up to october 24, the 10-kw polar small wind turbine developed independently by united power co. ltd. under china energy has been safely operating at china’s zhongshan station in antarctica for over 613 days, providing the antarctic research station with wind power generation equipment that withstands the test of on-site operation.
this unit is a result of the national key research and development program "research on key technologies of standalone operation of micro renewable energy", in which china energy’s united power co. ltd. collaborated with polar research institute of china, the national ocean technology center, and other units. drawing on its technical strength and accumulated experience, china energy’s united power co. ltd. has tackled the harsh natural conditions of extreme cold, strong winds, low pressure and low oxygen, and strong ultraviolet rays, as well as the special environments of polar day/night. through the optimization of the design of mechanical components such as blades, nacelles, and towers, as well as the electrical system, and conducting extreme low-temperature tests at minus 55 degrees celsius, they has developed this ultra-low-temperature resistant small wind turbine. the safe and reliable operation of the unit is ensured through passive tail vane yaw speed regulation, stall control, electromagnetic and mechanical braking, and other methods. to address the challenges of the unit’s own power consumption, energy consumption during the installation phase, foundation and installation forms, china energy’s united power co. ltd. innovatively proposed installation methods and repeatedly optimized the design, creating a tailor-made wind power solution for the research station that is safe, stable, and easy to maintain. this serves the development needs of "green exploration", applying precast gravity foundations to reduce the difficulty of on-site construction in the polar regions and diesel power generation emissions, protecting the antarctic surface structure to the greatest extent and marking another breakthrough in environmentally friendly wind power development.
the project has also established a multi-energy complementary polar green energy supply system combining wind, solar, and storage, contributing to the development of clean energy utilization technology in antarctica. according to calculations, this 10-kw polar small wind turbine has an annual power generation capacity of 70,000 kwh, replacing approximately 7 tons of oil used in traditional diesel power generation.