http://www.csuohio.edu/news/releases/2009/05/windtower.html

 

CSU Installs Prototype Wind Tower

 

On May 12, 2009, Cleveland State University hoisted its first wind tower amplification system to the rooftop of its Plant Services Building located at the corner of Chester Ave. and E. 24th Street. The system, designed by Dr. Majid Rashidi of CSU’s Fenn College of Engineering, is a wind deflecting structure with small-scale turbines that can generate power at low wind speeds.

 

 

Similar idea from the PD from May 1st that nobody posted here...  So yes, absolutely there will be many wind turbines throughout downtown Cleveland and other cities in the coming years.  They just won't look like the massive one at the Great Lakes Science Center.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2009/05/demand_for_smallscale_wind_tur.html

 

Demand for small-scale wind turbines growing among Ohio businesses

by John Funk/Plain Dealer Reporter

Friday May 01, 2009, 8:14 PM

Green Energy TechnologiesGreen Energy Technologies of Akron is marketing its WindCube, a wind turbine designed for urban and suburban locations. The company's first cubes were made in Eastlake and Euclid. Final assembly now is planned for Youngstown.

While the effort to attract manufacturers of giant wind turbines to Ohio continues, smaller, more affordable, commercial wind generators are already selling.

 

CHOPPED

Is this the beginning of the end of Ohio's nascent wind industry?

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090610/ap_on_sc/us_sci_diminishing_winds;_ylt=Ard2cclLUbXtZzdQpXope9us0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTFlOWVjb2wyBHBvcwMxMjEEc2VjA2FjY29yZGlvbl9zY2llbmNlBHNsawNub3Rzb3dpbmR5cmU-

 

 

Not so windy: Research suggests winds dying down

AP

 

By SETH BORENSTEIN, AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein, Ap Science Writer Wed Jun 10, 7:30 am ET

 

WASHINGTON The wind, a favorite power source of the green energy movement, seems to be dying down across the United States. And the cause, ironically, may be global warming the very problem wind power seeks to address.

 

The idea that winds may be slowing is still a speculative one, and scientists disagree whether that is happening. But a first-of-its-kind study suggests that average and peak wind speeds have been noticeably slowing since 1973, especially in the Midwest and the East.

 

"It's a very large effect," said study co-author Eugene Takle, a professor of atmospheric science at Iowa State University. In some places in the Midwest, the trend shows a 10 percent drop or more over a decade. That adds up when the average wind speed in the region is about 10 to 12 miles per hour.

 

.......

This doesn't make sense to me. Heat creates turbulence -- wind. I don't quite follow the thought behind this research.

^I was thinking the same thing at first KJP, but it kind of makes sense given that the IPCC has really stated that the POLES are warming faster than the rest of the World.  Wind is a result of differences in air density from one place to another and as we all know air density is determined (for the most part) by temperature.  So, if the difference in the average temperature of the Poles and the average temperature of, say the equator is decreasing then the total 'flow' of air molecules should decrease.

 

Of course it's probably not that simple, but I think it's at least a start.  I think this research also demonstrates that the climate is not an easy thing to predict or control.

 

I don't fear this will hurt the wind turbine industry in Ohio... it's just one study.

in a story talking about the wind cube that was installed at crown battery in northwest ohio, it was mentioned that they will be putting a wind cube on the lausche state building at 615 w. superior in downtown cleveland. it would be pretty impressive to have a number of the emerging wind technologies on display downtown.

 

http://www.wkyc.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=117224

 

'Wind Cube' powering first northern Ohio building

Posted By: Dick Russ   Updated: 7/7/2009 1:40:26 PM Posted: 7/6/2009 6:20:03 PM Read Comments Print ArticleEmail ArticleLargerSmaller

PORT CLINTON -- The newest shape of wind energy is being pioneered in Ohio with the first installation of a Wind Cube on a commercial building.

 

The wind energy device, which measures 22-feet tall and across, sits on the rooftop of the Crown Battery Manufacturing Company in the Lake Erie Business Park in Port Clinton.

 

.........

 

He told WKYC that a number of installations in the Cleveland area are possible, beginning with a Wind Cube planned for the top of the Lausche State Office Building downtown in the fall. Return on investment through energy savings can be accomplished in about three years under average conditions, Cironi said.

If anyone doesn't know what building this is:

 

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=a7449f6625fb6508cbcce41ea1622a06

 

 

Bah! That's not an image of the building, THIS is! :-)

 

If anyone doesn't know what building this is:

 

http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse/details?mid=a7449f6625fb6508cbcce41ea1622a06

 

 

 

That looks like SimCity Cleveland.

Looks like the worlds richest hillbilly and the money behind the "swift boat ads" is getting out of the wind power business. I wonder if Bill Mason has made the phone call yet?

 

 

T. Boone Pickens calls off massive wind farm in Texas

by Associated Press

Tuesday July 07, 2009, 7:13 PM

 

T. Boone Pickens HOUSTON -- Plans for the world's largest wind farm in the Texas panhandle have been scrapped, energy baron T. Boone Pickens said Tuesday, and he's looking for a home for 687 giant wind turbines. Pickens has already ordered the turbines, which can stand 400 feet tall -- taller than most 30-story buildings. "When I start receiving those turbines, I've got to ... like I said, my garage won't hold them," the legendary Texas oilman said. "They've got to go someplace."

 

continued at>>>>>>

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2009/07/t_boone_pickens_calls_off_mass.html[/url]

 

 

"It just means we got a little bit too quick off the blocks"????

 

Um .. that's the fucking understatement of the year.

I think he was right on time. But like much of corporate America, if he doesn't see the need for something in the next 90 days, then it's not worthwhile. I hope someone with vision and a big checkbook buys the wind turbines and installs them.

 

Perhaps Mitsubishi might. And it's not because they have a 500-year business plan.

Plop a few dozen of those in Lake Erie for me Mr. Pickens.

First it was Pearl Road Auto Parts and Wrecking to build a wind turbine in Cleveland's 16th Ward. Now a resident in the same ward wants to erect a wind turbine too....

 

http://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/bza/agenda/2009/crr100509.html

 

9:30

 

Ward 16

 

Calendar No. 09-179:

          5108 Behrwald Avenue

Kevin Kelley

 

 

 

15 Notices

 

 

Jeffrey Rhodes, owner, appeals to erect a 31-foot tall wind turbine on a 50’ x 120’ parcel in a Two-Family District; contrary to Section 354A.04b(2) and yard space requirements, 7 feet is provided where a distance of 15 feet is required from all property lines; and subject to 354A.05(E) in the Cleveland Codified Ordinances, the noise of a turbine shall not exceed 50 decibels and no decibel level information is provided. (Filed 8-31-09)

:) That's me, it's already up, there is a thread about on UO...The zoning board did approve it this morning...

 

http://www.urbanohio.com/forum2/index.php/topic,19258.0.html

Congrats!!

Lake Erie wind turbine project spreads beyond Cuyahoga County

 

ELYRIA, Ohio -- A 2-year-old effort to build wind turbines in Lake Erie is spreading beyond Cuyahoga County.

 

The Great Lakes Energy Development Task Force, chaired by Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason, has created a non-profit development corporation that it hopes will get the support of county governments from Ashtabula to Toledo -- and the construction of hundreds of wind turbines over the next couple of decades.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2009/12/wind_turbines.html

Baldwin-Wallace practices what it teaches in new major with wind turbine

By Joanne Berger DuMound, Sun News

December 06, 2009, 12:29PM

 

BEREA — The soft swooshing melody of circulating blades on a windy day at Baldwin-Wallace College is music to the ears of “green” enthusiasts on campus.

 

The college’s new 60-foot wind turbine along Eastland Road just outside its baseball field was assembled last week just in time for the windy season.

 

MORE AT http://blog.cleveland.com/newssun/2009/12/baldwin-wallace_practices_what.html

Interesting video from the Wall Street Journal about off-shore wind farms, looking specifically about one in England.

 

http://online.wsj.com/video/building-wind-farms-in-the-ocean/DA033E50-9632-4B1A-A1ED-5CD8B4C0647E.html

Ohio plugs wind power on Lake Erie

 

CLEVELAND: Ohio officials are pushing plans to get Lake Erie, the shallowest of the Great Lakes, at the forefront of offshore wind power development.

 

Gov. Ted Strickland and U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown joined industry and education leaders Monday in Cleveland and outlined tax-cut and regulatory measures to jump-start wind projects.

 

Strickland says a tax cut now before state lawmakers would make Ohio competitive in developing wind power. Brown is backing legislation to expand federal tax incentives for offshore wind development.

 

 

http://www.ohio.com/news/ohiocentric/89397082.html

Really?

 

I seem to recall just about the same conversation and news stories in late 2005 when I moved to Cleveland.  Since then what has been done? A few studies that say "yep, the lake is shallow." Look at the map of wind power that is up and running across America, and you can see that with the exception of the south, we are pretty much in last place.

 

http://www.awea.org/projects/

 

 

 

They did just approve 3 large Windfarms in Ohio that will generate about 500 (MW).

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/03/ohio_power_siting_board_has_ap.html

Wind turbines to be built in Lake Erie by 2012, group says

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The Lake Erie Energy Development Corp. said today it is ready to award a contract to a developer to build the first wind turbines in the Lake as early as 2012.

 

The project will cost about $100 million, generate 20 million watts and involve four to eight turbines, depending on the size and generating capacity of the turbines.

 

At a morning news conference at the Great Lakes Science Museum, Richard Stuebi, interim head of LEEDCO, said requests for bids were being sent to major developers today.

 

"The initial request is for 20 megawatts," he said. But it is a precursor to subsequent projects. The goal is 1,000 megawatts by 2020."

 

The new wind development corporation, created and housed at the Northeast Ohio Technology Coalition, or NORTECH, has set an April 30 deadline for bids.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/03/wind_turbines_to_be_built_in_lake_erie_by_2012_group_says.html

 

 

Very exciting news!  I can't wait until we can look out on to our lake and see those big beauties spinning in the breeze.  I can picture some big 2 or 3 MW turbines lining lake Erie from Cleveland to Buffalo within the next 40 years.

Really?

 

I seem to recall just about the same conversation and news stories in late 2005 when I moved to Cleveland. Since then what has been done? A few studies that say "yep, the lake is shallow." Look at the map of wind power that is up and running across America, and you can see that with the exception of the south, we are pretty much in last place.

 

http://www.awea.org/projects/

 

 

 

 

I think the difference is that back then, the only thing that was announced was that they wanted to do it, and would be doing studies.  This is an announcement for when the actual construction will begin.

the article states 4-8 depending on what size and power they are designed at.  this would provide 1,000 mw.  with the goal being 20,000 mw by 2020, which would equate to 200-400 turbines depending on the size and power they are designed at.

the article states 4-8 depending on what size and power they are designed at.  this would provide 1,000 mw.  with the goal being 20,000 mw by 2020, which would equate to 200-400 turbines depending on the size and power they are designed at.

 

Woah... numbers are a little off McCleveland.  This initial build of 4-8 turbines will provide approximately 20 MW of rated capacity according the article.  The goal is 1000 MW of offshore wind capacity by 2020 which would, as you correctly stated, require anywhere from 200-400 turbines.  The largest wind turbines currently produced by Vestas (and GE I believe) are rated at 3 MW. 

 

Now you also need to remember that there is a capacity factor for each unique turbine installation based on the turbine type and location.  Newer turbines can achieve about 30%.  That is the turbine will produce in a year 30% of it's rated power capacity.  So a 3 MW turbine will average about a 1 MW output over the course of a year.  So this 20 MW farm will probably output closer to 6 MW on average.  A drop in the bucket of our electricity demand, but a great start.  Sorry... I like this stuff.

oh well... i got the number of turbines right anyway... you can't expect too much energy math from we architectural types :)

Thanks Hootenany you got to it first.

 

Just a little perspective on how much power we are talking here. Perry is around 1200 MW, Davis Besse is about 800 MW. Typical wind turbines per unit are rated at 1-5 MW max output, although wind turbines usually have an average capacity factor (MW hours produced/ MW rating x Hours in a year) of around 30%, while a nuke plant is usually in the mid 90%.

 

Woot on this going forward, I hope I can leverage this into a new job.

I posted these in another thread and figured that they belonged here too.

 

Links to the various groups working to bring renewable/advanced energy industry to NEO, Confusingly they all are called Great Lakes but are seperate organizations.

 

Great Lakes Energy Development Taskforce (County)

 

http://development.cuyahogacounty.us/en-US/energy-task-force.aspx

 

Great Lakes Wind Network (Manufacturing)

 

http://www.glwn.org/

 

Great Lakes Energy Institute (research at Case)

 

http://energy.case.edu/

State wants to see windmills built along Lake Erie shore

 

CLEVELAND (AP) — Ohio officials outlined plans this week to put Lake Erie, the shallowest of the Great Lakes, at the forefront of offshore wind-power development.

 

Gov. Ted Strickland and U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown joined industry and education leaders to detail tax-cut and regulatory measures to jump-start wind-power development on Lake Erie. The lake’s comparative shallowness is seen as an advantage for erecting towers to produce wind power.

 

Strickland said Monday that his proposal to eliminate the tangible personal property tax on wind- and solar-generation equipment would make Ohio competitive in developing wind power.

 

http://www.dispatchpolitics.com/live/content/local_news/stories/2010/04/03/copy/state-wants-to-see-windmills-built-along-lake-erie-shore.html?adsec=politics&sid=101

Good news on this project moving forward. Looks like these turbines will be the first of their kind. I believe they will be the largest turbines ever produced by GE and possibly the largest ever... period. I'll get back to you on that.  -EDIT-  Well, looks like there are 7 turbines in production that are rated over 3MW.  The largest in the world is 7 MW (http://www.metaefficient.com/news/new-record-worlds-largest-wind-turbine-7-megawatts.html).  But this will be GE's largest turbine.

 

5 turbines in the works for wind power project in Lake Erie

By John Funk, The Plain Dealer May 24, 2010

 

A local nonprofit development group racing to erect the first offshore wind turbine in the Great Lakes has reached an agreement with General Electric Co. to supply five turbines for a $100 million demonstration project in Lake Erie.

 

The Lake Erie Energy Development Corp., known as LEEDCo, and Gov. Ted Strickland are to announce the deal in Dallas today during the annual conference of the American Wind Energy Association.

 

The cutting-edge turbines would stand 300 feet above the lake and be clustered six miles or so off Cleveland's shore, northwest of the city's drinking water crib.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/05/5_wind_turbines_are_in_the_wor.html

Strickland: Cleveland wind project a laboratory to lower price of wind power

 

The target is to have the giant turbines in the Lake and operating by the end of 2012. At four megawatts, the turbines will be the largest in North America and the first off-shore, where size is not as much an issue as it would be on land.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/05/strickland_cleveland_wind_proj.html

Hope this doesn't hold true for off shore wind farms:

 

"Amid much good news for wind--an onging global surge in wind energy installations, the go-ahead from the U.S. government for the immensely controversial Cape Wind project--comes a report detailing a sharp rise in wind operating costs and poor performance relative to other countries. Prepared by the independent business intelligence service Wind Energy Update, the Wind Energy Operations & Maintenance Report finds that current O&M costs are two or three times higher than first projected and that there has been a 21 percent decrease in returns on investments in wind farms. O&M costs were found to be especially high in the United States, "now the world's largest wind power market."

 

Based on surveys, the report estimates average world O&M costs at 27 U.S. cents per kilowatthour, which compares with the 20 c/kWh at which costs roughly equal the value of U.S. wind production credits. The report says that while close to 80 percent of the world's wind turbines are still under warranty, "this is about to change." R&D is focusing especially on gearbox reliability: "Many gearboxes, designed for a 20-year life, are failing after six to eight years of operation"

 

 

more: http://spectrum.ieee.org/energywise/green-tech/wind/trouble-brewing-for-wind

 

Well the cleveland project wont have gearboxes, so that should alleviate that problem. 

^Correct.  The industry realizes the gearbox problem and they have been working on efficient direct drive systems for some time now.  High O&M costs are going to be part of developing this new energy industry.  Just some growing pains...

Pre-planning studies ordered for Cleveland offshore wind farm

Published: 3 hours ago

 

By James Cartledge 

 

Cuyahoga County authorities issued a Request for Qualification last week for a lakebed soil study and a mapping study for the area of Lake Erie near Cleveland, Ohio.

 

The deadline for handing in completed statements of qualification for the studies is noon on July 16, 2010, with the studies expected to begin in September.

 

The mapping study will comprise a geophysical, archaeological and wildlife survey of the proposed area for the pilot offshore wind farm and underwater cable route.

 

The other study will take the form of a soil sampling project for the location.

 

http://www.brighterenergy.org/13043/news/wind/pre-planning-studies-ordered-for-cleveland-offshore-wind-farm/

Wind conference focuses on potential for growth in the Great Lakes

Published: Monday, July 19, 2010, 6:52 PM   

John Funk, The Plain Dealer

 

World-class experts and executives from the wind industry, including global wind farm developers, wind contractors, parts makers, financing experts and contract lawyers, are rubbing shoulders at a national conference in Cleveland this week and talking to locals hoping to build wind turbines in the lake.

 

The three-day "Freshwater Wind 2010" conference at the Wyndham downtown that began Monday has drawn about 100 participants and 60 to 70 speakers, said Gretchen Luchisinger, managing director of Infocast, a national conference organizer headquartered in California.

 

"We wanted to do a conference on fresh water wind development and we knew that the Great Lakes Energy Development Task Force and Case Western Reserve University had been working on a project," she said. "And because Lake Erie is one of the more shallow lakes, we knew there was more potential here."

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/07/wind_conference_focuses_on_potential_for_growth_in_northern_ohio.html

 

Wind turbines on Lake Erie face many challenges, including ice

 

Published: Wednesday, July 21, 2010, 9:58 PM 

John Funk, The Plain Dealer 

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Some of the world's biggest wind developers were in Cleveland this week to talk about something none of them has ever done - building wind turbines in fresh water such as Lake Erie, where ice flows promise to pose significant problems.

 

A three-day national conference focusing on the business potential and the problems of freshwater wind farms drew 170 engineers, attorneys, academics and contractors. It wrapped up Wednesday.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/07/wind_turbines_on_lake_erie_fac.html

More talk on the Lake Erie Wind Turbines...thte goal is still 5 turbines by 2012:

 

Installing wind turbines on Lake Erie could generate thousands of jobs, study says

Published: Thursday, August 05, 2010, 6:00 AM

Tom Breckenridge, The Plain Dealer

 

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Creating an industry to build and maintain hundreds of power-generating turbines on Lake Erie by 2030 would support up to 8,000 jobs and cost $31 billion, an economic-impact study says.

 

An existing supply of manufacturers for land-based turbines makes the region and Ohio a plausible fit for the risky offshore industry, says the analysis commissioned by NorTech, which supports local high-tech development.

 

A local nonprofit development company known as LEEDCo proposes the five-turbine, 20-megawatt test project off the Cleveland shore.

 

Wind power advocates believe it could spur a 5,000-megawatt array from Lorain to Ashtabula. That would generate up to 8,000 jobs, $7.8 billion in wages and $587 million in state and local tax revenues over 20 years, the analysis said.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/08/wind_power_1.html

 

 

Sweet Jesus those comments following that article are priceless. As the saying goes, the Haters will always Hate. I follow this closely for work so if anybody has any questions regarding this post them and I will try my best to answer this.

 

Some follow up to the article and comments following the article.

1. Yes offshore wind is more expensive than on shore wind however Ohio in general is pretty crappy for wind and the capacity factors (actual amount produce vs unit rating) for offshore wind on Erie are 2-3 times higher than what is available on land. So you would need at least twice the amount of turbines on land to generate the same amount of power. So off shore may actually be cheaper. Also I believe the winds over the lake are less gusty.

2.What hapens when the wind doesn't blow? The turbines don't make power. end of story. Right now this is a problem but there is a big push for energy storage and it is coming. Pumped hydro already exists, compressed air projects are in the works and other storage technologies. Once the renewables and storage get synced up watch out. Wind is free besides O&M.

3. Grid Issues. Ohio off-shore wind  has the benefit of being right next to the  two big load centers of Cleveland and Detroit.  The upper midwest likes to be known as the Saudi Arabia of wind but the Transmission required to connect to the electrical load in the east will be very expensive.

 

Not to say that study was not ridiculously optimistic but I think some offshore wind in Ohio is a very viable option.

CBC,

 

The last number I heard (I think) was 18 cents per kilowatt hour for the initial installation.  Any idea on what it may drop down to with a larger deployment?

Niko,

I will see what I can dig up, I am guessing probably around 8-12 cents a kW-hr depending on maintanence costs.  Wind turbines are never going to replace baseload units (or beat them on cost per kW-h) but they should (especially) when teamed with storage technologies be profitable. the wind tends to blow the most at night when prices are cheap, so you store that power and sell back on the grid during the day (peak) when the prices are at their highest and the wind tends to not blow.

 

Wind turbines are a little different than most generation because they are price-takers in the market. Other generators basically calculate a minium run price and are dispatched either by the market when the price gets high enough or because they are selling at a price above that to a buyer under contract. So that 18 cents per kW-hr represents the average market price they need to maintain or they need in a contract based on estimated yearly output. Almost all wind is currently sold in contracts, and the buyers also get the rights to the RECs (Renwable Energy Credits) needed to meet state mandates. So currently wind power in contracts sells for a premium.

Wind turbines are never going to replace baseload units (or beat them on cost per kW-h)

 

until the price of baseload generator fuel (coal, uranium, natural gas) rise substantially.  Not exactly "never."

^Exactly.  I've always viewed alternative energy sources such as solar, wind, tidal, especially hydro, etc... as insurance against uncertain future costs of fuel sources like coal, oil, and natural gas.

 

I know it's not really environmentally popular, but I sure would love to see a few more large scale hydro projects in the near future.  The power output of those things is unbelievable and it has to be one of the cheapest sources of electricity around.

Research at CWRU's new structural laboratory could aid Lake Erie wind farm effort

Published: Monday, August 30, 2010, 5:00 PM 

John Funk, The Plain Dealer

 

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Case Western Reserve University has opened an unusual new laboratory, one that employs brute force -- with electronic precision -- to test the limits of materials.

 

And what is going on at the Vanderhoof Infrastructure Research and Education Facility and Schuette Structural Laboratory could help the effort to build wind farms in Lake Erie that can stand up to the lake's destructive storms and icing without costing a fortune to build.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/08/research_at_cwrus_new_structural_laboratory_could_aid_lake_erie_wind_farm_effort.html

 

Developers selected for proposed Lake Erie wind farm off Cleveland's coast

Published: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 11:04 AM    Updated: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 11:50 AM

 

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The group working to establish a wind farm in Lake Erie has selected a team of three companies as developers.

 

The three companies are Bechtel Development Company Inc., Cavallo Great Lakes Ohio Wind LLC and Great Lakes Wind Energy LLC.

 

http://www.cleveland.com/business/index.ssf/2010/09/developers_selected_for_propos.html

"Construction on the initial phase is tentatively scheduled to start in late 2012. "

 

:clap:

A lot of stuff will be done around the same time- Windmills, Casino, Convention Center, FEB- GREAT STUFF!!

Hopefully this means a job for me... :)