Bruce,
I live in 'wind farm central' (Devon, southwest UK) and have direct experience
of wind generator EMI.
The small generators (up to 50kW) almost universally use an induction principle
and are RF silent. But the type that sit on 160-300ft towers and generate in
the 1-5MW range are effectively SMPS on a stick. The generator+inverter that
converts the mechanical rotation to a steady state voltage is just like a
switch-mode power supply and is most often located at the hub - perfect for
radiating anything from the electronics! That said the EMI level is relatively
low, but detectable as a slight noise floor lift with a cyclic component out to
2-3 miles from a big wind farm array (K3 + 9ft whip antenna on SUV, 1.8-30MHz
sweep at 1-5 mile radius from the center of the wind array). Unlike domestic
SMPS they don't seem to generate major trash, so maybe the European EMI
standard is set at a good level and actually achieved (amazing!). But a top
band enthusiast won't want a wind farm closer than a couple of miles if you can
avoid it.
Just my 2c/2pence
73
David G3WGN M6O WJ6O
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