Wind turbines are almost invariably mounted atop steel towers as tall as 80 metres in height. It’s not something most of us think about. Steel was used in the early days of wind power and there hasn’t been any reason to switch to other materials. But, a group of researchers at Iowa State University’s Wind Energy Initiative are looking at something else, especially for taller towers. At 80 metres, said Sri Sritharan, who heads the initiative, “steel towers have reached their limits.” “Increasing the steel tower by 20 metres will require significant cost increases,” he said, adding that because of this, “the wind energy industry is starting to say, ‘Why don’t we go to concrete?’” So, using high-strength, high-performance concrete, Sritharan’s team is working on designs for towers 100 metres tall. That height is desirable because the winds there are usually stronger and less susceptible to turbulence. But, those stronger winds mean the towers must withstand larger loads.
Posted on: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 07:35:59 +0000
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