*This wind turbine model is provided with the kind permission of Hydro Tasmania.
Please print the model from this website - the models are not available from Hydro Tasmania.
What to do
Cut out the 5 shapes (shaft, blades, two disks and Nacelle).
Using a hole punch, cut out the circles (defined by black lines) inside the disks, in the middle of the blade and at the top of the shaft. Cut out the teardrop shape at the top of the shaft.
Roll the shaft tightly with the tabs on the outside. Tape the tabs to the shaft, where the two black lines appear. Or you can cut a slit at the black lines and place the tabs inside the slit.
Place a 6cm length of plastic drinking straw into the hole at the back and top of the shaft.
Fold along the centre line on the Nacelle. Tape the tab where the black line appears.
Thread the Nacelle over the straw at the back and slot into the shaft.
Thread one of the disks onto the straw from the front, then the blades and finally the remaining disk to secure the blades.
What's happening?
You have built a model of a wind turbine which is used to create electricity.
Wind is a form of solar power. As the earth rotates and the sun heats the atmosphere, the hot air rises above cooler air, creating a current. The wind turns the blades of a turbine, which spins an internal shaft connected to a generator and makes mechanical power or electricity used to power homes and other purposes.
Wind energy is useful for making electricity because it is a renewable resource and does not create pollution or cause damage to the environment.
Wind turbines feature a number of components, including blades, a shaft, a generator and a tower. The blades look like propellers, except that instead of creating wind, they catch the wind. The shaft is connected to the blades, and it rotates as the blades turn with the wind. The shaft runs to the generator. The generator transforms the rotations of the shaft from mechanical energy into electrical energy.
Applications
Large wind farms with hundreds of turbines can produce enough energy to feed into an existing power grid, while a single turbine can supply electricity to someone living in a remote location. Wind turbines require little space and can be built on farms without disturbing agriculture or pastures.
Wind power generates less than 1% of the electricity in Australia , but more wind farms are being built every year.
Advantages of using energy from the wind:
It's free once you install the equipment
Energy from wind is renewable (ie. it won't run out)
It is very useful for remote areas that are not connected to the main electricity grid.
It is environmentally safe (ie. it produces no greenhouse gases)
Land used for wind farms can usually be used for other things as well, like farming.
Disadvantages of using energy from the wind:
The speed of the wind often changes and some days there is no wind at all
Very windy areas are hard to find, and are often near the coast where land is more valuable
It can harm wildlife (birds can land on them), so turbines shouldn't be built near bird habitats
They can be quite large and some people think they're an eye-sore
Generating energy from wind creates noise, so turbines shouldn't be built near houses
You will need the Wind Turbine PDF, scissors, hole punch, a straw and sticky tape.
Using a hole punch, cut out the circles that are defined by black lines.
Roll the shaft tightly with the tabs on the outside. Tape the tabs to the shaft.
Large wind farms with hundreds of turbines can produce enough energy to feed into an existing power grid, while a single turbine can supply electricity to someone living in a remote location.
