Cutting-edge Technology
New wind blade helps produce energy even in areas with low wind speeds.
March/April 2007
Grit Magazine
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courtesy Knight & Carver Yacht Center/www.KnightAndCarver.com
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In a new twist for renewable energy, Knight & Carver’s Wind Blade Division has completed the first in a series of 27.5-meter wind blades as part of a Department of Energy project. The blade – the Sweep Twist Adaptive Rotor or STAR blade – has a distinctive curved tip designed to work well with lower wind speeds. Most blades currently in use require higher wind speeds to work, while the STAR blade, according to DOE officials, takes advantage of all wind speeds. The innovative curvature lessens the pressure on the blade and the turbine drive train. Knight & Carver officials say the blade captures 5 percent to 10 percent more energy.
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The DOE project includes Knight & Carver in National City, California; Sandia Laboratories in Albuquerque, New Mexico; Dynamic Design in Davis, California; MDZ Consulting in Clear Lake Shores, Texas; the Department of Mechanical/Aeronautical Engineering at the University of California at Davis; and NSE Composites in Seattle.
For more information, visit the Department of Energy’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Web site at www.EERE.Energy.gov/buildings/info/components/electricity/windenergy.html; or Knight & Carver’s Wind Blade Division Web site at www.KnightAndCarver.com/WindBlade/.