Aeroturbines for Urban Application
ByOne of the biggest disadvantages of wind energy is the cost and difficulty to incorporate a traditional wind turbine system in an urban setting. Small building sites, height restrictions and dense development make it extremely challenging to incorporate a large, tall wind system into a project.
Aerotecture International has developed 1 KW and 1.8 KW areoturbines that are perfect for urban application. The 5′ x 10′ units are mounted directly to the building structure and can be mounted in a horizontal or vertical orientation. Basic requirements are minimal wind obstructions, an average site windspeed of 10 mph and a 40′ height at the installation point.
The catch is the cost, estimated to be $15,000 and $20,000, respectively, for the 1 KW and 1.8 KW models (not including delivery and install), and a windspeed requirement of 32 mph to hit their rated outputs.  According to the manufacturer, costs ‘will dramatically decrease with the advent of mass production’.
Here’s a video of the product in action:
Any thoughts?
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2 Comments
January 24th, 2009 at 6:43 am
Urban micro wind turbines or vertical axis wind turbines (VAWT) is definitely a promising development. We had explored a number of VAWTs for our brownstone in Harlem, NY and were met with a disheartening lack of knowledge and/or permitting issues. Seems like folks are concerned about the vibration and resonance for old houses - but I suspect that is a red herring and that the real reason is the newness of the technology.
Have you had any insight into any of the other products coming on the market?
My original post is here: http://greeninharlem.com/2008/04/wind-power-for-our-brownstone.html
Keep the info coming!
.//A.
January 28th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
They should be able to give you the resonance specs on the product, but I suspect that you’re right. It’s a pretty new space in the industry and there’s not a huge amount of historical data available. Most of the new products we’ve see are being produced in smaller quantities and haven’t been extensively rolled out. We’ll keep you posted, though. By the way - great blog!