Understand how wind energy works and discover the importance of this alternative form of electricity generation.Did you know that it is also possible to get electricity from the winds? That’s right! This energy produced by air movement is called wind energy , which is nothing more than harnessing the power of the winds to activate electric power generators.
The wind power is considered a clean energy source because, unlike other energy resources, does not emit pollutants into the air, avoiding thus the worsening environmental problems at local and global level. Another advantage of wind energy is that winds are renewable sources of energy, that is, they are not exhausted with their use and can always be harnessed.
The use of wind energy for electricity production usually happens as follows:
- a) Some wind farms are made up of equipment called wind turbines, a kind of “giant pinwheel” composed of three propellers and structured by a very light material, which is easily displaced by the force of the wind.
- b) when the winds are moving over the area where the wind turbines are located, their propellers start to move, also rotating a generator inside the equipment. This instrument has the function of transforming this circular movement (mechanical energy) into electricity.
c) the energy produced by wind farms is directed to a transformer and then to the high voltage grid, where it is conveyed to substations, which have the function of carrying all this electricity to homes and other locations.
As we have said, this form of energy production does not emit pollutants into the atmosphere, but that does not mean that there are no negative points. Among the disadvantages of wind power , we can mention its high cost of production, the noise produced for nearby areas that generate a lot of discomfort, interference with airplane routes and bird migration, among other cases. However, these problems are smaller than those that exist in other power sources .
Among the countries that use the most wind energy in the world, the United States is in the first position, producing more than 35 thousand megawatts (MW) per year. Soon after come China, Germany and Spain, which also use this energy resource in large quantities.
