This handbook was written to serve as a siting guide for individuals wishing to install small wind energy conversion systems (WECS); that is, machines having a rated capacity of less than 100 kilowatts. It incorporates half a century of siting experience gained by WECS owners and manufacturers, as well as recently developed siting techniques. The user needs no technical background in meteorology or engineering to understand and apply the siting principles discussed; he needs only a knowledge of basic arithmetic and the ability to understand simple graphs and tables. By properly using the siting techniques, an owner can select a site that will yield the most power at the least installation cost, the least maintenance cost, and the least risk of damage or accidental injury.

Wind energy’s bestselling textbook- fully revised. This must-have second edition includes up-to-date data, diagrams, illustrations and thorough new material on: the fundamentals of wind turbine aerodynamics; wind turbine testing and modelling; wind turbine design standards; offshore wind energy; special purpose applications, such as energy storage and fuel production. Fifty additional homework problems and a new appendix on data processing make this comprehensive edition perfect for engineering students. This book offers a complete examination of one of the most promising sources of renewable energy and is a great introduction to this cross-disciplinary field for practising engineers. “provides a wealth of information and is an excellent reference book for people interested in the subject of wind energy.” (IEEE Power & Energy Magazine, November/December 2003) “deserves a place in the library of every university and college where renewable energy is taught.” (The International Journal of Electrical Engineering Education, Vol.41, No.2 April 2004) “a very comprehensive and well-organized treatment of the current status of wind power.” (Choice, Vol. 40, No. 4, December 2002)

This handbook surveys the range of methods and fuel types used in generating energy for industry, transportation, and heating and cooling of buildings. Solar, wind, biomass, nuclear, geothermal, ocean and fossil fuels are discussed and compared, and the thermodynamics of energy conversion is explained. Appendices are provided with fully updated data. Thoroughly revised, this second edition surveys the latest advances in energy conversion from a wide variety of currently available energy sources. It describes energy sources such as fossil fuels, biomass (including refuse-derived biomass fuels), nuclear, solar radiation, wind, geothermal, and ocean, then provides the terminology and units used for each energy resource and their equivalence. It includes an overview of the steam power cycles, gas turbines, internal combustion engines, hydraulic turbines, Stirling engines, advanced fossil fuel power systems, and combined-cycle power plants. It outlines the development, current use, and future of nuclear power.

Wind energy today is a booming worldwide industry. The technology has truly come of age, with better, more reliable machinery and a greater understanding of how and where wind power makes sense -- from the independent homestead to a grid-connected utility-wide perspective. Heightened concerns about our environment mean that this resurgence of interest in wind -- a natural and widespread power source -- is here to stay. Wind Power is the completely revised and expanded edition of Paul Gipes definitive 1993 book, Wind Power for Home and Business. In addition to expanded sections on gauging wind resources and siting wind turbines, this edition includes new examples and case studies of successful wind systems, international sources for new and used equipment, and hundreds of color photographs and illustrations.