Wind Farms or Coal Mines

[Diane Amberg]

Very interesting! Thanks.

[pepelect]

So now we are questioning my underutilized greatness.....maybe you should load up kungfu kowboy and go watch the turbines....if the wind is blowing.

[Diane Amberg]

Uh oh....I think the king is irritated.

[pepelect]

I will have to keep an eye on the ear tag id lady from now on.

Is there any coal in Elk County?   We are drilling for coal bed methane in the surrounding area.  Is there a vein that we could exploit for our own personal and financial goals?

If we drill an oil well in the middle of the wind farm and power the jack by wind power is it still a fossel fuel?

[Flintauqua]

Is there any coal in Elk County?   We are drilling for coal bed methane in the surrounding area.  Is there a vein that we could exploit for our own personal and financial goals?

Check out this link:

http://www.kgs.ku.edu/General/Geology/Elk/03_mine.html#OUTC

The bottom of the page speaks of coal in Elk County:

Coal occurs at several horizons in Elk County, but as far as is known only the Nodaway and Elmo coals, both in the Wabaunsee group of rocks (stratigraphic column, Pl. 1), have been mined. Schoewe (1946) presents data on the history, location of mines, production, and reserves of coal in the Wabaunsee group.

The Nodaway coal occurs in the Howard limestone formation above the Bachelor Creek limestone and below a limestone bed 4 to 5 inches thick, which is separated by about 1 foot of black fissile and gray shale from typical massive, well-jointed Church limestone above. The coal crops out at places along the edge of the Howard limestone escarpment, especially between Howard and Mound Branch of Elk River. The Nodaway coal is thin, and as far as known it was mined in a drift mine in the SE 1/4 sec. 21, T. 30 S., R. 10 E., where according to Whitla (1940, p. 36) the coal is 18 inches thick. About 4.5 miles north of Howard, in sec. 11 and 12, T. 29 S., R. 10 E., it is probably no more than 5 inches thick where a very small amount of coal was taken from several shallow pits.

Most of the coal mined in Elk County was the Elmo coal, which occurs just below the Rulo limestone (stratigraphic column, Pl. 1). The Elmo coal mines, four strip and one shaft, are in the valley of Mound Branch less than 5 miles southwest of Howard, in sec. 20 and 21, T. 30 S., R. 10 E. The coal ranges from 16 to 18 inches in thickness and was reported mined last in 1922.

According to published data, the cumulative coal production from Elk County totaled 3,615 tons from 1894 to 1902. It is known that coal was mined in the county for local domestic use as early as 1877; mining activity was discontinued in 1922. Total cumulative production of coal in the county is estimated at 10,000 tons, most of which was Elmo coal.

Elk County contains approximately 544 acres of band underlain by an 18-inch Nodaway coal bed. This amounts to about 1,220,000 tons of coal, of which at beast 50 percent, or 610,000 tons, is recoverable. The amount of land underlain by Elmo coal that is 18 inches thick is 986 acres (1.4 square miles) and contains 2,020,000 tons of coal, of which 75 percent, or 1,515,000 tons, is recoverable. Elk County, therefore, has a total recoverable measured coal reserve of 2,125,000 tons.

[Tobina+1]

Hmm.  Interesting info on the wind turbines.  But I still question about the turbines moving with the wind.  When we drive by Beaumont, they are not all facing the same way when the wind is blowing!  Some are facing in each of the 4 directions (or even diagonal to the directions).  They may move a little with the wind, but they're not like the old fashioned windmills and spin 360 degrees based on the wind direction, do they?  If so, why aren't they all facing the same direction when the wind blows?

[pepelect]

They are pretty smart. They move only to increase the minimum speed that it takes to create electricity.  If they are spinning fast enough and they are catching enough wind they won't move.  If the wind dies down they move to catch the most wind that will keep them turning.  There is a wind speed and direction device on every turbine.  If one is working it only has to move to keep working.  If there is not enough wind they shut down.  If the power is not needed it is shut down.

The coolest part is that they get priority.  The utilities have to take the wind power that is generated.  That usually means turning off other sources by the same rate saving gas, coal, and uranium.

[dnalexander]

Tobina, near me in Northern California in a place called Altamont Pass we have a large wind farm that I know has wind seeking capabilities. They are not always pointing in the same direction and I have never been able to get a certain explaination as to why that occurs.

David

[sixdogsmom]

Some may be just a little shy! 

[srkruzich]

Hmm.  Interesting info on the wind turbines.  But I still question about the turbines moving with the wind.  When we drive by Beaumont, they are not all facing the same way when the wind is blowing!  Some are facing in each of the 4 directions (or even diagonal to the directions).  They may move a little with the wind, but they're not like the old fashioned windmills and spin 360 degrees based on the wind direction, do they?  If so, why aren't they all facing the same direction when the wind blows?

You also need to realize that wind doesn't blow in one straight direction, even though it looks like it does as evidence by everything in kansas leaning in one direction .

The wind currents will swirl and come in from different diretions and the turbines detect this. ALSO they utilize a sail effect.  When you sail a boat on the ocean, you trim your sails and angle them to catch the wind at a angle. that allows for you to travel any direction you choose except directly into the wind. But you can travel into the wind if you angle it such that it drives the boat in a zig zag pattern.

That type of movement will cause the blades to spin faster too.