond the design limits for the blades. They might not delaminate, but I would expect micro fractures would be likely. Hard to know if they would then be taken out of service or allowed to operate to destruction.

        Under 150MPH is likely not a problem for the blades.

        Wind shear could be another issue altogether though.

      • by gweihir ( 88907 )

        Tropical cyclones are probably outside of the design parameters. Also, because they are a bit unlikely near Scotland, even with climate change.

        • by e3m4n ( 947977 )
          i was wondering from a global strategy. In the US they seem to only hit our eastern and gulf shores, ignoring the west coast for the most part. They like to travel opposite the normal direction of jetstreams. The further north, even when you get one, the weaker they are. They feed on ocean temps. Might as well call warm ocean water 'hurricane fuel'. Having to replace these when we get storms would be a deal killer given the frequency of late.
          • Dunno if they would use offshore wind down near the gulf, Texas has a lot of room for onshore wind which is cheaper to install and maintain.

            If I'm reading this right, they're only thinking about it:

            https://www.doi.gov/pressrelea... [doi.gov]

            • by nagora ( 177841 )

              Dunno if they would use offshore wind down near the gulf, Texas has a lot of room for onshore wind which is cheaper to install and maintain.

              If I'm reading this right, they're only thinking about it:

              https://www.doi.gov/pressrelea... [doi.gov]

              No one ever seems to discuss the Great Lakes for these things. Is there some reason why "off-shore" wouldn't include them?

              • It looks like there are a number of wind farms on the shores of the great lakes:

                https://www.greatlakesnow.org/... [greatlakesnow.org]

                I guess, similar to the gulf, the added costs of offshore wind are only justified if there is no land nearby to put the wind turbines on, which is more of an issue in Europe.

                • by jsonn ( 792303 )
                  There are primarily two reasons for offshore wind: more consistent availability of wind and less constraints on noise and shadow emissions. I don't think the Great Lakes would benefit from either factor, so the much easier construction onshore wins.
      • what is the impact of something like a CAT3/4/5 tropical cyclone on them? Will it trash them entirely?

        It's always possible. They'll be designed for very strong winds but nothing is unbreakable.

        The best solution is not to build them in places which have almost-yearly cyclones.

        • by e3m4n ( 947977 )
          yea wind speed is just one factor in a TC. There is soooo much moisture in the air, that its not just about windspeed but the air mass behind those winds is unbelievable. Thats why I do not believe those 77MPH hurricane simulators are all that realistic. Thats relatively dry air at best 60% humidity. Hurricane winds are every bit of 100% humidity plus a shit ton of actual water droplets sandblasting everything it touches. Now Ian was claimed to be CAT4 but some meteorologist claim its wind speed actually
      • by AmiMoJo ( 196126 )

        Their website claims that they are able to withstand all weather.

  • by turp182 ( 1020263 ) on Tuesday October 11, 2022 @09:41AM (#62956209) Journal

    They can "single-cast" 108-meter-long (354-feet-long) turbine blades.

    That's freaky large for casting.

    I'm working on a graphic to compare it to the St. Louis arch, which it will tower over (630 feet, 200+ meters).

    Here's a real photo of it rather than the Photoshopped ocean excitement image:
    https://www.windpowermonthly.c... [windpowermonthly.com]

  • >enough energy, according to the company, for a mid-sized electric vehicle -- think a Tesla Model 3 -- to drive around 1.12 million miles

    Sure, but how long will it keep the lights on at the Library of Congress?
  • It's neat that theoretically they can dissolve the resin again to recover the fiberglass and carbon fiber, but if it's cheaper to landfill than actually do it they will do that unless contractually obligated to recycle.

    • by nasch ( 598556 )

      At least it can be recycled, which opens the possibility of requiring recycling. That's better than before where burying them was the only option.

      • by jsonn ( 792303 )
        At least in the European Union, landfilling has been forbidden for a while. The most common uses so far are burning them as part of making new concrete or using them as filling material in new construction projects. It's not optimal, but also a relative small issue for now. There are a number of long-term research projects running for fully sustainable options, e.g. using wood fibers or being able to separate the composite materials. Chances are quite good that they will significantly improve the situation,
      • What bad thing will happen if we bury fiberglass?

        • by jsonn ( 792303 )
          The biggest problem is cutting it, since it produces nasty dust. But otherwise it's a fairly safe material.
        • by nasch ( 598556 )

          I don't know that there's anything terrible that will happen, but if there's a way to recycle it without causing problems, that's obviously better than landfilling, right?

  • and how many LoC aisles can it power for a day?

  • All I can think of when I read this is "Gamera".

  • My understanding is that leading edge erosion is a huge problem with windmills. I imagine it is an even bigger problem for offshore wind farms, both because of the environment and the maintenance difficulties. Have they found ways to reduce or eliminate it?

  • for a mid-sized electric vehicle -- think a Tesla Model 3 -- to drive around 1.12 million miles

    Considering all the fossil fuels Musk burns [nytimes.com] flying and yachiting all over the world, this renewable energy will come in handy.

As long as we're going to reinvent the wheel again, we might as well try making it round this time. - Mike Dennison

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