Dutch company wants to use drones as wind turbines
- 6 years ago
THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS — A Netherlands-based company has conceptualized a wind farm where high-altitude drones gather the energy.
Traditional wind turbines gather most wind energy at the tip of their blades. Dutch firm Ampyx Power instead use a drone tethered to an offshore platform to gather wind energy at higher altitudes.
According to reNEWS, the concept-Airborne Wind Energy (AWE) system is deployed on floating platforms. From there, the drone would fly to an altitude of 500 meters, where it creates electricity from high-altitude winds.
Ampyx Power says the Energy Center for Research of the Netherlands calculated a virtual AWE wind farm operating near the east coast of Scotland to cost 137 Euros per megawatt hour. The company says this is cost competitive against other floating applications.
Traditional wind turbines gather most wind energy at the tip of their blades. Dutch firm Ampyx Power instead use a drone tethered to an offshore platform to gather wind energy at higher altitudes.
According to reNEWS, the concept-Airborne Wind Energy (AWE) system is deployed on floating platforms. From there, the drone would fly to an altitude of 500 meters, where it creates electricity from high-altitude winds.
Ampyx Power says the Energy Center for Research of the Netherlands calculated a virtual AWE wind farm operating near the east coast of Scotland to cost 137 Euros per megawatt hour. The company says this is cost competitive against other floating applications.