Smith–Putnam wind turbine

The 1.25 MW turbine operated for 1100 hours before a blade failed at a known weak point, which had not been reinforced due to wartime material shortages.

General Electric provided a generator, and Central Vermont Public Services Corporation was interested in an energy supply that could displace purchased power for meeting peak loads.

From this point on Putnam was able to enlist the services of some very talented people which included Theodore von Karman, a world-famous authority on aerodynamics, to assist in the design, parametric studies, cost analyses, site selection, and determination of wind characteristics.

In 1939, the Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratories of the California Institute of Technology (GALCIT) was approached by Palmer C. Putnam, to design the turbine.

Since the number of feasible sites for hydroelectric development was felt to be declining, the Smith company sought diversification into a new but related product line.

Due to the impending entry of the United States into World War II, some of the fundamental research and testing process was skipped so that major components could be made before wartime material shortages occurred.

No-load testing of the unit began in August 1941 to verify mechanical operation of the turbine and the blade control system.

[6] A study completed in 1945 suggested that a block of six turbines similar to the prototype, producing 9 MW, could be installed in Vermont for around US$190 per kilowatt.

[10] Although the S. Morgan Smith company had spent more than US$1.25 million on the prototype turbine, entirely private funding, it concluded that there was insufficient prospect for profit on further development.