The "Windcatcher" design concept, a wall of small wind turbines floating in the sea, from Norwegian company Wind Catching Systems (WCS), has officially received approval from a leading global classification agency. Instead of a single, massive turbine, it will be a gigantic floating wind farm with hundreds of tiny ones stacked together.
DNV, the leading international classification organization, has certified the Windcatcher. With this approval, the design can proceed to the next phase as it is technically feasible.
According to sources, Norwegian Offshore Wind praised the Windcatcher idea and emphasized its potential to revolutionize the offshore wind sector. Ole Heggheim, CEO of WCS, stated that this is a significant step in building our first commercial demonstrator unit, marking a new era in offshore wind energy.
TOPSHOT - Electric energy generating wind turbines are seen on a wind farm in the San Gorgonio Pass area on Earth Day, April 22, 2016, near Palm Springs, California. - San Gorgonio Pass is one of the largest wind farm areas in the United States.DAVID MCNEW/AFP via Getty Images
The Windcatcher is a floating offshore wind farm design that promises to quadruple energy output by substituting several tiny 1MW wind turbines for typical, giant turbines. Compared to a typical three-blade turbine design, these inventive turbines can capture 2.5 times more energy per square meter of wind flow.
Wind turbine clusters have a distinctive soaring shape that resembles a "floating wall of wind." According to the corporation, a vast complex of small turbines will eventually produce 40MW of power.
According to sources, WCS has started applying for a license to carry out a demonstration project on the southwest Norwegian shore of Oygarden.
The company plans to install units with a maximum capacity of 126 MW soon. With funding from Norway's Enova fund of NKr9.3 million ($900,000), WCS is developing a prototype of their innovative Windcatcher design. With Windcatcher, floating wind electricity costs only between €40 and €60 per megawatt-hour.
The Windcatcher system is designed to withstand the challenging conditions of open waters. Its modular nature allows for easy expansion or contraction to meet changing energy demands, providing a sense of reassurance about its adaptability. A central substation receives connections from each unit and efficiently transfers the electricity to the grid, ensuring a reliable energy supply.
Urban-Friendly Wind Turbine
The Windcatcher is only one of the many advancements in applying wind turbines. A wind fence was also designed by a New York-based designer just last month to incorporate renewable energy into urban environments.
Sources claim that Joe Doucet created a modular barrier with vertical wind turbines that is practical and aesthetically pleasing for residences, office buildings, and hotels.
Seeing a lack of successful products, Doucet created an appealing and effective wind-distributed energy solution in 2021. He has been honing and testing his wind turbine wall concept for the past two years.
With Airiva, a company he co-founded with energy industry veteran Jeff Stone, Doucet and his team evaluated sixteen prototypes of vertical turbine blades and selected three for wind tunnel testing. A spiral arrangement of several turbine blades enhanced energy output.
When the wind fence is set up simply with eight helical blades, it generates 2,200 kWh annually. This suggests that five Wind Fence units would be needed for an average US family to live off the grid; however, as each unit is around 14 feet by seven feet, larger installations are better suited for them.
