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Due to the finite nature of non-renewable resources such as coal, oil, and gas, and the increasingly alarming effects of climate change, it has become imperative to look at alternative power sources.
One such solution is wind turbines that convert the wind’s kinetic energy into electrical energy for powering residential and commercial properties, along with other infrastructure.
With the UK undergoing significant changes when it comes to electricity generation and its plans to reach a target of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, it is shifting to cleaner and greener energy and is in the final phases of installing the world’s largest capacity of offshore wind.
The government is also pushing home and business owners in the country to generate their own clean electricity through renewable energy sources such as the wind and sun.
To make this a viable solution even when there is no wind blowing, houses and business premises with wind turbines must invest in wind turbine battery storage systems.
What are wind turbine battery storage systems? These are battery systems that use chemical reactions to safely store energy produced from the wind turbines to be used later, such as when the wind isn’t blowing, allowing for an uninterrupted power supply throughout the property.
Read on to find out how wind turbine battery storage systems work, what types of wind turbine batteries there are, their pros and cons, and much more:
The UK is Europe’s windiest country with approximately 40% of all wind energy blowing over it. This gives it an edge in using and harnessing wind energy to produce clean and green energy.
With the shift towards renewable energy resources, chances are that wind is already powering your home in the UK, at least some of the time.
Wind turbines work in a very simple way, and the stronger the wind is, the more electricity will be generated. Here’s how:
For large-scale commercial electricity generation, a cluster of wind turbines, known as a “wind farm” is used to produce energy.
When talking about a residential property or a business premises, there are 3 types of wind turbine systems: roof-mounted, standalone, and micro domestic turbines.
Roof-mounted wind turbines are installed at a height that provides adequate wind energy to generate electricity and feed it directly to a property.
These systems are easier to install and cheaper than other types, costing around £3,000 for a 1kW system. The drawback with these systems is that they are typically small and may not be able to generate enough electricity to meet your requirements.
Standalone systems, on the other hand, generate more electricity than roof-mounted wind turbines. However, they are more likely to require planning permissions and may not be as suitable for urban areas.
They cost between £9,900 and £19,000 for a 2.5kW system and between £21,000 and £30,000 for a 6kW system, and can also feature artistic and architectural designs that offer not just a functional but also an aesthetic benefit as well.
Micro domestic turbines are great for charging battery banks and cost around £800. In addition to batteries, they also require an inverter to convert the DC electricity to AC.
These systems are great at producing clean and renewable energy, but the catch is that they work only when the wind is blowing. What can you do on days when there is inadequate wind supply or when your systems are producing excess energy that is going to waste?
The answer to these problems is a wind turbine battery storage system that can be charged with electricity generated from wind turbines for later use.
Battery storage systems are becoming an increasingly popular trend in addition to renewable energy such as solar power and wind.
When it comes to the two most common battery types for wind turbine battery storage systems, lithium-ion and lead-acid are the best options.
As is apparent by their names, lithium-ion batteries are made with metal lithium, whereas lead-acid batteries are made with lead.
While both lithium-ion and lead-acid batteries are effective storage solutions, the differences in their chemistry come with differences in performance and costs.
Due to their reliability, efficiency, and longer lifespan, lithium-ion batteries are considered superior to lead-acid ones. However, since they are more expensive, it is more feasible to invest in lead-acid batteries for small off-grid storage systems that are not used as frequently and only as a backup power source.
Other than their makeup and chemistry, battery storage systems are divided into two further types: DC and AC battery systems.
DC (Direct Current) battery systems are directly connected to the wind turbines and do not require an additional inverter since they are connected before the electricity meter.
While this makes the system more efficient, it makes charging and discharging less efficient and could affect your feed-in tariffs.
Instead of being connected directly to the wind turbines, AC (Alternating Current) battery systems are connected after the electricity meter and require an AC-to-DC inverter to convert the electricity being generated into AC so that it can be used by the appliances in your property.
AC systems are costlier than DC systems but they won’t affect your feed-in tariffs since the electricity meter registers the total output of the system.
Hybrid batteries are DC and AC coupled solutions providing the best of both worlds where you can store power in the battery before it is converted into AC, do so during cheaper times, and also use them as a backup power source during power outages.
Hybrid battery systems are a great fit for both residential and commercial properties and are becoming more popular as people are becoming more aware of the technology.
A battery storage system has various features that determine how long it will work, the amount of energy it will be able to store, and much more.
When choosing the right wind turbine battery storage system for your property, there are a few specifications that you need to consider. They include:
The power rating of a battery storage system refers to the kilowatts (kW) of power that it can provide at once. In simpler terms, it tells you how many appliances it can power at once. The higher the power rating, the more appliances the system can power.
There are two capacity parameters: storage capacity and usable capacity, both of which are calculated in kilowatt-hours (kWh).
Storage capacity refers to the amount of electricity that the battery is able to store and supply to your property, whereas usable capacity refers to the amount that can actually be used, which is calculated by the depth of discharge (DoD).
On average, a typical house in the UK uses around 8 to 10 kWh of electricity each day and the maximum capacity of some of the best wind turbine batteries is 20 kWh, which is more than enough for a house and its everyday use.
The lifespan of a battery is measured in 3 ways: the expected years of operation, the expected throughput, and the expected cycles.
The expected throughput lets you determine how much electricity you’ll be able to move through the battery over its lifespan, whereas the cycles refer to how many times you can charge and discharge the battery.
The higher the number of cycles, the longer the battery storage can perform efficiently. On average, a 4kWh lithium-ion battery can reach up to 4000 cycles.
A battery storage system’s chemistry refers to the primary compound used to store electricity inside it, which most commonly are lead-acid and lithium-ion.
When it comes to comparing the characteristics of the battery, the chemistry may not be the most important since it is what determines most of the characteristics listed above, such as lifespan and efficiency.
Most lithium-ion batteries are more power-dense and do a better job at cycling, making them a better option for most uses.
Wind turbine battery storage systems vary in cost depending on several factors such as their lifespan, storage capacity, energy rating, the chemical materials with which they are made, and the manufacturer you choose.
For a home wind turbine battery system, you can expect to pay around £400 per kWh, with the prices going up around £5,500 for the high-end versions.
Whichever system you get, it is important to thoroughly research and get one that is optimised for your use.
Renewable energy can be produced using power from the wind, sun, or tides. Out of these, wind energy is one of the most commonly used energy sources in the UK because the country is particularly windy.
One of the biggest disadvantages of such renewable energy sources is that they are not available 100% of the time. For wind turbines, you need adequate wind to be constantly blowing and solar energy is available only during the day.
For these reasons, it is vital to store the energy produced by these energy sources so that they can be used later when required and as a backup power source for complete independence from the grid.
The main benefits of wind turbine battery storage systems include:
The ability to store electricity generated using wind turbines is a necessity to ensure that it can be used whenever you need it.
With batteries, the excess power is stored instead of clean and green energy going to waste. Therefore, on days when it’s less windy and the system doesn’t produce enough energy to power your property, you can use the power stored in the batteries instead of relying on the grid.
Battery storage systems enable you to become less dependent on the grid, and sometimes even completely independent of the grid.
For instance, if you live in an area where the power supply from the grid is somewhat unstable, you can gain peace of mind with a battery storage system knowing that you’ll always have an uninterrupted electricity supply to your property.
Installing wind turbine battery storage systems allows you to reduce your carbon footprint and is probably one of the biggest advantages that benefit the entire planet.
Wind turbines produce 100% clean energy, and by using battery storage systems, you can guarantee that none of it goes to waste. These systems are ideal for those who wish to minimise pollution and want to actively work towards a cleaner and greener world.
Due to the afforded flexibility, you can substantially save on your electricity costs. You can take electricity from the grid when it is the cheapest and use it during the peak periods, creating a balance between wind and grid energy at the best possible rates.
Storage batteries are estimated to reduce your energy bills by 35%, with some manufacturers claiming it can go up to 60% with efficient systems.
In addition to that, you can also sell the excess energy that you are not using to the grid and earn an export tariff on clean energy.
As with everything in life, wind turbine battery storage systems have a few drawbacks. But the good news is that, when you look at the bigger picture, they are negligible and the pros greatly outweigh the cons.
The systems are currently pricey, though much affordable than they were when first introduced to the market. Depending on how much you invest and how efficiently you use the systems, the payback time may vary and may sometimes be long.
These costs, however, must be looked at as investments since they do not just help you save costs in the future but are detrimental to the well-being of our planet.
Also, compared to wind turbine systems that last around 20 to 25 years if used efficiently, battery storage systems need to be replaced much earlier and have a lifespan of around 5 to 15 years, depending on the type of battery and how well it is maintained.
The simple answer to that is yes! Electric vehicles and wind turbines/solar panels are like a match made in heaven – both created to reduce dependence on non-renewable resources and help keep our planet clean and green.
By charging your electric car using a wind turbine battery storage system installed in your home, you can make substantial savings on your EV running costs and reduce your carbon footprint using 100% clean wind energy.
In addition to reducing carbon emissions, you will have the ability to charge your EV free of cost, making wind turbine battery storage systems a perfect accessory for your electric car.
By switching to an electric car, you are already taking a positive step towards conserving the planet’s renewable resources and protecting the environment, and combining that with clean energy will maximise the impact even further.
It is detrimental to the health and effectiveness of the wind turbine battery storage system to be installed by a certified professional who knows their job well.
The inability to install it correctly can pose a serious threat to residential and commercial properties in terms of electric shocks, fires, burns, accidents, and explosions.
Calder Electrical services provide a wide range of solutions to help you play your part in making the world a more sustainable place.
If you already have a wind turbine installed on your residential or commercial premises, installing a battery storage system could help maximise the benefits of making your own energy.
We can assess the amount of energy your wind turbines produce and install enough battery storage so that you can minimise any wastage of the energy you create. This will help lower your energy bills and make you more independent from the grid.
Contact us here or call us on 0800 612 3001 to talk to our battery storage system experts right away!
Photo by Thomas Reaubourg on Unsplash
