A Preliminary Investigation of Three Advanced Wind Energy Systems for Residential and Farm Applications

This report is primarily concerned with an analysis of advanced wind driven energy systems. Three such systems, the Improved Wind Furnace System and the Wind Driven Total Energy Systems, Types I and II, for the supply of energy to electrical, space heating and domestic hot water loads are considered for New England residential and farm applications. These systems are studied with the aid of an interactive digital computer simulation (WDTEST) and an economics program (WSDECO). Although the programs incorporate some idealizations, they represent a necessary preliminary investigation of the total system and its components. The computer models are designed to be general enough to allow for wide variations of loads, component sizes, working fluids and energy costs, but specific enough to approach an optimum design point based on maximum energy efficiency or minimum total system costs. Results indicate that the Wind Driven Total Energy System, Type II model requires the least amount of auxiliary energy input to the system for all three residential and farm settings considered. However, it was found that the higher capital costs of the Wind Driven Total Energy System, Type II, did not justify its use when compared to the less energy efficient but also less expensive Improved Wind Furnace System. All Systems studied though, if mass produced, were found to be less expensive annually than the conventional electric, oil and gas energy supply systems, provided that the capital costs are amortized over a twenty year period