As part of our continued mini-series on why Bitcoin is an energy solution, not an energy problem, we will be talking about one of the oldest forms of harnessed energy. We’re talking about the wind and how mining bitcoin with wind energy is likely to be a big part of the future of wind turbines.
What Is Wind Energy?
Wind energy comes primarily from the sun. As our sun heats up our planet each and every day, it causes air to heat up and cool down in different parts of our world. As that air heats up and cools down it expands and contracts and moves all over the globe. That air moving all around the globe is wind energy and we have been harnessing it to work to our advantage for thousands of years.
Harnessing Wind Energy
Humans have been harnessing the immense power of the wind for millennia. From using sails to push boats across large bodies of water to using wind energy to power windmills to grind grain, humans are no strangers to finding innovative ways to harness energy from the wind.
In the past century, we have begun to harness the power of the wind a bit more efficiently. Instead of using wind to power windmills, wind energy is now almost exclusively harnessed with the use of wind turbines to generate electricity.
Wind Turbines
Wind turbines are the primary means that humans harness wind power today. While we still use sailboats and certain air currents to fly across oceans, wind turbines are now the dominant way that humans harness the power of the wind.
Large towers with long propeller blades slow down the wind current to spin a central shaft which engages a magnetic induction generator that produces electricity.
So what do we do with that electricity once it’s been generated? We either have to use it or lose it …or somehow save it for later use?
Storing Surplus Wind Energy
Without an immediate demand for electricity generated from wind turbines, any energy that gets generated gets wasted. In order to prevent renewable energy from being wasted, we need a way to store it for later use. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done.
While the first thing that comes to mind for most when they think of energy storage is batteries, that is actually one of the least exciting developments in energy storage.
There are actually a number of exciting projects that are being experimented with that are all trying to solve the problem of the duck curve and energy storage but only one is already in use today. It’s called hydromechanical pumping.
Hydromechanical Energy Storage
Since none of the other practices for storing surplus wind energy are viable at scale yet, a rather simple approach has already been implemented in the few places where it’s possible. Water is pumped upstream to a hydroelectric dam reservoir where it is stored as gravitational potential energy. While it may seem relatively primitive, it is currently the most cost-effective way to store surplus wind and solar energy.
Some parts of the world are even experimenting with manmade reservoirs purely to store water as a gravitational battery that gets charged with surplus wind energy. This seems like exciting new tech but creating manmade reservoirs with hydroelectric dams and wind turbines to charge a gravitational battery reservoir is incredibly cost-prohibitive.
What if there was a way to just sell every last joule of surplus energy without having to take on all sorts of new risk?
Mining Bitcoin with Wind Energy
Mining bitcoin with wind energy is not the best option for consistent mining due to the low/inconsistent baseload output but it absolutely has the potential to be the solution to some of the problems facing wind energy. With such immense amounts of energy being wasted due to an imperfect way to match the supply and demand of energy in real-time, mining bitcoin with wind energy could be exactly what the industry needs.
Wind Energy Curtailment
As is the growing trend in the renewable energy sector, energy curtailment is common in wind energy as well. When renewable energy producers are producing energy at times of the day when there is limited demand, energy is produced that is wasted instead of sold to consumers.
When there is an abundance of wind and turbines are producing at full capacity, there may be too much electricity for the energy grid to handle and producers have to reduce their output. This reduction is essentially wasted energy.
“Free” Electricity
With energy curtailment taking place many places where turbines are producing electricity, there is stranded energy that just gets wasted when there is too much energy and not enough power lines to move it.
This free electricity is an opportunity for innovative bitcoin miners. It’s only a matter of time before grid operators realize that bitcoin miners at strategic points in the energy grid can put any surplus energy to work while also alleviating stress on the grid.
Bitcoin Mining Is Subsidizing Wind Energy
While mining bitcoin with wind energy may just seem like standard mining to some, mining bitcoin with wind energy is actually subsidizing the cost of wind turbines, wind energy R&D, etc. Since wind energy companies are doing all they can to stay on top of razor-thin profit margins in an increasingly competitive market, any edge that they can gain is at least worth investigating.
Bitcoin mining with wind energy ensures that energy producers have a buyer for every joule of energy that they generate. Bitcoin mining has the potential to reduce energy waste, lower costs, increase energy output, and ensure that any given energy source not only generates electricity but also revenue.
Final Thoughts
The wind is an amazing force that humans have been harnessing for centuries and beyond. As society has progressed, we have found more efficient uses of wind energy. In order to prevent the wasteful practice of energy curtailment, mining bitcoin with wind energy is the solution that can ensure that wind energy producers are able to stay in business, reduce waste and subsidize the costs associated with expanding wind energy operations.
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