Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
23.3
The Retrospective in Detail
23.3.1
What Can Be Seen Today
When visiting California's wind farms in 2010, no matter which
resource area, visitors would quickly recognise which concepts
and turbine designs, respectively, survived and still operate today.
The many turbines whirling away today on the rolling hills and
plains deserts are mainly, without surprise, of Danish origin. The
Danish dominance of the 1980s has survived until today. When
driving the roads leading through the resource areas, all steps
of Danish development of three decades can be spotted. Danish
machines have also found their way to newer sites like Pacheco
Pass,
Solano County and several minor places in California.
American representation can be limited to two companies
whose turbines still cover the landscape: USWP (Kenetech) and
Enertech. All remaining designs did not survive the 1980s or
disappeared throughout the 1990s or 2000s. Of the other European
designs, the German MAN Aeroman and Renck-Tacke
7
8
units in
Tehachapi and the Scottish Howden (inoperative) at Altamont can
still be spotted.
American Enertech E-4 4 40 kW turbines operating at Alta-
mont Pass, 2010. Note the blade tip brakes (Photo: Arne
Jaeger).
Figure 23.12
7
Among other Danish models, Wincon delivered 87 units to a site in Pacheco
Pass in 1987.
8
Renck-Tacke was the predecessor of the later famous German Tacke.
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