[permaculture] Next Gen Wind Energy you have Never Seen
Douglas Woodard
dwoodard at becon.org
Mon Jul 21 19:24:00 EDT 2008
Lawrence, for some reason wind energy seems to attract the self-deluded
and scam artists, and these categories appear to shade into each other.
This stuff at the URL you've posted looks to me as if it falls under
these headings.
Wind power is getting to be a fairly mature field after close to 120
years of science-oriented work beginning with Poul La Cour in Denmark,
following over 1000 years of tinkering and testing by artisans.
When you see something new talked up, see if the talk links to a
discussion of the way the device works plus at least a year of tests
with data. If it doesn't, don't waste your time.
You might want to look at Paul Gipe's site
http://www.wind-works.org
click on "articles"
then "small wind"
then "inventions and questionable wind turbines"
Caveat emptor.
People who want to use wind power should read Paul's latest book, and
maybe Hugh Piggott's work via
http://www.scoraigwind.co.uk
not to mention
http://www.homepower.com
Rooftops, buildings in general and trees slow the wind and create
turbulence which is destructive to wind turbines. The power in the wind
varies directly as the cube of the windspeed; twice the speed means 8
times the power. Economic use of wind energy depends on return on
investment; long life and low maintenance. Wind energy converters need
to be up in undisturbed, smooth strong winds. That's the way to get the
most out of your investment, whther it's money or sweat and time. If you
can't get them there, solar power (photovoltaics for example) may be the
way to go.
Doug Woodard
St. Catharines, Ontario
Lawrence F. London, Jr. wrote:
>
> Next Gen Wind Energy you have Never Seen
>
> http://www.hacknmod.com/displayMOD.php?hack=1586
>
> "We've all become accustomed to seeing the typical triple blade wind farms on the horizon. Hopefully, times are about
> to change. New helix shaped, low profile wind turbine designs can easily atop any building or structure, providing it
> with power."
>
> "
> Helix Wind Turbine
> Quietrevolution QR5
> SideWinder
> Disk Wind Turbine
> Wind Belt
> "
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