Through history, the use of wind power has waxed and waned, from the use of windmills in centuries past to high tech wind turbines on wind farms today, and nowhere in history is that more evident than in the last century and a half. Read on to discover many of the remarkable advances that wind power has made over this period of time.
The Department of Energy's Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has been integral to the advancement of wind energy in the United States. WETO has funded research that has improved the efficiency, sustainability, and environmental impact of wind energy. Additionally, there have been numerous milestones and advancements in turbine designs that have catapulted wind energy forward. Below are a series of case studies that highlight WETO’s historic and ongoing contributions to wind energy.
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For more than 30 years, research funded by the Wind Energy Technologies Office has addressed wind energy’s effects on wildlife and the environment. -
Airfoils are the foundation of turbine blade designs. Generating lift and drag when they move through the air, airfoils play a key role in improving the aerodynamic performance and structural durability of a turbine’s blades.
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Wind energy has joined the energy mainstream, thanks in large part to the wind integration studies funded by the Wind Energy Technologies Office. -
DOE-funded research led to wind turbine blade breakthroughs that provide more power at lower cost.
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WETO's decades-long support of modeling software helps expand wind energy industry's turbine design capabilities -
The Wind Turbine Verification Program, established in 1993, introduced electric utilities to emerging wind turbine technologies, created more confidence in wind power, and helped wind energy become the robust renewable energy resource it is today.
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The DOE-NASA Mod-Series Wind Turbine Program precedes the modern wind energy industry in the United States. For over two decades, with five distinct models built, the program helped shape a cost-competitive wind energy industry through funding and R&D. -
International collaboration supported by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind Energy Technologies Office has led to the development of standards for the wind energy industry.
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The Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) has invested in blade and drivetrain testing facilities since the 1990s, providing crucial knowledge and expertise to the ongoing expansion of commercial wind power—both domestically and globally.