There are some places which face some difficulties in using fixed wind turbines in particular, developing countries. It is realistic to use flying turbines especially the out put power could reach 8 times the fixed wind turbine for the same specifications.
Questions of cost and stabilization will no doubt play a big factor in whether any of these projects will succeed.
Because this technology will also act like vehicles roaming the space above, there should also be a strict air traffic monitoring to be developed so that it will not become hazardous to other flying objects.
As previously mentioned, it is all about efficiency and cost. Fixed wind turbines are spread on vast areas for network power increase. Diameter of the blades is also large. Network power accumulation with least loss is a crucial requirement. Similar issues impose severe technical challenges affecting the efficiency of a "flying wind turbine" generation solution.
A group of systems design and integration, automation, control & synchronization, power supply efficiency and cost issues along with many safety concerns stand before such a technical move!
Please look into
www.kitepower.nl www.enerkite.de www.ampyxpower.com
(these are companies doing exactly that).
":edit:->not exactly what the OP proposed,, but using a pumping cycle.(see R.Schmehls' answer)"
As far as I can judge, Airborne Wind Energy has two key Advantages:
- lower construction cost (no tower needed)
- higher/variable altitudes and by that a more steady production of energy
However, if you look into the ratio of energy harvest vs. land use, conventional wind turbines perform better (If you count the complete movement range of the kite to the ground space occupied)
So, airborne wind energy is perfectly suited for low-developed areas with low property prices, however not always the best choice in highly populated, highly developed areas.
You may also want to have a look at the attached map, in which I list all worldwide activities on airborne wind energy. The majority of concepts is indeed implementing a pumping cycle, in which the traction power of the flying device is converted into electrical energy on the ground. Only a few concepts, such as Makani / X, TU Munich and KiteX use oboard wind turbines for the conversion. Most of the concepts employ the cross wind effect, that was originally proposed by Miles L Loyd in 1980. If you are interested check the AWESCO project here on RG. There are a number of comparative studies with wind turbines.
Hi Roland Schmehl, as most of the airborne wind energy systems (AWES) employ the cross wind effect, their control and security are based solely on the reliability of the computerized management system. Is that enough in the case of a computer failure? A reliable AWES should fly (in limited mode) even if the computer is failing, adding passive safety to active safety. For heavy rigid wings flying fast, it can be a serious concern.
Yes, Pierre, you are right. Heavy rigid wings, like Makani's M600 or Ampyx Power's AP3 and AP4, do require aviation-standard avionics and hardware. That is technically feasible, but increases the cost of the technology. Concepts based on flexible membrane wings do probably not require this standard, even when considering at larger scale. The ultimate answer on which type of technology, rigid or soft wing, is better is not yet answered.
Roland, as you mention "Heavy rigid wings ... do require aviation-standard avionics and hardware. That is technically feasible...". But is a 100% computerized control desirable? Airborne Wind Energy evolves with all technologies, in first artificial intelligence (AI). So I ask the question again, limiting it to rigid wings, knowing the progress in AI but also the high level of safety requirement for any viable AWES.
it really concern about the safty of the whole system, not only related to the flying wind turbine itself.
Generation of tropospheric wind energy, is highly profitable due the extended availability and also possible in areas with little near-surface wind. Indeed, higher and steadier power generation from HAWE can be attained due to the greater availability of persistent wind resources at higher altitudes. HAWE is generated using wing harnessing devices that are connected to a ground station by a tether. Instead of land-based wind turbines that operate near the surface, HAWE uses wings that extract kinetic energy from the wind available above the surface layer of the atmosphere and turn it into electricity with three main advantages: low equipment weigh (200 times lighter), more strong and constant wind (min 8 times), Betz advantage (min 3 times). On terms of LCA means potentially 24 times more productive with negligible material intensity.
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