{"id":3814,"date":"2015-03-27T08:00:53","date_gmt":"2015-03-27T08:00:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/eng\/?p=1681"},"modified":"2015-03-27T08:00:53","modified_gmt":"2015-03-27T08:00:53","slug":"march-winds","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lib.uiowa.edu\/combo\/2015\/03\/27\/march-winds\/","title":{"rendered":"March Winds"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A<\/a><\/p>\n

A field of wind turbines located west of Williams, Iowa Source: Wikimedia Commons<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

It is\u00a0the proverbially windy month of March, when the weather\u00a0is widely variable, blowing in warmer temperatures and creating spring storms.<\/p>\n

If you want to see how windy Iowa (or the entire country) is, check out the Wind Map<\/a>.<\/p>\n

How can Mother Natures’s\u00a0ferocious power be harnessed and tamed?<\/p>\n

Driving along Interstate 80, acres of wind turbines rise majestically over the corn fields and blink in the\u00a0midnight sky making the wind industry a vital economic resource. The state of Iowa\u00a0has\u00a0more than\u00a080 wind installations with over 2,500 turbines capable of producing 3,670 megawatts of power. The turbines generated nearly 27% of Iowa’s total electricity in 2013,2<\/sup> and more than 50\u00a0companies are responsible for employing\u00a03,626 people3<\/sup> whose jobs are to manufacture, transport, or\u00a0assemble the giant\u00a0blades and towers, rotors and generators. Even farmers\u00a0are compensated for leasing their land, furthering the benefits to the Iowa economy.<\/p>\n

With towers standing over\u00a0200 feet tall and spinning two or three\u00a0116-feet propeller-like blades, how do these\u00a0behemoth, industrial-sized wind turbines generate electricity? Simply stated, the energy in the wind turns the blades around a rotor. The rotor is connected to a shaft which spins a generator to create electricity. However, to learn more, see how a wind turbine works<\/a>.4<\/sup> Be sure to hover over the different parts for more information.<\/p>\n

As you are out in the last few days of the blustery month of March, consider all the power and energy those winds produce.<\/p>\n

\"Xu,<\/a><\/p>\n

Xu, Xuegen, Yu, Kai, and He, Guorong. Downwind Variable Pitch Wind Turbine Generator. U.S. Patent 20130011262. Filed May 22, 2011. Assigned January 10, 2013. Source: http:\/\/www.google.com\/patents\/US20130011262<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

References & Resources<\/strong><\/p>\n

1 Craig, Ashely, et al. The Wind Energy Supply Chain in Iowa<\/em>. Chicago, IL: The Environmental Law & Policy Center, November 2010<\/a><\/p>\n

2 U.S. Energy Information Administration. Iowa. Quick Facts<\/a><\/p>\n

3 “Iowa projected to add 1,330 energy jobs in 2015.” The Des Moines Register<\/em>, December 15, 2014<\/a><\/p>\n

4 How Does a Wind Turbine Work?<\/a> Source: U.S. Department of Energy. Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy<\/p>\n

5 Iowa Wind Energy Association<\/a><\/p>\n

6 American Wind Energy Association (AWEA)<\/a>\u00a0TC 88 Wind turbine systems<\/p>\n

Books & Standards<\/strong><\/p>\n

Newton, David E. Wind energy: a reference handbook. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, 2015.<\/a>\u00a0Engineering Library On order<\/p>\n

Edited by Panos M. Pardalos, et al. Handbook of wind power systems. Berlin: Spring, 2014.<\/a> Engineering Library TJ820 .H36 2014<\/p>\n

\"Harvest<\/a><\/p>\n

Engineering Library TK1541 .W36 2012<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Warburg, Philip. Harvest the wind: America’s journey to jobs, energy independence, and climate stability. Boston: Beacon Press, 2012.<\/a>\u00a0Engineering Library TK1541 .W36 2012<\/p>\n

Edited by Charalambos C. Baniotopoulos et al. Environmental wind engineering and design of wind energy structures. New York: Springer Verlag, 2011<\/a>. Engineering Library QC931 .E58 2011<\/p>\n

Burthchen, Marco, et al. Material Qualification of Main Bearings for Large Wind Energy Turbines. November 21, 2014. STP 1580, 2014.<\/a> http:\/\/www.astm.org<\/p>\n

Index of Wind turbine standards<\/a>.\u00a0Source: International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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