by J.L. Eck

Created on: August 07, 2010   Last Updated: August 15, 2010

Wind energy is a great way to save our nonrenewable resources.  As technology develops, wind energy will continue to be a viable means for production of electricity.  There are several ways that electricity is generated from wind, some of which are known by few. 

The principal means of using wind for power is a conventional wind turbine.  The wind turbine looks like a propeller mounted on a horizontal axis which is attached to the top of a tower.  The wind flows over the blades of the "propeller" causing it to turn.  This is similar to what happens when the wind blows through a window fan that is turned off.  The spindle that holds the spinning blades is connected to the shaft of a generator.  As the unit spins, it creates an electrical current.  There are wind farms all over the world using these types of generators to pproduce much electricity and save many resources.

Another type of wind generator uses a different type of blade setup and spins on a vertical axis.  This style of wind generator is called the “Savonius.”  In this style the same principals for capturing the wind is used, excepting that the turbine is vertical and the blades are twisted to induce a vortex-effect.  This system of generating electricity with the wind is said to be more efficient as it can capture more of the wind’s force in a smaller space. 

One type of wind generator that is less talked about is the ribbon-style.  This style of wind generator uses two ribbons mounted in such a way that they “vibrate” back and forth in the wind.  As the ribbons “vibrate” they move strategically mounted magnets past copper components which makes an electrical current.  This way of generating electricity using wind-power is still being developed, but seems to be a promising method.

Production of electricity using wind power is an important goal for those who want to protect the planet from the toxic processes which are associated with the mining and burning of coal, which is the leading vehicle for production of electricity in the world today.  There is no better time to do some research into making your own wind power.  Did you know you can make electricity with some of those broken and unused items you have lying around the house?  Well, you can.  

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