Covers the classical theory for conversion of wind energy into mechanical energy, including various methods for computing loads on aerofoils. These include momentum disc theory with and without rotation, lifting line and lifting surface approaches. Classical approaches for handling the unsteady effects are discussed and illustrated. Standard control approaches for fixed wind turbines operating below and above rated wind speed are discussed. The focus is on three-bladed horizontal-axis wind turbines.

Shows how wave loads on fixed bodies can be computed, within a linear framework as well as including viscous effects. The validity of the slender body assumption is addressed and MacCamy and Fuchs’ theory is introduced to account for diameter-to-wavelength ratios which are not very small. The concepts of modal mass and loads are introduced. Nonlinear wave loads such as ringing and slamming are discussed.

The history of wind power is discussed, from pumping water that reclaimed land in the Netherlands in the 1600s to today’s megawatt-scale, grid-tied, electricity-generating behemoths. Installations in Denmark (Vindeby, Copenhagen), the US (West Texas, Wyoming, offshore Atlantic), Spain (100% wind in El Hierro), the UK (London Array, North Sea), and China (China’s Wind Base program is expected to reach 1 terrawatt of grid power by 2050) are examined as are novel horizontal-axis, vertical-axis, and vibrating turbine technologies. The number of onshore and offshore sites continues to increase the amount of grid-tied renewable energy year on year (now 10%). The problems of long-distance transmission, stranded power, and recycling are discussed.

The origin of the grid is explained, starting with Nikola Tesla and Westinghouse at Niagara Falls, high-voltage transformers, and central-power plant construction across the globe. Renewable-energy technologies are discussed, including hydroelectric dams, geothermal (Iceland, Italy, the US), and marine energy (Scotland, Canada). The advent of the modern prosumer who buys and sells power to a bi-directional grid, virtual power plants, and microgrids are examined as intermittent renewables require new means to manage distributed resources. The social consequences, reliability, and privacy issues of a growing smart grid are examined.

The history of nuclear power is examined through the work of a number of pioneering physicists, chemists, and engineers, including Marie Curie in Paris (radiation), Ernest Rutherford, James Chadwick, and John Cockcroft in Cambridge (model of the nucleus), and Enrico Fermi in Rome, New York, and Chicago (the first nuclear reactor CP-1). Albert Einstein and Leo Szilard’s cautionary letter to Franklin Roosevelt, the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos that oversaw the making of the first nuclear bomb, US Admiral Hyman Rickover’s nuclear fleet, and the transition to electricity-generating fission power by the US, UK, and Soviet Union is explored.

The ‘70s growth of “too cheap to meter” nuclear power is shown to be expensive, dangerous, and incapable of treating its own waste. Examples of the failure of the nuclear industry are given, in particular, accidents at Mayak, Cumbria, Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima, as well as numerous deep geologic repositories. The state-of-the-art of nuclear power, so-called small modular reactors, and the current slate of existing and under-development power plants are discussed. The history, design specifications, and potential for success of nuclear fusion is included with examples from JET, ITER, NIF, and others.

Some think a green future is the start of world government with distant administrators telling us what to do and think. But such thinking couldn’t be more wrong. Today, most of our energy is already controlled by distant powers, whether renewable or not, either in uncaring corporate boardrooms or by autocratic state players. If we want more control of our daily lives, smaller-sized, scalable renewable energy allows us to become self-sufficient, letting us make our own decisions about our own needs. With an off-grid power setup, no one can tell me what to do.

Most importantly, no one has to go to war again in my name to secure my energy. Conservation, the circular economy, and the concept of “negawatts” are explained using everyday examples in the house, on the road, and in modern industry. Each watt not consumed is a watt saved. Ways to save energy and money through increased efficiency and changed consumer habits are discussed as is the sharing economy that sees fewer cars needed for personal use. Modern fixes to decrease the rise of greenhouse gases are discussed and the failure of government policy to limit global warming.