Wind turbines could be redesigned to generate cheaper renewable electricity, according to a scientist.
A professor whose research we funded has proposed a new type of wind turbine which would make renewable energy cheaper.
Professor Seamus Garvey of Nottingham University is developing a large-scale wind turbine which is more efficient than existing models for higher generation capacities.
The professor's design, an integrated compressed air renewable energy system, could produce 18 megawatts at 40 per cent the cost of current technology, he claims in an article in the Times.
Professor Garvey's device, which uses turning blades with internal mechanism to compress air, is practical only when the turbine has a diameter of 200 metres or more, but at that point becomes substantially cheaper than existing turbine designs.
Instead of the traditional three blades, his design has a total of eight, four of which are shorter than the others.
His system, which would float offshore, stores compressed air so that it can generate electricity even when the wind is not blowing fast enough to turn the turbines – an advantage over current models.
We already have 21 offshore and onshore wind farms and are committed to the world's largest offshore wind farm, the London Array.
