A Danish offshore wind turbine has broken the previous world record for the highest energy generation through wind power, producing almost 216,000 kWh in 24-hours during its tests near Østerild, Denmark. MHI Vestas Offshore Wind created the 9 MW prototype of the gigantic V164 turbine. It is in fact, a reworked version of the V164-8.0 MW initially developed in 2012 and launched two years later.
There has been no competition for the turbine, as the behemoth V164 stands 722 feet (220 m) high and has 38-ton blades which are 263 feet (80 m) in length. It covers a total sweep area of 227,377 square feet (21,124 square meters) which is larger than the London Eye Ferris wheel!
The general rule of thumb in wind turbines is that larger the size, the greater is its efficiency leading to a good return on investment regarding installation and maintenance costs per kilowatts. The V164’s massive body was designed to withstand the harsh North Sea conditions. Still, it will have to be dismantled after its 25-year operational life. At that time, almost 80 percent of the turbine’s materials will be recycled.
The turbine works optimally at wind speeds of 12-25 meters/second (27-56 mph), with a minimum wind speed requirement of 4 m/s (9 mph).
Torben Hvid Larsen, the company’s CTO said,
“We are confident that the 9 MW machine has now proven that it is ready for the market and we believe that our wind turbine will play an integral part in enabling the offshore industry to continue to drive down the cost of energy.”
The energy generation record was set on 1st December 2016 by the prototype at 215,999.1 kWh per day.
You can learn more about the turbine from the following video!
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