These micro wind turbines are powering homes, businesses, and public parks

The phrase wind power likely conjures images of massive spinning blades. But some companies now make micro wind turbines—tiny devices that can be installed in homes, businesses, and public parks.

“We can install inside the city, outside the city,” says Luc Eric Krief, CEO of a French startup called New World Wind. His company makes what’s called the Aeroleaf, a tiny turbine that looks like a curled leaf. When the wind blows, it spins and generates energy that can go directly to a nearby building.

The microturbines are installed in groups—either on the roof of a building or as part of what New World Wind calls a wind tree or wind bush.

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A post shared by New World Wind – USA (@newworldwind)

These sculptural installations mimic real trees and bushes. And their trunks, branches, and leaf colors can be customized to blend in with the surroundings or to draw attention. For example, a wind tree near Wichita State University in Kansas has leaves in black and yellow, the school’s colors.

And unlike solar panels, which stop producing energy at night, Krief says Aeroleaf microturbines can produce electricity 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

So micro wind turbines offer another way to produce clean energy right where it’s needed.

—ChavoBart Digital Media

This story was originally published by Yale Climate Connections.