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Tech Allows Stable Integration of Wind In the Power Grid

diegocgteleline.es writes "One of the most frequently raised arguments against renewable power sources is that they can only supply a low percentage of the total power because their unpredictability can destabilize the grid. Spain seems to have disproved this assertion. In the last three days, the wind power generation records with respect to the total demand were beaten twice (in special conditions: a very windy weekend, at night): 45% on November 5 and almost 54% last night (Google translation; Spanish original). There was no instability. These milestones were accomplished with the help of a control center that processes meteorologic data from the whole country and predicts, with high certainty, the wind and solar power that will be generated, allowing a stable integration of all the renewable power. You can see a graphic of the record here."

12 of 235 comments (clear)

  1. Jew Lieberman by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    Too bad that fucking kike Jew Lieberman would rather protect insurance company profits than human life.

    This is why the holocaust was such a good idea. It was just one Jew short of enabling real healthcare reform.

    1. Re:Jew Lieberman by antirelic · · Score: -1, Troll

      Is that you posting Obama? Pelosi? Reid?

      Anyway, we know its a progressive. Look how charming and tolerant. The parent was brought to you by what is really in the mind of all progressives.

      --
      20th century Marxism is not progress...
  2. Re:Solar Wind by coolsnowmen · · Score: 0, Troll

    Not if the earth begins to spin slower because we are taking energy out of wind.

  3. Re:There are two sides in that coin... by Gothmolly · · Score: -1, Troll

    How's that socialism working out for you?

    --
    I want to delete my account but Slashdot doesn't allow it.
  4. Re:Solar Wind by coolsnowmen · · Score: 0, Troll

    Nope, because the system has feed back, when you break the system is when there are problems. Producing a little CO2 is not a problem, producing more than the planet can handle w/o changing the pH of the ocean is.

    Just like wind, the world isn't covered in windmills, but, if you had enough wind turbines to produce 100% of the earth's energy, then we'd have a problem.

    Clearly energy is already being taken out of wind, I'm arguing against pushing wind as a primary power source, not for clear cutting the planet because I 3 wind.

  5. Re:Stupid technology by OeLeWaPpErKe · · Score: 0, Troll

    So, what you're saying is that using solar/wind will massively change the climate by changing the absorption characteristics ...

    What, pray tell, were we trying to prevent again ?

    (just wondering)

  6. Re:So they've almost caught up to 100 years ago. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: -1, Troll

    No. I've seen American engineers suggest brake systems for wind turbines so that they could frequency match power going into the grid. That has got to be the most stupid thing I've ever heard, but they suggested it (way less than 100 years ago). Why wouldn't you get all the power you could, turn it into electricity, put it into an energy storage system, and then use a DC to AC converter (don't give me any bull that they don't exist or aren't big enough) and frequency match (phase locked loop circuits have been around for a long time too, and can be applied to power generation circuits), and precisely add power to the grid (phase difference less than 1/1000000 of a radian). American engineers were hoping to use brake systems on wind chargers to match phase. ABSURD! And what a waste of power! The Spanish have great wind power systems. Americans buy Saudi oil (Saudi Arabia then funds Bin Laden). Spain does not fund Bin Laden. Say 'backwards' if you want, but not as much in the US.

  7. Re:Effect on Earth's rotation? Implausible. by coolsnowmen · · Score: 0, Troll

    I'll look at your numbers later (which I do appreciate). But the effects of wind turbines on global weather are not imaginary.

  8. Re:Stupid technology by timmarhy · · Score: 0, Troll

    "The thing you are missing is how tiny a fraction of the fossil fuel energy we are capable of removing...."

    --
    If you mod me down, I will become more powerful than you can imagine....
  9. Re:Effect on Earth's rotation? Implausible. by coolsnowmen · · Score: 0, Troll

    net energy loss in the neighborhood of 7.59x10^18 joules/year-- about 241GW

    This is a power not an energy, but I do get the point.

    World Energy Usage: 20 TrillionKWH
    Maximum Windmill->E efficiency is about 30% so tripple that and get 60 Trillion KWH of energy taken out of the system per year.
    Relating that to your example system would correspond to a slowing of about .6 ms a year.
    Ok, while certainly non-zero, that isn't that much of a problem. Prove to me that it won't effect the weather and I'll be much happier.
    60*10^12/(241 * 10^9 *365*24/1000) * .022

  10. Re:Solar Wind by coolsnowmen · · Score: 0, Troll

    You, my new friend, need to contrast your belief in the conservation of angular momentum with your blatant disregard for the conservation of energy. If I store energy (in the form of electricity) made from wind energy (kinetic), I have taken that energy out of the system, because energy cannot be created, nor destroyed (at least on this level).

  11. Re:Solar Wind by coolsnowmen · · Score: 0, Troll

    Congrats on your PhD, but i'm glad they didn't ask you this question on your quals. And as this is covered in physics 101, qualification dropping is meaningless. You can't just hand wave and say, oh it would have been heat. Your assumption that angular momentum is only effected by torques is flawed. Yes that is angular momentum 101, but it certainly fails to describe what is accelerating the blades of the windmill. Or will they turn indefinitly too?