Testing of small wind turbines to international standards is one of the principal ways we can insure that small wind turbines can do what their promoters claim. For decades manufactures of small wind turbines could say whatever they wanted about their wind turbines and there was no way to hold them accountable. Today--after nearly three decades of effort--there are standardized tests for measuring the performance of small wind turbines and standardized ways of reporting this performance. No one should ever buy a small wind turbine that has not been tested to international standards and the results of those tests published for the world to see.
I have a Casella CEL-464 professional-grade sound level meter for sale. I used the unit during the early 2000s to measure the noise emissions from small wind turbines.[more]
Sven Ruin brought to my attention the test summary report on Solid Wind's 14-meter diameter, 25 kW wind turbine. The report was issued in mid-2015.[more]
This study assesses the feasibility and performance of micro-wind turbines installed at different hub heights at the Toronto and Region Conservation’s Living City Campus wind field test in Vaughan,...
The Windspire is a vertical‐axis gyromill. The H‐rotor is 1.22 m (4 ft) in diameter by 6.1 m (20 ft) tall, capturing a swept area of 7.43 m2 (80 ft2). The data presented in this report was collected...
The most sophisticated and comprehensive study of small rooftop wind turbines in the Americas concludes rooftop wind turbines are "Not cost-effective at this site". . .
The acoustic noise test was conducted to the IEC 61400-11 Edition 2.1.
The French test site, SEPEN (Site Expérimental pour le Petit Eolien de Narbonne), published a performance report 28 September 2009 on Mariah's 1.2 kW Windspire. The test site is in a windy region in...[more]
Finally, after decades of effort, the American Wind Energy Association has established performance and safety standards for small wind turbines.[more]
I appreciate the vote of confidence in the Small Wind Certification Council's board of directors in appointing me to the Council. It is an honor to be nominated to be part of the commercialization of...[more]
Performance monitoring of rooftop wind turbines in Great Britain
Data on actual measured performance of small wind turbines at the Test Field for Small Wind Turbines in Zeeland, the Netherlands. The site has a very low average wind speed of only 3.8 m/s during the...[more]
Gaia-Wind II kW--Power curve and annual energy output
The Windspire is a 1.2-kilowatt (kW) vertical-axis small wind turbine. The turbine tower is 9.1 meters tall, and its rotor area is 1.2 by 6.1 meters. The turbine has a permanent-magnet generator with...
Consultants to the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative have issued a damning report on the performance of small wind turbines installed under the MTC's subsidy program.[more]
Applachian State University has tested a number of wind turbines at its Beech Mountain Small Wind Research and Demonstration Facility. ASU has published reports on both performance and noise. It is...[more]
Tests on the Whisper H40 at Applachian State University's Beech Mountain Small Wind Research and Demonstration Facility by Brent Summerville confirm earlier power curve tests on the H40 at the Wulf...[more]
Tests on the Air X at Applachian State University's Beech Mountain Small Wind Research and Demonstration Facility by Brent Summerville differ inexplicably with power curve tests on the Air X at the...[more]
he U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service has a long history of testing wind turbines at its research station near Bushland, Texas. They do good work. They're fair and...[more]
Gustavo de Marsillac Peña presented the findings from a series of laboratory tests on an Air 403 at the American Wind Energy Association's annual conference this week in Austin, Texas.[more]
While it's difficult and time consuming, author Paul Gipe finds that measuring small wind turbine noise is within the reach of amateurs and asks why manufacturers and national laboratories are not...[more]
The following article grew out of research for an extensive revision of my book Wind Power for Home & Business published by Chelsea Green. The article is essentially a report on how to test small...[more]
A Memorandum to Colleagues in the U.S. Small Turbine Industry on the Draft Performance Standard AWEA 1.2.2000[more]
There is a pressing need for an international center to test and demonstrate small wind turbines. In contrast to the medium-sized wind turbine industry, which is nearing technical maturity, small...[more]
The Inventus 5 kW power curve was measured by Windtest Kaiser-Wilhelm-Koog in Germany using 10-minute averages. Though the turbine is rated at 5 kW it produces 4.5 kW at 12 m/s using the 10-minute...[more]
