Plans and status of the NASA-Lewis Research Center wind energy project

As our nation's energy needs increase and our gas and oil dwindle, alternative energy sources must be investigated and developed where practical. Wind energy, being a clean nondepletable source of energy that has proven technically feasible in past efforts, is now being investigated as an alternative source of energy. In 1973 the National Science Foundation (NSF) was given the responsibility for planning and executing a sustained wind energy program. The objective of this program is to develop the technology needed to build re liable and cost-effective wind-energy conversion systems that have the potential for early and rapid commercial implementation. In January 1975 the wind energy program was transferred from NSF to the newly formed Energy Research and Development Administration (ERDA). This report describes that portion of the national five-year wind energy program that is being managed by the NASA-Lewis Research Center for the ERDA. The Lewis Research Center's Wind Power Office, its organization and plans and status are briefly described. The three major elements of the wind energy project at Lewis are the experimental 100 kW wind-turbine generator; the first generation industry-built and user-operated wind turbine generators; and the supporting research and technology tasks which are each briefly described.