Applications of Small Wind Turbines Emphasizing the Economic Viability of Integration into a Home Energy System

Abstract

Given the amount of electrical consumption associated with living in contemporary society, renewable energy technologies that offer a distributed and cost effective means of generating electricity need to be further developed and researched. Small wind turbines have the capacity to provide the electrical needs of many residences in the United States. While the benefits associated with using renewable resources and being self-sufficient are widely recognized, these turbines are often marketed without an accompanied understanding of how wind turbines can be successfully integrated into the home energy system (HES) in an efficient and cost effective manner. The result of this is that the cost of energy (COE) associated with small wind turbines is too high and prohibits many potential customers from utilizing this form of energy. In order for the small wind turbine market to gain market prominence in the residential sector, there needs to be a better conceptual understanding of how wind turbines can be integrated into the HES. Moreover, small wind turbines can also offer an effective means for generating electricity for off-grid locations in developing countries. This technology primarily competes with conventional petroleum based generators and solar photovoltaic technology, and the advantages of using small wind turbine technology over these other two technologies is often not clear. This thesis researches how heat pumps can be used to better integrate wind turbines into the HES. Because wind turbine COE is the primary deterrent to their more widespread use, the impact that this technology can have in reducing the COE of wind turbines is analyzed. Through simulating potential wind turbine applications utilizing heat pumps, this research furthers the conceptual understanding of the systems by which wind turbines can be utilized in an efficient and cost effective manner. The relationship between a prevailing wind and the thermal load on a residence is analyzed, and this analysis coupled with the use of heat pumps to better integrate a wind turbine into the HES represents a unique contribution to this area of literature. This research also studies the performance of a small wind turbine in a developing country. Given a specific electric load requirement, it analyzes how well suited the wind turbine is for supplying the needed electricity as compared to a conventional gasoline generator and to the potential use of solar photovoltaics. The specific advantages and disadvantages of each of these three technologies are discussed.