New wind turbine developed by UK students promises to make solar panels obsolete by 2024, being able to generate more energy with less investment.
One of the new wind turbine that can capture wind from any direction. The “O” shaped wind turbine aims to capture wind from urban and residential areas and transform it into electricity, and can even surpass solar panels. This is an omnidirectional solution to collect wind that goes up, down or around the bladeless wind turbine and can generate electricity
Young engineers win innovation award
This incredible invention is called the O-Wind turbine. It was developed by NASA and a team of Engineers from the United Kingdom and is very efficient and affordable. The new wind turbine was invented by two students from Lancaster University or Lancaster University, in the UK, and they won the James Dyson Award in 2022 for their incredibly innovative design.
The device, which promises to do away with solar panels, consists of a spherical structure with ventilation openings that allow wind to flow through it. Coming from any direction, the wind causes the sphere to rotate around an axis, which is connected to a generator that produces electricity.
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This device is lightweight and easy to install, making it ideal for urban and residential areas where space is limited and wind conditions are unpredictable. Unlike conventional wind turbines, which are installed in very open regions with high wind levels, the new “O” turbine does not require minimum wind direction or speed for its operation and produces very little or no noise or visual pollution.
New wind turbine receives investment from the UK government
The engineering duo partnered with NASA and with the company O-Innovations, a company specialized in omnidirectional wind turbines, and joined forces to develop and commercialize this product. Additionally, they received very large funding from the Solar for All competition, which allocates 7 billion from the greenhouse gas reduction fund to bring renewable energy to low-income people and disadvantaged communities.
They have also received support from the UK government with the bipartisan English Infrastructure Bill, which includes almost $58 billion for sustainable and renewable clean energy initiatives, and aim to launch their new wind turbine as early as 2024. They have even received orders from customers around the entire world.
Wind energy, like energy from photovoltaic solar panels, is one of the most abundant sustainable and renewable clean energy sources on Earth, according to the International Electric Energy Agency. Wind energy was responsible for 6% of global electricity generation in the year 2022.
The wind turbine works by converting the kinetic energy moving air into electrical energy using a generator. The amount of energy that can be extracted from a wind turbine depends on several factors such as wind speed and intensity, the height at which it is located, the region in which it is located, among other factors.
Why new wind turbine might be better than solar panels?
The new wind turbine, according to information, can have an energy generation of 200 kWh and can be made in different sizes, even having a diameter of 2,2 m.
Of course, the energy generation that will be obtained from this turbine, even though it can capture wind from all directions, will depend on the wind incidence in the region and the location where it is installed, but we know that this could be enough to power a small house, for example, or at least charge batteries.
Photovoltaic solar panels, on the other hand, can reach a power of 250W per square meter. Of course, the generation that a photovoltaic solar panel will have will also depend on the conditions in which it is installed, the solar irradiation of the location where it is installed, the inclination in which these modules are arranged, among other factors.
The company claims that O-Wind technology can reach an efficiency of 20%, whereas photovoltaic solar panels have an efficiency of 25%. However, what differentiates the new turbine will be its values, which can be much lower. However, we will only be able to confirm this information when the product is launched on the market.