Darn windmills always blocking the road :D

[Scooby074]

As i said before, im a big fan of windmills. And i made this thread because alternative energy is a frequent topic of discussion on here.

Locally were in a pretty windy part of the province, and due to this, were experiencing a big surge in windmill installation. There are 2 major projects going on in my county, a 34 turbine, 51 MW install and a 30 turbine 60MW at the other end of the county.

So it was pretty cool to see the following on my way home the other day. Its a base section of a 80m GE 1.5MW turbine. (info on the turbine here GE Energy - 1.5 MW Wind Turbine Technical Specifications )Quite a sight.

Its being carried on a custom Trail King trailer that is capable of articulating on either end of the tower section, so it can negotiate some pretty tight corners. When i was watching it almost made a straight right angle turn!!! The Dutch Heavy Lift company Mammoet is handling the move and erection of the towers.

 

[Scooby074]

I got a little shutter happy when i saw this so heres a few more

 

[texasjohn]

Cool... this summer there were rigs on the interstate, almost every time I drove it in daylight, carrying two of the blades on one trailer.... usually three rigs in a row....those blades are really, really long...I'll bet I personally saw at least 100 blades being moved this way... must be a bunch of windmills somewhere north of me!

 

[tugboat-2]

Hey Scooby, . . interesting!! Not my intention to steal your thunder here, but during the past year, we've seen the same parts and pieces being hauled north through this area. Hillsburgh, just north-east of Guelph, Ontario.

You see them fully errected out in a field and cannot believe the enormous size of the tower sections when they are on that double articulated set of floats on the roadway close up and real! One guy riding high like a cowboy with a stick lifting the wires over occassionally.

Many Wind-Farms being errected here in Ontario, . . but I was never so very impressed as I was last time I visited the north point of your very own Prince Edward Island and the enormous Wind Farm(s) and various set-ups they have there,....and I might say the PEI site has been established there for many, many years, . . . and of course the perfect spot for steady high winds coming in off the sea!!!

Naturally, each time I've sat parked and witnessed the crews getting these sections through town, I have been without my camera,..so I appreciate the photos you have posted.

Once again the gigantic size of the sections is amazing!!! Thanks Scooby!

CHEERS!
. . tug

 

[Thomas]

That would be worth missing day from work watching from start to finish...driver must have steady hand.

 

[weldingisfun]

Cool... this summer there were rigs on the interstate, almost every time I drove it in daylight, carrying two of the blades on one trailer.... usually three rigs in a row....those blades are really, really long...I'll bet I personally saw at least 100 blades being moved this way... must be a bunch of windmills somewhere north of me!

You are right, Texasjohn. Take a drive on up to Amarillo and you will see hundreds of them.
What I can't understand is each time I go up there, about half of them are not turning. Maybe someone knows the reason for half being out of service?

 

[dmccarty]

I don't know for sure why the are out of service but there was an article in the Wall Street Journal a year or so ago about windmills. One of the problems with the large windmill was the blades. They were having problems building a blade the would not fail.

Which really seems strange. Yes they are large but with modern materials they can't build a blade that will last?

Later,
Dan

 

[TheKid]

That would be worth missing day from work watching from start to finish...driver must have steady hand.

Take a look at video 7 here. Both drivers have to be paying attention.

 

[Thomas]

Now that's what you call working together.

 

[The Dougster]

Windmills in Texas fer sure and they are causing me a major headaches... well, not the windmills themselves but the end result... I'm fussing about a proposed power transmission line that they want to run thru my property in Lampasas County... already have one transmission line running thru there and now they wan to put in another... Grrrrrr

 

[QRTRHRS]

I don't know for sure why the are out of service but there was an article in the Wall Street Journal a year or so ago about windmills. One of the problems with the large windmill was the blades. They were having problems building a blade the would not fail.

Which really seems strange. Yes they are large but with modern materials they can't build a blade that will last?

Later,
Dan

Modern composites and the slow turning speeds those big mills run at, that is kind of strange?

This one area I used to go through daily had about a dozen mills erected and there was always a couple sitting still.

 

[Scooby074]

Tug, no worries about thunder stealing here. Feel free to contribute anything to this thread. I created it to discuss windmills or heavy hauling or just about anything else you want to discuss

Ive been to the windmills on the eastern end of the island. Ive been there, Pretty cool install of Vestas turbines. Heres a couple pics.

Dan: the problems with the turbine blades were on a few models from a specific manufacturer. They were a low cost supplier, who manufactured blades in India. The companies name was Sulzon.

Turbines are usually stopped for maintenance, or issues with wind speed, either too much or too little.

TheKid: Cool vid. Its amazing the corners that these double articulated trailers can negotiate in a short period of time.

 

[jas67]

Check out the 510-ton steam generators that were moved (at a speed of about 3 MPH) from the port of Port Deposit, MD to TMI:
Three Mile Island: Reliability - Steam Generator Replacement
TMI Generator Off-Loaded, Ready For Trip North - Pennsylvania News Story - WGAL The Susquehanna Valley

The used purpose-built trailers with 26 axels!!!

 

[czechsonofagun]

I am sorry, I just dont like wind mills. I think they are too expensive to build and too expensive to operate. In my mind, nuclear power is the only way to go.

 

[Scooby074]

I am sorry, I just dont like wind mills. I think they are too expensive to build and too expensive to operate. In my mind, nuclear power is the only way to go.

While i agree that nuclear (with reprocessing) is the absolute best answer for base load capacity, we need a mix of renewables as well. Things like PV, wind, hydro and solar. Diversification is key.

 

[dave1949]

I am sorry, I just dont like wind mills. I think they are too expensive to build and too expensive to operate. In my mind, nuclear power is the only way to go.

It often depends on what 'expenses' are included in calculations of energy versus dollars.

For nuke power, there are the hidden costs of mining and all that results from that operation. Same for coal, but add in downstream health impacts and it's even more expensive.

I don't think it is a simple problem.

Dave.

 

[czechsonofagun]

Not trying to start flame war, gentlemen, just stated my opinion. It is far more complex problem to be addressed on few lines. Anyway, I will take a man who thinks about energy over a tree hugging freak anytime. The other day this guy made me laugh - he calculated to replace lake Anna nuclear power station would take about 50 square miles of mirrors for solar energy

My old man, who is involved with power industry all his life, says to replace 15% of Temelin - google it out - a dam in Hrensko would have to be 100 meters high and the water would flood Prague, thats the problem right there - all alternative energy sources need lot of space.

 

[dave1949]

Not trying to start flame war, gentlemen, just stated my opinion. It is far more complex problem to be addressed on few lines.

No flame intended from me. Hope you didn't take it that way.

Dave.

 

[BobRip]

Not trying to start flame war, gentlemen, just stated my opinion. It is far more complex problem to be addressed on few lines. Anyway, I will take a man who thinks about energy over a tree hugging freak anytime. The other day this guy made me laugh - he calculated to replace lake Anna nuclear power station would take about 50 square miles of mirrors for solar energy

My old man, who is involved with power industry all his life, says to replace 15% of Temelin - google it out - a dam in Hrensko would have to be 100 meters high and the water would flood Prague, thats the problem right there - all alternative energy sources need lot of space.

I am big pro nuclear. I used to work at North Anna Nuclear Power Station in VA. But if we took all the money we spend in fighting wars and put it on wind mills and solar we would be a lot better off. Let's just head oil consumption down. I am sure there are still things to learn about windmills and solar, but let's have patience and get a diverse set of power systems. I am thinking of solar hot water for my house right now.

 

[Scooby074]

Prokop, no flame wars here, I think this is a very important discussion. All sides on this issue have valid points. Its something thats important to us all. We can no longer go on ignoring where our energy comes from, and how much of it we consume. Bringing these discussions to the forefront only helps.

I do agree that some alternatives while they may be "safer" (than nuclear) in the publics eye (however factually incorrect this may be), do have unforeseen consequences. As im sure most are aware, you dont have to look much further than the Three Gorges Dam in china to see some of the issues with Hydro. Or the large areas required for some of the solar technologies being developed.

But, site selection can play a major role in reducing these consequences. There is lots of desert out there that would be perfect for solar.

Or we can spread the generation out to consumers instead of clustering it in one large site which makes even more sense in populated areas. Personal windmills or micro hydro for example.

Have a look at these "personal" solar powered stirling engines that are soon to be released Bill Gross on new energy | Video on TED.com

Personally id love nothing more than to be energy self sufficient and tell the large hydro companies to beat it, but as of now its not cost effective. I do feel that as prices come down and technology advances, this day will come.

Theres been major improvements in efficiency and production of solar panels to the point where large installations are becoming affordable. Plus advances in thin film technology that could mean solar cells being built directly into your house's building materials, like roofing and walls. The future for alternative energy looks bright.