Jul 24, 2009 2:05 pm US/Eastern
City Wind Turbines Studied At Museum Of Science
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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More and more rooftop wind turbines are popping up around Boston, like this one on top of City Hall.
WBZ
The Museum of Science in Boston isn't just teaching the public about science these days. They're doing science projects of their own.
"We said, hey wait a second. Let's take what we thought was a clean energy project and let's turn it into a laboratory. It's a big science project," said the museum's green guru, David Rabkin.
URBAN TURBINES ARE NEW OPTION
The museum wanted to harness the wind to help offset their energy needs. While investigating the possibilities, it became evident that little was known about the effectiveness of small scale wind turbines mounted to buildings.
So, they decided to change that. Now under construction is the first urban based rooftop wind lab in the country. By the end of the summer, nine wind turbines of five different types will gather the city winds, whipping them into energy.
"There is not that much experience with small wind turbines, particularly building mounted small wind turbines," said Rabkin.
Yet they are popping up all over the city - on top of City Hall, lined up on Massport buildings, and keeping watch over Harvard Square.
"You have to understand how much power the turbine can generate and how much wind you got," he added. "It's a function of the location and the wind turbine," Rabkin said.
LITTLE PRECEDENT
Data on how well these small scale wind turbines work in an urban setting does not exist. "Each one of these city sites represent an experiment," said Rabkin.
Wind is tricky business. Before conceiving the wind lab, the museum measured the wind for a year. Based on the data, the average wind speed on the roof is roughly 11 mph. Now, that potential is being spun into energy.
SMALL TURBINES, LARGE AMOUNTS OF DATA
One turbine looks like an egg beater. Rabkin says it spins on a vertical axis. "In principal, it will start spinning at a lower wind speed than the others and low wind performance is really important in the urban setting," he explained.
An anemometer and wind vane sit next to each wind turbine to track winds specific to the device. Data collection will officially begin this fall and will feed into a tandem public exhibit called
"Catching the Wind."
The museum hopes to have useable data to share with the professional community by the winter months.
"What we learn from the wind lab is really going to help everyone - Cambridge, Boston and beyond," Rabkin concluded.
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