While designing efficient wind turbines a slew of aspects are determined. The aspects worth considering include the aerodynamic efficiency, which is the capacity of a wind turbine to extract energy from wind. Reliability and durability are some other aspects worth considering. Usually a wind turbine serves up to 20 to 25 years with some minor repairs and maintenance in between. The weight of rotor blades also influences the efficiency level of a wind turbine, as the lighter the better.
After knowing what factors influence the energy efficiency of a wind turbine, now it is time you get to know the most efficient wind turbines ever designed:
Liam F1
Image Source : Windvoordeel.Nl
You cannot expect wind turbine designs meant for traditional wind farms to suit residential installation. This is because of the noise they produce and massive height they require for their efficiency. These issues called for a change in design of a wind turbine that could suit the residential installation and The Archimedes, a small company managed to do this.
They designed a small wind turbine ideal for installation in urban areas. Named Liam F1, it takes shape inspiration from the spiral design of the nautilus shell. The unique spiral shaped design of this urban wind turbine makes it not only energy efficient but a quiet and a compact design as well.
Sheerwind turbine
Image Source : Geekswipe.Net
A Minnesota based company did a fabulous job when it came up with a new out of the box concept of a wind turbine that produces wind power much more efficiently than a traditional design. A bladeless and a funnel based wind turbine that is capable of operating in a wider variety of wind condition. A 40-50 foot tower that captures even the most gentle breezes and the narrow funnel shaped design compresses wind and pushes it towards the ground.
Jet engine technology based wind turbine
Image Source : Static.Ddmcdn.Com
FloDesign, a Massachusetts based company has garnered a great deal of appreciation and recognition for its new concept of wind turbine design. This wind turbine operates according to the shroud concept that follows same principles of a jet engine design to produce wind energy at half the cost of traditional wind turbines.
A shroud surrounds the blades of this wind turbine, which helps to direct air through the blades and increase their speed. Increased speed is directly related to an increase in power production. Use of such state-of-the-art technology makes this wind turbine produce as much or even more power as a traditional wind turbine of double its size does.
General Electric (GE) Wind Turbine
The “Brilliant 2.5-120” is one of the most efficient wind turbine created by General Electric. It has the capacity to produce wind power with utmost efficiency even in the low wind speed sites, which makes it one of its kinds.
Saphonian bladeless turbine
Image Source : EcoChunk.Com
Saphon Energy is a Tunisian green energy startup that came up with a unique wind turbine that produces double the amount of wind energy that a traditional wind turbine produces. This energy efficient wind turbine is bladeless, creates no disturbing noise and there is no possibility of bird clashes, which is one of the biggest shortcomings of traditional designs. It channels wind in back and forth motion and uses pistons to convert it into mechanical energy.
The modern wind turbine designs are more energy efficient and they have made making wind turbines a part of modern societies possible. This is because they are compact, do not make noise and do not harm birds.