New high-performance turbine to be tested

IRVINE, Calif., Dec. 29 (UPI) -- Irvine-Calif.-based DeWind Inc. announced that construction of its new 2 megawatt turbine is complete.

The DeWind D8.2 was built at an offshore test site in Cuxhaven, Germany by DeWind which is a subsidiary of Composite Technology Corporation, based in Irvine, Calif.

"DeWind has recieved the initial approval of the load calculation from DEWI-OCC. The engineering team will now focus on completing the suite of calculations and tests required for full wind turbing certification," said Vic Lilly, chief technology officer for CTC. "Power curve testing will begin after the holidays and we are confident that certification will be achieved in the first quarter of 2007 due to our current engineering modeling of the excellent wind regime at the site."

The new turbine must comply with the standards set by the International Electrotechnical Commission. It uses a Voith WinDrive that converts the variable wind power to a constant speed and then converts it to electricity. A synchronous generator then connects it to the power grid directly, producing 13,800 volts.

"This is a major milestone in the introduction of utility scale wind turbines utilizing a synchronous generator connected directly to the grid. By removing power electronics and using synchronous generation the DeWind D8.2 sets a clearcloser to wind power being considered a true power plant," said Michael Porter, president of CTC and DeWind.