The Eiffel Tower
is greener than ever. The 125-year-old structure is partially powering itself,
thanks to two new wind turbines. The turbines
will produce about 10,000 kilowatt hours of electricity annually, enough to
power the iconic tower’s commercial activity on the first floor, which is home
to restaurants, a souvenir shop, exhibits, and pavilions.
For the City of
Lights, the turbines represent the first implementation of a series of sustainable
refurbishment upgrades to reduce Paris’s ecological footprint. Other planned green
enhancements to the world’s most famous tower include roof-mounted solar panels
to help meet the water heating needs of the pavilions, LED lighting on the
first floor to save energy, and a rainwater recovery system that not only
supplies water to the toilet facilities but also helps power the booster pumps that
pump water to the upper levels of the tower.
Urban Green Energy
(UGE), a New York-based renewable-energy design firm, designed and installed
the two VisionAIR5 vertical axis wind turbines earlier this year. Installing the
twin 17-foot structures 400 feet above ground level was no easy task for UGE.
Mounting the turbines required each component to be hoisted individually and
suspended by rope above the tower’s second level. In addition, the installation
unfolded at night to avoid interrupting the Eiffel Tower’s hours of public
operation, which closes at 11 p.m. daily.
The new turbines are
whisper silent—literally--generating about 40 decibels of sound when running at
full speed. Not only are the
crescent-shaped turbines almost inaudible, they’re not readily visible, either.
The tri-blade turbines were specially painted a grey-brown to match the hue of
the iron lattice.
As one of the most
desirable methods of renewable energy source in the world, wind energy and its
development has spurred significant growth in the global wind energy market. In
2014, the market reached $165 billion, up more than $30 billion from the
previous year. The market is expected to reach $250 billion in 2020, reflecting
a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.2%.
For our BCC Research report on wind energy, visit the following link:
Wind Energy: Global Markets (EGY058B)
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