WiscWind
University of Wisconsin Madison, Madison, Wisconsin
Faculty Adviser
Scott Williams, [email protected]
Student Lead
Justin Casleton, [email protected]
Vision and Mission
WiscWind believes wind energy should play a key role in the transition to clean energy, especially in Wisconsin. The wind energy industry needs many different types of professionals who are passionate about advancing technology and protecting the environment. The U.S. Department of Energy Collegiate Wind Competition (CWC) allows us to gain experience in this exciting industry while encouraging our community to embrace renewable energy and focus on environmental sustainability.
Background
WiscWind is a student organization at the University of Wisconsin Madison. The 2022 event marks our seventh time participating in the CWC. We won the Bonus Siting Challenge in 2017. To improve on our team’s effort in previous years, we have developed a more structured meeting plan, opened communication between the subteams, and reinstated an overall team lead. These actions have increased our team’s cohesiveness. The team has also increased its size through recruiting efforts.
Our CWC team is divided into four subteams: mechanical, electrical, project development, and outreach. The mechanical and electrical subteams work together on the Turbine Prototype Contest. Learning from previous competitions, we test all components as early as possible. We are working to take various prototypes that have proved effective in the past and combine them into one cohesive design.
For the Project Development Contest, the project development subteam has researched potential offshore wind energy project sites near Galveston, Texas, to narrow down a specific lease area. In the spring of 2022, the subteam will improve upon their initial site plan using Continuum 2.0 and conduct a financial analysis. Vision and Mission
The outreach subteam is responsible for Connection Creation Contest elements. The subteam partnered with the Wisconsin Energy Institute to hold an interactive wind-turbine-building activity with community members. In the future, the team is expecting to reach a wider audience for our CWC efforts with a revival of its social media accounts, a new website, and increased connections with faculty and professional organizations.
The WiscWind team starting at the back (from left): Scott Williams, Anthony Palmer, Ian Bormett, Matthew Chomniak, Zach Hennen, Teddy Hines, Bailey Fischer, Cole Zesiger, and Samuel Ast; and Sarah Gerovac, Justin Casleton, Anson Liow, Elijah Asher, Michael Schmich, Nicolas Moore-Barbosa, Danny Lasky, and Nicholas Stude.
Strategy
Our guiding principle is that hard work and passion for wind energy and renewable energy will lead to opportunities to thrive in these industries. We aim to succeed in the CWC by using an iterative process in which we design, build, test, and learn. This not only ensures a more refined version of our final products and presentations but also strengthens the problem-solving skills that our members will utilize in their careers.
We are fortunate to have facilities—including a wind tunnel—where we can build and test our designs. We have also connected with CWC alumni and wind industry experts who have given us valuable insights. WiscWind also has several returning members, from whom new members can learn while they develop the knowledge and confidence to lead the CWC team in the future.
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This content was submitted to the U.S. Department of Energy by the team. Find more information on CWC 2022.