The Bahrain World Trade Center Has Built-In Wind Turbines

Since the last few years an increasing number of green buildings are being constructed in the developed and developing world, focusing on environmentally responsible and resource-efficient design. This include everything from using locally available natural materials to generating power to meet the buildings' energy expense and reduce the dependence on the grid. While most buildings harness the energy of the sun (or avoid it), there is one that chose a very unconventional energy source, at least, for a building — wind.

The Bahrain World Trade Center, located in the seafront of Manama, Bahrain, is the first skyscraper in the world to integrate wind turbines into its design. The highly visible and dramatic wind turbines are seen as a strong iconic statement about the importance of alternative energy sources.

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Photo credit: Atkins

The two 50-story towers are linked via three skybridges, each holding a 225kW wind turbine, totaling to 675 kW of wind power capacity. Each of these turbines measure 29 meters in diameter, and is aligned north, which is the direction from which air from the Persian Gulf blows in. The sail-shaped buildings on either side are designed to funnel wind through the gap to provide accelerated wind passing through the turbines. The aerofoil like buildings ensure that any wind coming within a 45° angle to either side of the central axis will create a wind stream that remains perpendicular to the turbines. This allows the building to take advantage of 70% of Bahrain’s wind energy.

The wind turbines are expected to provide 11% to 15% of the towers' total power consumption, or approximately 1.1 to 1.3 GWh a year. The three turbines were turned on for the first time on April 2008.

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