On a recent drive through Iowa, I saw a field of windmills, and only a few of the windmills were turning, although the wind was hitting them all at the same angle. So can you turn them off? Or flip a switch to keep them from turning? Why would they have that?
2006-06-24 12:21:28 · 11 answers · asked by otexasgirlo 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Engineering
Yes, you can, or more usually they turn themselves off when the wind gets too strong. The power generated from the wind goes up as the cube of the windspeed. So a 40 knot wind doesn't generate twice as much power as a 20 knot wind but 2x2x2=8 times as much. So a fairly strong wind is too much for a wind generator to handle, and to prevent damage it automatically feathers the blades. That is, it turns them parallel to the wind, so they don't turn.
2006-06-24 12:35:21 · answer #1 · answered by zee_prime 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
I agree and add to the first answer. As the wind blows, it doesn't necessarily put the same amount of force on all locations at the same time (imagine wind gusts).
There may also be different forces required to turn different windmills. There are variables such as how well lubricated the particular mill is maintained, and I'm not sure if this would apply in a single site, but if some are connected to higher output generators, it would take more force to turn the propeller.
2006-06-24 19:37:14 · answer #2 · answered by open_to_suggestions 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Many windmills found on farms are used to produce just enough electricity run water pumps to spray the fields. They can be operated manually or off a timer. The cost of maintance letting them spin in the wind increasses and in these remote locations the power produced from the windmills cant be sold to the electric Co or used elseware.
2006-06-24 20:27:25 · answer #3 · answered by tc_an_american 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes you can turn them off. Most can change the pitch of the blades to allow the to stop and a locking device to keep them from turning. Mainly this is for 2 reasons. 1) wind farm will operate by demand of electricity, meaning that they will not need all of them running at once , and 2) For maintenance and repair purposes you might not want the windmill to be turning.
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2006-06-24 19:52:59 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
yes u can turn off windmills as it depends on u how much power is required at that time form the blowing wind
2006-06-25 14:20:01 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
why? The wind is blowing but its not blowing all over when the wind blows, it can be in one small area of what its blowing on. do u inderstand what i am saying?
Just because wind is hitting one windmill doesnt mean it is hitting all the rest, and why would they shut off their supply of electricity?
2006-06-24 19:23:40 · answer #6 · answered by ? 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the wind may not have been blowing evenly.
yes, you can turn them off, locking gears, etc
they have upper speed limits that shuts them off to protect the machinery at very high speeds
they could also have been down for repairs/maintenance
maybe they are brand new and not yet operational.
maybe some kids were playing inside and got stuck in the gears
maybe i sabotaged them
maybe you and i should have dinner to discuss all of these possibilities (your treat) (i love benihanas)
2006-06-25 07:52:00 · answer #7 · answered by hanumistee 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
there are mechanisms that can lock the internal gears of the windmills, so yes
2006-06-24 19:26:57 · answer #8 · answered by native 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
To control the load on the batteries that save that energy
2006-06-25 00:52:20 · answer #9 · answered by Giridhar 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the pitch of the blades can be changed from acute angle to nuetral, so they can be controlled for power amount needed.
2006-06-24 19:27:05 · answer #10 · answered by Iron Rider 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋