Thames & Kosmos WIND POWER User manual

EXPERIMENT MANUAL

Franckh-Kosmos Verlags-GmbH & Co. KG, Pfizerstr. 5-7, 70184 Stuttgart, Germany | +49 (0) 711 2191-0 | www.kosmos.de

Thames & Kosmos, 301 Friendship St., Providence, RI, 02903, USA | 1-800-587-2872 | www.thamesandkosmos.com

Thames & Kosmos UK Ltd, Goudhurst, Kent, TN17 2QZ, United Kingdom | 01580 212000 | www.thamesandkosmos.co.uk

Beaufort

number

Wind speed

km/h m/s Description Effects on land

0<1 <0.3 Calm No air movement: smoke rises vertically.

11–5 0.3 – 1.6 Gentle air Smoke drifts slightly, but wind vanes don’t move.

26–11 1.6–3.4 Light breeze Rising smoke clearly shows the wind direction. Leaves rustle

and you can feel the wind on your face.

312–19 3.4 – 5.5 Gentle breeze Tree tops, leaves, and thin branches move softly.

420 – 28 5.5 – 8.0 Moderate breeze Branches move. Loose paper is swept up off the ground.

529–38 8.0 – 10.8 Fresh breeze Larger branches and small trees start to sway in the wind.

The wind is distinctly audible.

639–49 10.8 –13.9 Strong wind Thick branches move. Umbrellas are hard to use.

750–61 13.9–17.2 Stiff wind Trees sway and you can feel resistance when walking into

the wind.

862–74 17.2–20.8 Stormy wind Even large trees are moved around and leaves and branches

are torn from trees.

975–88 20.8 – 24.5 Storm Branches break. Bricks and chimneys are damaged.

1089–102 24.5 – 28.5 Heavy storm Trees break or are even uprooted. Garden furniture is blown

away and severe damage is caused to houses.

11 103–117 28.5–32.7 Hurricane-like

storm

Severe damage to forests, roofs torn off, cars thrown out of

their lanes, thick walls damaged.

12 >117 >32.7 Hurricane Most severe storm damage and devastation, especially near

the ocean.

The Beaufort Scale

627928-03-260115

CHECK IT OUT

What’s in your experiment kit:

Checklist: Find – Inspect – Check off

No. Description Qty. Item No.

1 3-hole cross rod 4 714 127

2 3-hole dual rod (with anchor pin) 4 714 283

3 Hub 1 716 037

4 Base plate 2 703 237

5 Sticker 1 716 042

6 Tube bracket 2 716 029

7 Curved rod 3 714 285

8 Connection plate 2 702 496

9 Square frame 3 714 284

10 Small pulley 2 716 030

11 XL axle 1 703 518

12 Button pin 2 714 329

13 Battery compartment 1 716 041

14 Blue anchor pin 14 714 129

15 Motor 1 716 033

16 Medium gear wheel, blue 2 710 061

17 Red anchor pin 8 702 527

18 Small gear wheel, red 1 710 062

No. Description Qty. Item No.

19 Joint pin 1 702 524

20 Motor shaft 2 715 677

21 Shaft pin 2 702 526

22 Two-to-one connector 2 714 286

23 LED 2 704 072

24 LED cover 1 716 039

25 Plastic film 1 716 040

26 Rotor blade lock (nose cone) 1 716 038

27 Rotor blade part 1 3 716 035

28 Rotor blade part 2 3 716 036

29 Tube 1 716 028

30 Anchor pin lever 1 702 590

31 Pliers 1 710 059

You will also need:

1 x 1.2-volt rechargeable AA battery (HR6/KR6)

For some experiments: Measuring tape or measuring stick, cable tie, tape,

weight (rocks or books), two cloth handkerchiefs, fan or hair dryer, writing

pad and pen

Optional: Computer with Internet connection, smartphone, compass

1 3

18 19

20 21

22 23 24

25 26

GOOD TO KNOW ! If you are

missing any parts, please contact

Thames & Kosmos customer service.

Any materials not included in the

kit are indicated in italic script under

the “You will need” heading.

› › › KIT CONTENTS

Wind

and Its

Uses

WHAT EFFECT DOES THE WIND HAVE

AND HOW IS IT MEASURED?

The wind can have many different effects — whether as a mild,

cooling breeze, as a powerful headwind that makes it hard to ride

your bike, or even as a hurricane ripping the roofs off of houses.

As long ago as 1806, the Irishman Sir Francis Beaufort had the

idea of using the observed effects of wind for a wind speed scale.

His scale is divided into 12 levels, and is the most commonly used

wind speed scale to this day. Even though he didn’t invent the 12

divisions, he popularized their use among British sailors, for

example. In his honor, the scale is therefore known as the

“Beaufort scale.”

To calculate wind speed from Beaufort wind speed (from 1 to 12),

you use the formula V = 0.836 × B

3/2

, with B standing for Beaufort

wind strength and V for wind velocity in m/s. This will be easier if

you know the complete Beaufort scale shown on the back cover

of this manual.

WHAT CREATES THE WIND?

The surface of the Earth is enveloped in an atmosphere. Because the

strength of the sun’s radiation is different in different regions of the

Earth, those different regions are heated to different degrees. High

temperatures cause warm air to rise and air pressure to drop. On the

other hand, low temperatures make cold air sink and air pressure rise.

This creates high and low pressure areas. As a reaction to this, air

particles will move from the high-pressure areas into low-pressure

areas until the air pressure evens out. This compensatory movement is

what we experience as wind.

CHECK IT OUT

Average Annual Wind Speeds in

the United States

at 100 Meters Above Ground

Source: NREL National Renewable

Energy Laboratory Wind Speed

m/s

>10

9.5 - 10

9 - 9.5

8.5 - 9

8 - 8.5

7.5 - 8

7 - 7.5

6.5 - 7

6 - 6.5

5.5 - 6

5 - 5.5

4.5 - 5

4 - 4.5

WHAT’S HAPPENING

When the wind comes to a hill, it is pushed upward at a faster speed.

That’s why the ideal location for a wind turbine is on top of a hill. For

optimal energy production, it makes sense to take advantage of this

“hill effect.”

If you stand between high buildings (or in a narrow mountain

pass), you can notice the same kind of effect. The air is

compressed on the windward side of a building. That can

raise its velocity quite a bit as it blows between the

obstacles around it. This phenomenon is known as

the “tunnel effect.”

Here’s an example: If the normal wind speed in an

open area is 6 m/s, it can reach a speed of 9 m/s in

that kind of tunnel. Through skillful selection of a

location in a tunnel, in other words, you can

increase wind speeds quite a lot relative to the

surrounding area.

Operating the wind

turbine outside

YOU WILL NEED

› Assembled wind turbine with attached LED

› 1.2-volt rechargeable AA battery (HR6/KR6)

› Cable ties

HERE’S HOW

1. As soon as you have gotten to know your

wind turbine, you can take it outside into its

“natural” environment. Take a look out the

window. Is the wind blowing? Ideally,

maybe a light breeze (see back cover)?

Okay, time to go outside.

2. Look for a place where you can attach your

wind turbine to something like a wooden

stake or a metal pipe. Ideally, find a free-

standing lawn umbrella stand or a wooden

stake that you can pound into the ground.

In that case, be sure to remove the wind

turbine’s base plate.

Secure the wind turbine to the stake or pipe

with two cable ties. Make sure that

everything is tightly attached. If you do that, it will take a wind

strength of at least 4.5 m/s to knock your wind turbine over.

4. The best thing would be a movable attachment — in other words, if

you can easily take your wind turbine along with its stake or pipe to

another location and set it up there. If you can move it around, you

can easily find out where the wind is blowing the strongest. Right up

on top of a hill? Or at the foot of the hill, in its valley? And how

about between two buildings standing close together?

Hill effect

Tunnel effect

Warning! A few drops of rain will

not hurt your wind turbine, but it

is best to bring it inside during

constant heavy rain.

EXPERIMENT 3

Wind Power V3 Manual Inside.indd 16 7/1/16 4:32 PM

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