After the September 2011 battery fire in Japan, NGK halted production of the batteries and advised customers, including Xcel and 19 other customers in North America, to stop using them. NGK later determined that a faulty cell had leaked molten material, triggering a short circuit and fire.

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The decline in the output of offshore wind farms, based on a study of Danish wind farms, appears even more dramatic. The load factor for turbines built on platforms in the sea is reduced from 39 per cent to 15 per cent after 10 years. ...Overall performance of wind farms in the UK has deteriorated markedly since the beginning of the century.

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“This study confirms suspicions that decades of generous subsidies to the wind industry have failed to encourage the innovation needed to make the sector competitive. Put bluntly, wind turbines onshore and offshore still cost too much and wear out far too quickly to offer the developing world a realistic alternative to coal.”

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The analysis, penned by academics at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, expounds by saying that the toxic materials employed to build such cars exceeds traditional ones. Furthermore, fuels used to create the electricity are also important considerations, noting that if is coal then it may not be worth the environmental and economic costs.

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Advocates of small-scale wind energy production say stories like the Sousas' experience at their high-desert home highlight the challenge early adopters face when investing in a nascent industry. That includes sorting through unsubstantiated claims made by some manufacturers of wind turbines meant for backyards or city parks as well as maintaining a realistic set of expectations for the technology.

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We believe the life-span of a given population of gearboxes at a site will likely be distributed in a bell curve. In other words, a wind farm with 100 turbines may see a handful of gearbox failures the first few years of operation, with the failure rate increasing over time. ...Based on the gearboxes that have come through our facility, the majority of lifespan distribution for wind turbine gearboxes will fall between seven and 10 years.

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Not everyone believes the project is using the best possible offshore engineering principles. In particular, there are lingering concerns over the use of grout-based joints to connect turbine monopiles with transition pieces.

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According to Seco Tools, the U.S. should follow Europe’s lead in embracing efficient machining practices that decrease wind component weight and increase efficiency. Wind energy is one of the world’s fastest-growing sources of energy. According to a 2011 report provided by the World Wind Energy Association, China, the United States, Germany, Spain, and India were the top five wind power markets by total capacity in 2010. When it comes to producing wind turbine components as efficiently and inexpensively as some of these countries, however, the United States tends to lag behind. Why is that, and what can be done?

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The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences study was led by engineer Stephen Rose, who said turbines can currently withstand a top wind speed of 111mph about 300ft above the ground. This is only equal to a strong Category 2 hurricane.

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The grid battery system is designed to hold 1 megawatt in reserve at the Wailea substation at a transformer for Maui Electric Co. for an hour during top power usage.

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This extreme wave height, combined with a storm surge, caused water to enter into the tower through the inlet pipe for the power cable (the J-tube), causing the tower to fill with water, SWAY explains.

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The deal, which is still subject to final approval, will see Vestas take control of the rights to OCAS's system to prevent aerial collisions. The system is approved by aviation authorities in countries including Sweden, the US, Norway and Canada.

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"I think we have other Solyndras out there," said Representative Cliff Stearns, a Florida Republican and chairman of the oversight and investigations committee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, which held the hearing on Solyndra. "The government should not be picking winners and losers - that's what they're doing with Nissan, Tesla and Fisker," he said in an interview.

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"AMSC believes that Sinovel illegally obtained and used AMSC's intellectual property to upgrade its 1.5 megawatt wind turbines in the field to meet proposed Chinese grid codes and to potentially allow for the use of core electrical components from other manufacturers."

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While the U.S. is dumping billions of dollars into wind farms and onshore and offshore wind turbines, this energy source is being cast aside as a failure elsewhere in the world.

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Iindustry publication Recharge in May reported on the height advantage of the 120-meter all-concrete towers Acciona plans to offer. It said the higher tower height and an enormous 116-meter rotor would extend the reach of Acciona's new turbine.

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The flurry of development work is a result of the increasing number of manufacturers, which are looking for ways to differentiate themselves. Also, many of the best wind sites have already been claimed, and that has forced developers to build in places that are not quite so windy - making innovation all the more crucial for cost-effectiveness.

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"It's not new blades," said Baker. "They're applying these serrations to the trailing edge of the blades. They look like sharks teeth. We're going to have the meanest looking turbines on the East Coast." Baker said the Vinalhaven installation is only the third application of the LNTE system, worldwide.

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"The wind industry's central tenet now is that bigger is better," said John O. Dabiri, an aeronautics professor who runs Caltech's Center for Bioinspired Engineering. "It certainly goes against conventional wisdom, but we're taking the opposite perspective."

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The use of windmills to offset home power costs - and perhaps even spin the meter backward - has produced mixed results in La Plata County. "I'm disappointed in the production I'm getting," said Brad Blake, who installed a windmill 18 months ago on Florida Mesa. "It hasn't produced the power I expected."

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