I stumbled over this whilst doing some research on charities using seld storage, check this out.
About three weeks ago, Texas-based EEstor Inc. was granted a patent for what is being considered a form of ultracapacitor. An extremely lightweight, very high energy dense storage unit that could possibly revolutionize all industries involved in the use and storage of energy. What has gotten people so excited about this news is the impact it may have on the automobile industry as hybrid cars have long battled with the limitations of large, heavy, toxic, and expensive batteries
Capacitors are also known for being able to discharge in an instant so imagine being able to provide an electric car engine with all the energy it needs to get you going from 0 to 60 in less. Last but not least, capacitors donâ??t contain any of the harmful, toxic chemicals found in all other battery packs. Storage units that hold more, weigh less, charge / discharge instantly, never leak, and contain no toxic elements. Just imagine the possibilities for the renewable energy world. It doesnâ??t seem to get much better than that.
I really hope this is something that can be developed and we will be keeping you posted on its progress
Humans have been harnessing the winds energy for oooooh a very long time indeedy, the egyptians first used wind power by it capturing in the sails of their boats and traveling up the nile, then around 200 BC the Persian were building windmills to use the winds energy and later still modern windmills were used to saw timber, pump water and mill grain (like in Trumpton). So is it any wonder that we have returned to this idea to replace our depleating energy sources and those that are harmful to the earth?
Firstly we should look at what a wind turbine is and how it works. A pretty basic explanation of a Horizontal Axis Wind Turbine or (HAWT) is a rotating device that converts kenetic energy from the wind into power, in a windmill this power would drive the grinding machinery of a mill and in the case of a wind turbine this power is converted into electricity. But how?
inside a wind turbine
Wind blows into the surface of the turbines blades making them turn as you know, these blades are attached to a shaft inside the box that sits at the top of the turbine housing called a nacelle, a gearbox inside the nacelle then increases the speed of the wind powered rotations to drive the wind turbines generator which converts the mechanical power into electricity, which is transfered around the country due to the wind turbine being connected to the national grid. TAAADAAAA!
1. Wind makes the blades rotate
2. A shaft is turned inside the narcelle
3. A gearbox delivers extra speed
4. The generator converts the wind power into electric energy
5. A transformer converts the electricity
6. Converted power is sent out to the national grid
For the geeks among you (like me) heres a close up
internal workings of a wind turbine
Types of wind turbines
Ok so we have seen what they are, but i was surprized to find out that their were different types of wind turbine, i had only seen the great iconic white futurist monumental structures astriding the countryside. Wind turbines have come up agaisnt alot of aesthetic slurs such as ‘unsightly’, ‘ugly’ and ’scarey’ but i have to admit that from an aesthetic perspective i rather like them, they are in my eyes quite beautful, but beauty is in the eyes of the beholder and unfortunately for wind turbines this isnt a beauty contest.
The three types of turbines:
Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines (HAWT) - Wind hits the blades first before the energy travels via the tower and into the generator
Vertical Axis Wind Turbines (VAWT) - It needs a small boost of electric to get started - Wind hits the tower first and then the generator
Small wind turbines - Work in the same way as the (HAWT)
1) Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines:
Advantages: The tall tower allows access to strong wind sites, blades can be adjusted to suit, the larger the blades the bigger the energy output
Disadvantages: Difficulty operating in turbulant winds, can affect radar, it needs certain wind speed to run, the base needs to be huge to hold the heavy blades, generator and gears.
2) Vertical Axis Wind Turbines:
Advantages: They can be positoned near the ground, less imposing, blades can be avoided by birds, handle turbulant winds, start creating electricty at only 6mph
Disadvantages: Produce energy at only 50% of the efficiency of horizontal machines, they need wires to hold the massive structure in place thus a huge base as with the HWAT
VAWT the egg beater shape
Close up of a (VAWT) again for those like me (you know who you are)
Advantages: They can be fitted to the roof of homes or caravans, they last upto 20 years, cost as little as £1,200,
Disadvantages: A typical roof top installation generate 600-1000kWhrs a year way below the average Brit household usage, you need the right wind power in your area, you need planning permission, they can be noisy
Roof mounted wind turbines
Windy summary
So lets consider it all for a second, we know how they work, we know that their are different types and we are aware of the disadvatages of each, but what about the big picture?
We need a new form of energy that does’nt harm the planet, wind energy is something that we can harness and does not produce harmful waste or green house gases, it does however have a lot of dependances that do need to be adressed, the issue that the wind isnt predictable and that HWAT depend on wind strength to function otherwise we will still need harmful energy to pick up the slack. It is also disconcerting that in Denmark who lead the way in wind turbine power have not closed down a single power station even with most of its electricity coming from wind farms. We have discussed the issue of their impact on wildlife with the deaths of many birds that fly into the blades, alot of these protected species, but we have also discussed that domestic cats and cars are the biggest threat to birds not wind farms. They can also affect radars on planes if positioned to close to flight paths which could be a real issue but is something that is not widely discussed and alot of people hate the sight of them, its a bit of a marmite issue you either love em or you dont, some think that they could well be tourist attractions?.
I think the only real question is, do they actually do the job they are supposed to do? and if not why all the hype? are there better alternatives than wind farms and if so why arent we funding this research?
In the next post i’ll be looking into the governments love affair with our wind farm friends and discussing the sordid topic of coin and where it plays its part in the wind turbines futureon our green landscape.
Windy miller from Trumpton
For now i’m off to bed and for those of you just waking up heres one of fav kids programs with a conection to wind power for you to watch while nibbling on your toast. Nite nite
In an effort to make our very own bonny Scotland the green energy captial of Europe, a 17 turbine wind farm has been given the go ahead in the area of Loch-luchart. It is estimated that the new development will produce enough electricity to power 23,000 homes and create over 100 construction and full-time management jobs in the area. Local campaigners however have raised concerns over the saftey of local wild bird species such as the protected eagles, peregrine falcons and red-throated divers, with 3170 objecting against the windfarm.
Birds in US killed by wind turbines
A spokesperson from the campaigners said: “I find it astonishing that, at a time when money is scarce, this government should approve projects which can only increase our electricity bills and cause suffering to many pensioners and people on low incomes, especially since the alleged benefits of wind farms are becoming more and more doubtful.”
But should the deaths of a few protected birds really sway our decison on windfarms? after all they are the future of energy in this country.
Their have never been any questions raised against cars that kill around 80 million of brids in the US each year, or electricity wires that kill 170 million a year or tall building that kill 1 billion birds a year (do you need more?.. ok) Agricultural pesticies that kill 67 millions birds a year and lastly free ranging domestic cats that kill around 217 million birds a year, and thats in a single US state.
So are we to, ban cats? no…Â cars .. hell no…. pesticides.. wouldnt dream of it… banning windfarms that actually move us towards a better future… well yes.
The RSPCA say: Switching to renewable energy now, rather than in ten or twenty years time, is essential if we are to stabilise levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere at safe levels. Wind power is the most advanced renewable technology available at a large scale during this time period. For this reason, the RSPB supports a significant growth in offshore and onshore wind power generation in the UK.
The RSPCA give a healthy argument towards and against Wind turbines, they say that proper planning and an understanding of birds migratory patterns and with birds of prey hunting patterns would limit the number of bird casulties caused by wind farms.
If wind farms are located away from major migration routes and important feeding, breeding and roosting areas of those bird species known or suspected to be at risk, there is a strong possibility that they will have minimal impact on wildlife.
It seams that the biggest offender is the Alamont pass farm in California which is responsible for the deaths of millions of birds, the problem is that Alamont pass is as old as turbine technology gets and is a single example of bad planning and old technology.
The RSPCA said of Alamont pass: Planners failed to consider adequately the likely impact of putting hundreds, or even thousands, of turbines in areas that are important for birds of prey. Tragically, killing many hundreds of birds as a result.
Plans are to update the development by replacing the 4,000 out dated turbines with around 1,000 smaller blade turbines to minimise deaths, but is this really the answer?. Shouldnt we be looking at other methods of replacement energy other than these extreamly expensive seamingly misunderstood options.
There has been comments by members of different environmental groups agaisnt windfarms for other reasons:
“Huge amounts of tax payers money for scant environmental and electrical benefit make them a scam. Wind-farms are inefficient, destroy the landscape and far more could be achieved through energy efficiency. If you lagged the roofs of 500 homes it would have the effect of putting up one turbine. They can only work 30% of the time at very best, in Denmark it is only 17%. We have to keep other stations running, spinning in reserve, inefficiently pouring out carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide. These turbines are 22 storeys high put on hills where everyone can see them. They kill bats and birds and need 1,000 tonnes of concrete as well as a road infrastructure. It beggars belief that some environmental groups can say they are ‘green’.”__Professor David Bellamy
Even UK windfarms biggest supporter centrica has had to rethink the economics behind it.
A Centrica spokesman said the company now hopes to reduce input costs, including labour and steel. The costs of building offshore wind [farms] are at a very high level. This, coupled with the rising cost of credit given the economic situation, means that we need to revisit all our numbers to ensure that our projects are economic before we give them the go ahead.”
So based on the reality of small birds and raptor deaths and also the disruption to ocean species with the building of offshore farms planned for the near future, what are the benefits of wind farms and is the ‘green’ hype around them really true, can they really replace other forms of energy?
I have been looking around for the eco button and found that alot of the well known eco stores such as Nigels eco store and all things green charge over £14.00 not including P&P, so i decided to look else where.
Eco Button Energy Saver
If you are looking for an eco button may i recommend a few places that over them under £14.00 with free postage
I hope that this is helpful and please feel free to leave a comment to say if your ordering process and delivery was satisfactory and that the product worked.
