Re: [silk] Free, Renewable Energy Available Everywhere But the U.S.
What is the current state of backyard hydro electric generators? Are they well packaged and as easy to use as a two-stroke diesel generator? We have the notion of "mini" hydro installations, fractional-megawatt turbines that are managed by and hooked up to the water supply for a village or group of villages. But I'm afraid I don't know anything about smaller, personal, generators. For comparison, it's possible for me to order household electricity traceable to specific sources: the normal mix (25% nuke, 71% hydro) runs about 0,20 CHF / kWh going 100% hydro would be relatively cheap: 0,203 CHF / kWh mini hydro is somewhat more expensive: 0,23 CHF / kWh solar, on the other hand, is definitely spendy: 0,95 CHF / kWh -Dave
Re: [silk] Free, Renewable Energy Available Everywhere But the U.S.
On Tue, Apr 21, 2009 at 8:33 AM, Dave Long wrote: > (same goes for hydro: we use kilometer drops in the alps for power > arbitrage. low head power generation is theoretically interesting, but if > one has the vertical and the metallurgy it's much easier to just use them > than to needlessly fight the exponents) I was reading the latest issue of National Geographic and came across a mention of a table-top hydro electric generator that is about 3-gallon in size (in the Shangri La article). What is the current state of backyard hydro electric generators? Are they well packaged and as easy to use as a two-stroke diesel generator? S. -- "You'll have to speak up, I'm wearing a towel." -- Homer J. Simpson
Re: [silk] Free, Renewable Energy Available Everywhere But the U.S.
Just off the cuff, this sounds much too good to be true: With it, you should be able to easily reach single-digits megawatt/hours of power in windspeeds as low as 10 statute-miles-per-hour, or drive a pump with thousands of horsepower of kinetic energy in those same winds. Power is cubic in wind speed; low wind speeds could yield plenty of torque, but that's why they're suitable for applications such as water pumping, not power generation. -Dave (same goes for hydro: we use kilometer drops in the alps for power arbitrage. low head power generation is theoretically interesting, but if one has the vertical and the metallurgy it's much easier to just use them than to needlessly fight the exponents)
[silk] Free, Renewable Energy Available Everywhere But the U.S.
This sounds a little too good to be true. Anybody know more? Udhay http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/4/21/722578/-Free,-Renewable-Energy-Available-Everywhere-But-the-U.S. Free, Renewable Energy Available Everywhere But the U.S. by Dry Observer Tue Apr 21, 2009 at 12:22:21 AM PDT Three days ago, an invention (patent pending) went into public domain everywhere in the world except the United States -- a design for a wind-powered energy system that can tap at least 60 times as much energy as the United States Renewable Energy Laboratories states is available in a square meter of wind. The system does this not by some magical process (it is extremely mundane) but apparently by tapping into very large volumes of moving air, as seen in the sails of large sailing ships. With it, you should be able to easily reach single-digits megawatt/hours of power in windspeeds as low as 10 statute-miles-per-hour, or drive a pump with thousands of horsepower of kinetic energy in those same winds. And, in case it needs to be repeated, anyone outside of the U.S. can use this design (patent pending in America), to the best of my knowledge, free of charge. And should prove very, very cheap to assemble. (My thanks go out to Dr. Win Wenger, whose original public-domain invention was the seed that inspired this design.) You can conceivably get away with building this system with little more than copper, sailcloth and steel... -- ((Udhay Shankar N)) ((udhay @ pobox.com)) ((www.digeratus.com))
