urban wind electricity

There are some companies offering micro and small wind turbines (without conventional towers) to be used on top of urban buildings, and their goals and claims are high…

Problems

Problems related with noise, safety, aesthetics and bad performance (due to wind turbulence, building obstructions, and insufficient wind resources) have till now turned the production of wind electricity in urban environment into a mere mirage.

New Products

But… some new products are being offered or are on the verge of it.

Urban Wind Electricity Production 1Urban Wind Electricity 2 Urban Wind System 3The Windside model (from Windside Wind Turbines, a Finnish company) has a spiral-flame look…

The model proposed by AV Architectural Wind, an American company) is based on an array of micro turbines, very similar to large fans.

Aeroturbines model (from Aerocture, based on a model projected at the University of Illinois) has a complex rectangular shape. That’s just examples.

Untested products

Urban wind systems are rather experimental and typically non-tested products. Their performance and the low maintenance costs for low wind speed conditions claimed by manufacturers are yet to be tested and confirmed.

Manufacturers

The number of manufacturers engaged in urban wind turbines is rather restrict. Between the most important are...

AeroVironment (USA)
Aerotecture (USA)
Ecofys (Netherlands)
Windside (Finland)
Windsave (UK)
Renewable Devices (UK)

See also: