When the wind turbine just off Route 95 at the New England Institute of Technology automotive campus isn鈥檛 turning, it鈥檚 not for academic reasons.
The wind has to blow at least 7.8 mph for the blades to turn.
Or the wind could be blowing too hard. 鈥淲hen it reaches 56 mph, it brakes,鈥� said Michael Petit, chairman of the electrical technology department, who helped develop the institute鈥檚 green technology program.
Another time the blades won鈥檛 turn is when the tower unwinds itself. The turbine, made by Northern Power Systems in Vermont, automatically turns. 鈥淚t will spin and circle with the wind,鈥� Petit said. After four or five turns, 鈥渋t will stop and rotate the other way so the cable doesn鈥檛 get twisted around.鈥�
The tower spins so slowly that 鈥測ou wouldn鈥檛 notice it, driving by,鈥� Petit said.
Students don鈥檛 usually go inside the turbine, except for a peek. And they aren鈥檛 allowed to climb the rungs inside. Anyone who climbs has to be trained by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration, and 鈥渋t鈥檚 an expensive operation to get certified by OSHA,鈥� said Petit, who is 60 and lives in Exeter. He hasn鈥檛 been to the top. 鈥淚f there鈥檚 not an elevator, I鈥檓 not going. I鈥檓 the kind of guy, I鈥檇 get to the top and I鈥檇 forget why I鈥檓 up there.鈥�
The turbine is run entirely by Northern Power, said Trevor Atkinson, a salesman and engineer for the company, which has its headquarters in Barre, Vt.
On its website, New England Tech has a link to an animated drawing that shows how fast the wind is blowing and whether electricity is flowing from the turbine to the automotive building, or, if the turbine isn鈥檛 moving, from the power grid to the automotive building. (See for yourself here.)
The turbine rarely makes more energy than the automotive building uses, Petit and Atkinson said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not in a real good wind spot,鈥� Petit said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not there to make money.鈥�
It鈥檚 there for demonstration.
When it first went up, in August 2009, 鈥減eople stopped along the highway to look at it,鈥� Petit said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 educational to the public and students.鈥�
