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Nice article. The aerodynamics behind windmills are extraordinarily complex, so 500 Watts is a pretty good output!
by na85 14y ago
Nice article. The aerodynamics behind windmills are extraordinarily complex, so 500 Watts is a pretty good output!
- wildmXranat 14y agoI think 500W was for the 1/2 scale model and the final scale turbine would've been above 1kW. I still marvel at the thought of it all.
- debacle 14y ago1/2 scale = 1/4 the power, so it would be closer to 2kW.
- OmIsMyShield 14y agoYup, he said that he designed for 2.5kW @ 10m/s wind speed, doesn't mention if he achieved that, though.
- dmckeon 14y agoFTA: "In the end the machine produced 2250 Watts at 10 m/s winds ..." Cool tech - it would be interesting to see a cost/benefit analysis mapping months to break-even from local $/kWh costs and local wind speeds. We'll know that alternative energy generation has really arrived when real-estate listings include sun-exposure / insolation figures and annual wind-energy availability along with annual tax estimates and water well outputs.
- ansible 14y agoCool tech - it would be interesting to see a cost/benefit analysis mapping months to break-even from local $/kWh costs and local wind speeds. In the article he mentions they don't have grid power, so the payoff will be pretty quick vs. the generator they have. He said they used the generator a lot because their solar panels weren't enough.