Abstract

Wind energy development counts thousands of years, that is, from the starting point of the very first vertical-axis wind machines operating on the basis of drag forces, up until the current time, during which wind turbines under development have reached the scale of tens of MW. Constant evolution of the wind power concept throughout this period may be reflected in the most straightforward way by the fact that we are now arguably entering the time of fourth-generation wind power machines. From the early times of wind power exploitation, when the first vertical-axis windmills were used for grinding, to the times that electricity power generation lies on the rotation of huge epoxy-based blades reinforced with carbon fiber and the exploitation of offshore potential, humankind has encountered numerous types of wind machines and designs, which have always found an important place in the puzzle of technological development