What is the swept area of a wind turbine?

The swept area is the total area covered by rotating wind turbine blades. For example, on a turbine with a 40-meter (131 ft.) blade, you can expect the swept meter to be about 5,000 square meters.

Why do wind turbines have a larger rotor diameter?

Larger rotor diameters allow wind turbines to sweep more area, capture more wind, and produce more electricity. A turbine with longer blades will be able to capture more of the available wind than shorter blades—even in areas with relatively less wind.

What determines the power output of a wind turbine?

Swept Area and Rated Power The power output of a wind turbine is directly related to the area swept by the blades. The larger the diameter of its blades, the more power it is capable of extracting from the wind. Rotor Diameter – This number is listed on most wind turbine spec sheets.

How do you know if a wind turbine is effective?

If you want to examine the effectiveness of your wind turbine, you’ll need to be able to measure the swept area of your blades. The area of the circle generated by the blades as they sweep through the air is referred to as the swept area. How can you figure out how big a turbine’s swept area is?

What is the largest wind turbine in the world?

The MySE 16-260 earns its largest-ever tag thanks to its rotor diameter of 260 meters (853 feet) and its swept area of 53,902 square meters (580,196 square feet); it's also the most powerful wind turbine we've seen so far, offering 16 megawatts of power.

How big is a wind turbine rotor?

Early wind turbines had rotors reach a maximum of 115 meters (377.2 ft.). Today, their diameters reach up to 240 meters (787.4 ft.). The enormous rotor diameters make it easy for turbines to sweep more area and produce more power by capturing more wind. The wind turbine blades are the elongated objects protruding from the center of the motor.