Wind turbine farm from California Institute of Technology groups turbines together to increase energy output.
Benefits
- Increased energy generation
- Increased efficiency
- Increased performace
Applications
- Commercial and industrial energy generation
UN Sustainable Development Goals Addressed
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Goal 7: Affordable & Clean Energy
The Challenge
Wind turbines are a reliable source of clean energy but when placed together in a farm, they take up a large amount of space and can negatively interfere with one another.
Innovation Details
Inspired by the way fish can reduce the energetic loss by swimming in a school, vertical axis wind turbines are placed close together so that individual turbines can capture downstream airflow produced by neighboring turbines. This reduces the total area needed for the turbines while increasing energy output by up to 10-fold.
Biological Model
As fish swim, they shed tiny vortices. When swimming in large schools, the individual fish transfer energy to each other with these vortices, lowering the energetic costs of swimming.