Windela utility scale lighting saves energy and money
Windela has a variety of lighting products from light poles that get energy from the wind or sun and wind to light poles that save energy and money by using only LEDs. Cities, towns and communities using these poles would all save on energy costs. How much depends on the lighting solution chosen.
Two options from Windela both utilize wind or solar and wind energy and are off grid solutions. The Windela 600 uses a small wind turbine on top of the light pole to generate the energy for the light. The Windelux uses both the small wind turbine and solar panels for energy. Both light poles have batteries in the bottom of the pole to store any energy not needed immediately.
The wind turbine used has two different kinds of wind technology combined to utilize both low and high wind speeds. The first type of technology is called Savonius and has six half cylinders arranged in staggered rows. The Savonius technology works with winds between two and five meters per second ( a little over four miles per hour and a little over 11 miles per hour). The Darrieus rotor takes over when the wind speed goes over five meters per second (11 miles per hour) and up to 20 meters per second (almost 45 miles per hour) when the generator cuts off.
The Windelux adds a solar panel to the top of the light fixture on the pole that will supply 100 to 200 watts per hour per day. The amount of energy generated depends on the light conditions. The solar power augments the wind power to assure that this off grid light stays on when needed.
Both of the off grid systems have an internal electronic module controller that cuts the generator off when the wind speed gets too high. The controller also changes the three phase alternating current into 48 volts of direct current. The electronic module also monitors the system for any malfunctions or breakdowns and sends the information by radio signal to a central monitoring site.
The third lighting system is the Diodela. This system is connected to the grid but produces a 50 – 88 percent savings in energy costs. This system like the other two utilizes 84 LEDs at 75 percent power to provide light. The LEDs are staggered so that the light emitted covers a large amount of space, 25 X 6 meters or 82 feet by almost 20 feet. The LEDs themselves are expected to give 800,000 hours of light.
Whichever system is chosen, the savings in energy coupled with the savings on the power bill, would certainly up the green cred of the municipality that installs these lights. Not only that, the money saved could go to other community needs whether upgrading buildings with green retrofits or providing badly needed services for citizens.
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