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Chimneys do not require perfect insulators otherwise no chimneys would work. The biggest thing they do is prevent air mixing which in turn prevents a lot of ene
by bognition 9y ago
Chimneys do not require perfect insulators otherwise no chimneys would work. The biggest thing they do is prevent air mixing which in turn prevents a lot of energy exchange. This could work.
- chroem- 9y agoYou realize that other chimneys have an outside energy source and that this essentially amounts to a free energy device, right? I can scarcely believe that this is an actual level of argument that's occuring on HN.
- hn_throwaway_99 9y agoI am not qualified to evaluate the actual possibility of this device, and there are many points that don't seem plausible to me. However, the author is not arguing free energy. That would be like arguing wind turbines are "free energy". It's very clearly a solar powered device, with solar energy providing the heat that drives the air movement.
- guscost 9y agoI'm not qualified either but this is an important point, the energy is definitely available and photoelectric semiconductors are merely one way to harness it. Regarding the practical issues, what happens at night? Does it collapse under its own weight? How do you get it up in the sky in the first place?
- Thetawaves 9y agoThe upper troposphere cools as well, resulting in a maintained differential.
- indrax 9y agoThis is absolutely not a free energy device. It may be bunk, but it is an attempt at a heat engine. Or rather, an attempt to make an existing heat engine more efficient/ faster/ controlled. There is outside energy and it is already doing work. We want more heat transfer and more controllable weather.
- chii 9y agowhere is the outside energy source? If it's ambient solar light, then it hit (mostly) evenly, so can't possibily be an energy source for this chimney!
- indrax 9y agoMore light is absorbed at the bottom than at the top. This energy is already doing work as weather. If the air under the chimney needs to be warmer than the air beside it,this could be achieved with mirrors or a broad greenhouse.