William Shepherd

This text reveals all key components of rectification, inversion, cycloconversion, and conversion circuits. It authoritatively describes switching, voltage and current relationships, and converter properties, operation, control, and performance as utilized in most practical applications. Authored jointly by a veteran scholar and an accomplished researcher in the field Power Converter Circuits highlights methods grounded in classical mathematics and includes an abundance of numerical worked examples. Features hundreds of chapter-specific problems, with solutions provided separately at the end of the book

Is wind power the answer to our energy supply problems? Is there enough wind for everyone? Is offshore generation better than onshore generation? Can a roof-mounted wind turbine generate enough electricity to supply a typical domestic household?Electricity Generation Using Wind Power (2nd Edition) answers these pressing questions through its detailed coverage of the different types of electrical generator machines used, as well as the power electronic converter technologies and control principles employed. Also covered is the integration of wind farms into established electricity grid systems, plus environmental and economic aspects of wind generation.Written for technically minded readers, especially electrical engineers concerned with the possible use of wind power for generating electricity, it incorporates some global meteorological and geographical features of wind supply plus a survey of past and present wind turbines. Included is a technical assessment of the choice of turbine sites. The principles and analysis of wind power conversion, transmission and efficiency evaluation are described.This book includes worked numerical examples in some chapters, plus end of chapter problems and review questions, with answers. As a textbook it is pitched at the level of final year undergraduate engineering study but may also be useful as a textbook or reference for wider technical studies.

How is the future world energy demand to be met? The rates of use of the fossil fuels — coal, oil and natural gas — are increasing all over the world. The remaining stocks are finite and are not renewable. This book considers the various options of renewable energy, including water energy, wind energy and biomass, solar thermal and solar photovoltaic energy. And should the nuclear option remain open? The work also examines the environmental implications and economic viability of all fossil and renewable sources, introduces more distant future options of geothermal energy and nuclear fusion, and discusses a near-future energy strategy.

A superbly illustrated account of the battles that saw the Athenians overwhelm a Spartan force in the field for the first time.During the Peloponnesian War the Athenians occupied the promontory of Pylos to counter Sparta’s repeated invasions of Attica. Over two days of fighting the small garrison beat off the Spartan army and the returning Athenian fleet won a crushing victory in the nearby waters, stranding a contingent of elite Spartan hoplites on the island of Sphacteria.With the campaigning season drawing to a close the Athenians mounted an attack on the island using an unconventional amphibious night assault. They overran the Spartan outpost covering the beaches and light-armed missile troops landed at daybreak in overwhelming numbers. The Spartans were slowly driven back to their stronghold, losing men steadily as they were prevented from engaging in the hand-to-hand fighting at which they excelled. With their commander dead and his deputy incapacitated by wounds, the 292 survivors surrendered.In this book, William Shepherd outlines this surprising blow to the Spartans’ glorious reputation, and these prestigious prisoners-of-war served the Athenians very well as bargaining counters in the diplomatic activity that punctuated the hostilities that continued for the next four years.

A highly illustrated account of the closing battle of the Greek and Persian War.Plataea was one of the biggest and most important land battles of pre-20th century history. Close to 100,000 hoplite and light-armed Greeks took on an even larger barbarian army that included elite Asian cavalry and infantry, and troops from as far away as India, with thousands of Greek hoplites and cavalry also fighting on the Persian side.At points in the several days of combat, the Persians with their greater mobility and more fluid, missile tactics came close to breaking the Greek defensive line and succeeded in cutting off their supplies. But, in a fatal gamble when he nearly had the battle won, their general Mardonius committed the cream of his infantry to close-quarters combat with the Spartans and their Peloponnesian allies.The detailed reconstruction of this complex battle draws on recent studies of early 5th-century hoplite warfare and a fresh reading of the ancient textual sources, predominantly Herodotus, and close inspection of the battlefield.

The use of the wind as an energy source is increasing and growing worldwide. Wind energy is an important non-fossil option to supplement fossil (coal, natural gas and oil) and nuclear fuels for the generation of electricity.Many parts of the world, particularly the coastlines of Western Europe, North Africa, North and South America, India, Eastern Russia, China, the Philippines, Australia and New Zealand, experience a high annual incidence of wind energy. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, together with the Republic of Ireland form a particularly windy location, being favoured with strong westerly winds. The technology of the design and installation of wind turbines and wind farms are, in fact, well established. Operational practice, though, is still being developed as engineers learn by experience.This book is written for electrical engineers concerned with the use of wind power for generating electricity. It incorporates some meteorological features of international wind supply plus a survey of the past and present wind turbines with technical assessment of the choice of turbine sites. Detailed coverage is given to the different types of electrical generator machines used and the electronic control devices employed in modern turbine systems.Importantly, this book devotes full chapters to the integration of wind farms into established electrical grid supply systems, and the environmental and economic aspects of wind generation. Engineers will be drawn to the practical approach in this book, featuring worked numerical examples — complete with answers — at the end of some chapters.

In 480 BC, the Greek and Persian fleets met in a battle in the strait between Attica and the island of Salamis. Although outnumbered, the Greeks delivered a crushing victory that ended the Persian threat to Greece. This book draws on the findings of archaeological, technological and naval research, as well as on original historical sources to vividly recreate one of the most important naval campaigns in world history.