Author: hkelderman

I am an aspiring photographer, and I am always looking for suggestions.
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Tech Tuesday: Bladeless Wind Turbines

When most of us think of wind energy, we think of the large, imposing, three-bladed structures that are becoming a frequent sight across the country. In the past five years, wind energy has almost doubled, but it seems that the industry might run into some problems in the future. Traditional turbines are very heavy, and often require easily-navigable roads in order to transport the materials to location. As these transportations increase, and as the cost of materials increase with the increasing size of turbines, traditional wind turbines are becoming more cumbersome than they’re worth for some communities.

With this in mind, engineers at the Spanish company, Vortex Bladeless, came up with a new design: a wind turbine without blades. At first glance, this seems like a pretty ineffective idea, but the design was inspired by the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows Bridge in 1940. The bridge collapsed as a result of vibrations generated by the spinning motion of wind as it blew past. This type of energy, known as vorticity, is how the bladeless turbine operates. As wind hits the turbine, the wind flows down the cylinder in a vortex-like motion, generating electricity by oscillating the cylinder, which in turn runs the turbine. Here is a link that explains the process in more detail.

Although this method is less effective than a standard turbine, estimated to be 70% less effective, the cost of materials is significantly less, making it an ideal option for communities without the means for a standard turbine. Not only will they cost less, but these bladeless turbines are also easier to transport, allowing for more remote villages and towns to generate clean energy.

It’s worth noting that although this may be a less effective means of renewable generation in areas like the open plains of the Midwest, it’s ideal for smaller communities in mountainous regions with little road access. This innovation is key to the success of all types of renewable energy. There is no one energy or fuel source that has the ability to do what fossil fuels have done for the world, which is why these innovations on existing green technology will allow for the continued use and growth of renewable energy around the world.

Source

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Tech Tuesday: Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion, or OTEC, is a new method of electric generation that uses the thermal differences between the warm water on the surface of the ocean and cold water in the deeper layers, as a means to generate power. There are both on-shore and off-shore designs for this type of electric generation. Below is an image depicting both types.

Offshore_OTEC_Diagram_900x489

The different temperature waters are not used directly in the system, but instead help to heat and cool the working fluid, in this case ammonia, as it goes through a closed system, passing through a turbine to generate electricity. The warm water is pumped through a coil that warms the liquid ammonia till it vaporizes, wherein it travels through the turbine. Once through, the cold water is pumped through a similar coil on the opposite end of the system that condenses the now gaseous ammonia back into a liquid state. The diagram below illustrates this process.

OTEC_cycle_from_infog_1516x1190_edit

There is not currently an OTEC plant in operation, rather there is a testing facility run by Makai Engineering that hopes to optimize all the components in the system in order for it to be effective at generating electricity. One of the more important parts are the heat exchangers, which are pretty much the sole drivers of this process. Without an efficient transfer of heat to and from the working fluid, it would fail to generate electricity.

Although there is still quite a bit of work to do, the potential benefits of this system are many. It would provide renewable, constant energy for communities located along the coast. The required resources for this process, warm and cold ocean water, are very easy to come by, and there no potential sources of pollution.

If you’d like to read more about OTEC, check out this page.

Thanks so much to all of you who read my posts, even if it is just a handful. I hope you are all learning something from these. Let me know if there is anything you’d like me to write about and I’ll be sure to include it as one of my posts. As always, please like, subscribe, and share with your friends!