Kathie Zipp's Blog (89)

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Kathie's Question of the day: What makes a permitting process effective?

Here's one for all you who like to look at the legal side of things.


Virginia has adopted a new permitting process to make it easier to develop wind projects.…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on November 18, 2010 at 8:41am — No Comments

Kathie's question of the day: If you were a millionaire, would your dream be green?

Here's a fun one for a Wednesday.


This guy spent ₤1 million building Britain's first all-electric super car. That's about 2 million U.S. dollars worth of engineering…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on November 17, 2010 at 9:31am — 7 Comments

Kathie's question of the day: Is global warming a threat to wind turbines?

Here we go again on day two of the week and I got another question to pick your brain with.


I read an article naming research that has found countries relying on wind energy to supply clean power are set to get less juice for their buck as global warming continues.


Apparently University of Texas (Austin) researcher Diandong Ren has found that as temperatures rise, electricity generated by wind turbines will…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on November 16, 2010 at 9:01am — 4 Comments

Kathie's question of the day: is the U.S. wind industry slowing down or picking up?

Happy hump day everyone. By lunch today we'll have made it to the halfway point in our work week. But to keep those braincells sharp enough to make it to Friday I have a question to spark some stimulation.


Is the U.S. wind industry slowing down or picking up?


If you listened to AWEA's webcast last Friday, you'll know…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on November 10, 2010 at 8:13am — No Comments

Kathie's question of the day: is the GOP shrinking the wind market?

Hey all,


I read an article concerning an interview with Angelika Pull, communications director for the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). The author spoke with Pullen about differences between wind energy development in Europe and the U.S.


Pullen says that with GOP power in the U.S. usually doesn't "bode well" for renewables. She explains that she is confident in Europe's goal of…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on November 9, 2010 at 7:35am — 3 Comments

Winnovation Challenge 2011

In February 2011, Vestas, a wind turbine manufacturer, is challenging Master’s degree students within engineering to come up with ideas that could impact the world’s wind energy market. If your concept is selected, the company will fly you out to Denmark at their expense, where you’ll present your idea to Vestas executives. You’ll compete with others from Europe, Asia, and the U.S. for a chance to win airline tickets for a trip around the world.


Vestas will host…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 20, 2010 at 1:30pm — No Comments

Concentrated Solar Power Conference and Expo Oct 25-26, Denver

A recent solar association report stated that as of March 2010 the USA had over 423MW of operational CSP in production, but 10,836MW being developed. The US CSP market presents a massive opportunity, but there are many hurdles faced in getting a project off the ground.


CSP 2010 in Denver will cover pressing issues for developing CSP projects in the USA including:


-Locating CSP land
-Getting Into The…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 19, 2010 at 2:02pm — No Comments

Is the Great Lakes Wind Project really that great?

The Lake Erie Energy Development Corporation of Northern Ohio has partnered with GE to develop one of the first freshwater wind farms in the U.S. The project will consist of 5, 4-MW direct drive offshore turbines, for a total of 20 MW in the waters of Lake Erie. Construction on the initial phase is tentatively scheduled to commence in late 2012. By 2020, LEEDCo aims to see 1,000 MW of renewable electricity being generated from lake winds and believes the economies of scale that can be…
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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 19, 2010 at 10:09am — No Comments

Sound intelligence in the search for wind power

The wind industry’s need for wind measurement has grown beyond the 60-m reach of standard meteorological (“met”) masts. To reduce uncertainty for wind projects that can cost anywhere from $100 million to $1 billion, the industry needs data from the entire rotor sweep that can’t be gleaned from 60, 80, or even…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 11, 2010 at 9:30am — No Comments

First offshore wind conference blows through Atlantic City

The first North American…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 8, 2010 at 1:23pm — No Comments

America launches its first offshore wind farm: Cape Wind

Offshore wind has been given the go-ahead for construction in Cape Cod. The nation’s first lease for commercial offshore wind energy development was signed at the American Wind Energy Association’s (AWEA) North American Offshore Wind Conference in Atlantic City. On stage in front of an eager group of photographers and… Continue

Added by Kathie Zipp on October 8, 2010 at 1:08pm — No Comments

50-MW for Washington

The 50-MW Linden Wind Project in southern Washington has completed construction. The wind farm consists of 25 REpower MM92 turbines in Klickitat County, and has been under construction since November 2009.… Continue

Added by Kathie Zipp on October 6, 2010 at 8:30am — 1 Comment

Think piston accumulators for wind turbines

Wind turbines typically use hydraulics to control yaw, pitch, and braking systems. Yaw controls keep the turbine pointed into the wind. Pitch controls adjust the angles of the blades to…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 6, 2010 at 8:30am — No Comments

Paying for 3,000 MW of wind power

The Alta Wind Energy Center, California’s largest wind energy project, is located in the Tehachapi-Mojave Wind Resource Area in Kern County, known for its wind resources. The center is a 3,000-MW wind power development initiative. Construction commenced on the initial 150-MW Alta I project in March of… Continue

Added by Kathie Zipp on October 6, 2010 at 8:00am — No Comments

AWEA Off-Shore Wind Expo - The Buzz from Day 1

After successfully launching numerous onshore projects, the U.S. wind industry is looking into utilizing its offshore energy potential. But issues with money, politics, transportation, and other schematics, this is easier said than done. "It's taking its time," as Sara Mallo of Rotor Clip puts it. The company has been part of the… Continue

Added by Kathie Zipp on October 5, 2010 at 8:07pm — No Comments

Welding challenges in the fabrication of offshore wind towers

Although the U.S. wind industry seems forever changing, one of its constants is a goal to lower costs by placing turbines in windier areas, which today means offshore. To take advantage of…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 5, 2010 at 8:30am — No Comments

Direct drive needs only half the parts of conventional wind turbines

You get the impression that wind-turbine OEMs are shying away from designs that use gearboxes. Take the Siemens SWT-3.0-101 DD for…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 4, 2010 at 8:00am — No Comments

Wind power – More efficient than you thought

Some say one technology for generating renewable power should be preferred over another because that one results in more jobs than another. To find out if that idea holds water, a team at PacifiCorp, a rate-regulated utility serving six western states, examined several generation methods. The team analyzed data to determine the…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 4, 2010 at 8:00am — No Comments

A Safer Way to Reach High Places

Aerials set up faster than cranes and let workers safely reach more areas on the turbine.…



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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 3, 2010 at 8:00am — No Comments

Forget serpentine roads! Air lift the turbines

New roads leading to wind-turbines sites are one of the biggest cost items for wind-farm owners. Tower sections and long turbine blades, more than 120 ft in some…

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Added by Kathie Zipp on October 3, 2010 at 8:00am — No Comments

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