In the field of engineering, scale is key. From the smallest of transistors inside nanodevices to the largest of structures like dams and skyscrapers, engineers must be able to imagine both big and small; with a field so vast it practically covers nearly all aspects of life, they must be able to adapt to all necessities that may demand their expertise. This time around, they’re tackling power—certainly not a new trail to trek for people in this discipline. What’s unique, though, is the scale at which they hope to achieve it.
China-based Mingyang Smart Energy hopes to achieve what can only be described as truly big dreams; they’re planning to create a 264-m tall (866-ft) behemoth of a wind turbine with a rotor diameter of 242 m (794 ft), capable of delivering 16 MW (16 megawatts—that’s 16 million watts) of power, enough to power 20,000 homes at once. Designated as MySE 16.0-242, its swept area alone (the area covered by all of its turbine blades as they rotate) reaches a staggering 46,000 sq. m. (495,000 sq. ft.)—more than enough to cover six soccer fields. In a year, each turbine is expected to generate 80 GWh of electricity. It beats the total expected yearly output of the company’s previous design, the MySE 11.0-203, by about 45%—all with just a 19% increase in diameter. The company also says that the turbine is expected to save around 1.7 million tons of CO2 compared to a traditional coal power plant with the same total output.
Of course, Mingyang Smart Energy isn’t the sole player in this game of upscaling offshore wind turbines. Similar companies, like GE Renewable Energy, also produce their own designs that rival the MySE 16.0-242; GE Renewable Energy’s very own Haliade-X turbine, for instance, is planned to have a tip height of around 260 m (853 ft) with a rotor diameter of 220 m (721 ft); a prototype currently deployed in the Netherlands has a tip height of 248 m (813 ft). Elsewhere, Denmark-based Vestas is planning a 15-MW turbine, while Spain-based Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy has its own plans for a 14-MW model that can be boosted to 15 MW should it need to do so.
Regardless, the company remains positive of what it can achieve for the renewable energy industry. Said Mingyang Smart Energy President and CTO Qiying Zhang: “The launch of our new largest wind turbine […] is an apt illustration of the three essential drivers to technology evolution – demand, combination, and iteration. In response to demand for anti-typhoon wind turbines in coastal Guangdong, Mingyang systematically develops high-quality products by collaborating with global supply chain partners and integrating cutting-edge technologies from industries such as aerospace, materials, and big data.” (Guangdong is a coastal province located in the southern part of China, covering about 20% of China’s total coastline; around 34.5% of all typhoons that make landfall in China land on the province, according to Dr. Xiaohong Chen and Huiwen Bai of China Water Risk.)
The MySE 16.0-242 turbine is scheduled to have a full prototype by 2022, followed by prototype installation in the first half of 2023, and commercial production by the first half of 2024.
Bibliography
- Blain, L. (2021, August 22). World’s biggest wind turbine shows the disproportionate power of scale. New Atlas. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://newatlas.com/energy/worlds-biggest-wind-turbine-mingyang/
- Chen, X., & Bai, H. (2020, October 20). Typhoons And Storm Tides Risks In Guangdong. China Water Risk. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://www.chinawaterrisk.org/opinions/typhoons-and-storm-tides-risks-in-guangdong/
- Frangoul, A. (2021, August 23). Chinese firm announces giant 264-meter tall offshore wind turbine. CNBC. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from https://www.cnbc.com/2021/08/23/chinese-firm-announces-giant-264-meter-tall-offshore-wind-turbine.html
- Mingyang Smart Energy. (2021, August 20). Leading innovation: MingYang Smart Energy launches MySE 16.0-242, the world’s largest offshore Hybrid Drive wind turbine. Mingyang Smart Energy. Retrieved September 9, 2021, from http://www.myse.com.cn/en/jtxw/info.aspx?itemid=825
