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Article
An Analysis of Current and Future Wind Energy Gain Potential for Central Iowa
Journal of Thermal Engineering
  • Farrokh Sharifi, Iowa State University
  • Nicole N. Hashemi, Iowa State University
Document Type
Article
Publication Version
Published Version
Publication Date
1-1-2015
Abstract

Using a significant quantity of fossil fuels has adverse impacts on our lives and will affect future generations. Additionally, there are limited and decreasing numbers of non-renewable resources around the world. In contrast, renewable resources are not depleted and provide energy with negligible pollution. Wind energy is one of the more common renewable energy resources. This project aims to evaluate Iowa's wind energy potential and to provide suggestions to improve the future well‐being of this state. A preliminary analysis shows that Iowa has great potential for wind energy. Based on the preliminary analysis, Ames, Iowa, is selected as a case study of its potential in terms of wind energy. Some important characteristics of wind energy, such as mean wind speed, wind distribution, and wind direction are evaluated for Ames. It is observed that although Iowa has the greatest wind power capacity density in the U.S., there are some untapped places in Iowa that can be utilized to harvest wind power. Results indicate that the city of Ames is one of the places that have strong wind speeds. According to the results, if a wind farm is installed in the city of Ames, reliance on non-renewable energy resources will be considerably decreased.

Comments

This article is from Journal of Thermal Engineering 1 (2015): 245. Posted with permission.

Copyright Owner
Yildiz Technical University Press
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Citation Information
Farrokh Sharifi and Nicole N. Hashemi. "An Analysis of Current and Future Wind Energy Gain Potential for Central Iowa" Journal of Thermal Engineering Vol. 1 Iss. 1 (2015) p. 245 - 250
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/nastaran_hashemi/3/