September 16, 2024 · Entrepreneurs, Innovation, Program Impact, Stories
Powering Ahead: A Spotlight on Grant Recipient Accelerate Wind
Need more proof that Alabama’s tech scene is in takeoff mode?
Look no further than Accelerate Wind, a Birmingham-based tech company uniquely harnessing wind energy to help building owners move towards net zero energy.
The company relocated to Birmingham from out of state following participation in the 2021 Techstars Alabama EnergyTech Accelerator program. Accelerate Wind Founder Erika Boeing made the decision for the company to stay following their initial SBIR/STTR supplemental grant from Innovate Alabama in 2022.
Nestled in Birmingham’s Innovation Depot where they thrive with other founders in the city’s burgeoning startup ecosystem, Accelerate Wind is developing an affordable wind turbine that installs on the edges of building roofs and is designed to complement solar.
Accelerate Wind won its Innovate Alabama SBIR/STTR Supplemental Grant to explore the defense market. The company successfully completed Phase 1, demonstrating the strong potential of its wind turbine technology as a renewable energy solution for Air Force structures and remote operations in Alabama and adjoining states.
Phase 1 results proved out the wind turbine’s alignment with the Air Force’s goals for carbon-free energy and resilience. Now, Accelerate Wind will use its Innovate Alabama Phase II SBIR grant to support the design of its full-scale pilot turbine at Air Force bases, with a goal to install in Alabama and nearby states. It also plans to develop technology to safely deploy turbines in extreme environments including vibration and noise (common issues for aircraft hangars) and extreme temperatures.
Accelerate Wind’s pilot pipeline includes an awarded pilot through the General Services Administration, several USAF sites and commercial customers with more than 1 billion square feet of space under management.
The company says solar panels are only meeting 25-40% of building energy demand on many commercial buildings, and its wind turbines have the potential to add an average of 25% additional energy generation when installed alongside solar.
Wind naturally speeds up as it travels over the edge of a roof. Accelerate Wind’s turbines are designed to be installed at the edge of a roof where wind speeds are fastest and paired with rooftop solar. Normally, turbines must be built far up in the air to capture enough energy to displace their costs, but the company leverages this speed-up to build smaller, cheaper turbines that are integrated into the architecture of the building.
Edge of roof turbines also take up space that solar panels cannot utilize, maximizing roof space by being oriented horizontally, resulting in pleasing aesthetics and cost-savings.
The turbines’ patent-pending airfoils passively increase the wind speed and allow for increased power production compared to other turbines.
The company also will use the grant to focus on areas that will help grow its work in Alabama. It will also use the grant to explore high potential pilot and growth sites inside of or nearby Alabama to potentially further boost job opportunities in the state, benefiting the overall economy as it continues to scale.
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