Wind turbines take to the skies to seek out more power

BBC ^ | 5 March 2015 | Richard Anderson

[pabianice]

Yes, yes, how the Swells along Cape Cod and the Islands fell all over themselves to have wind turbines built offshore to tap the strong winds there. Why, Ted Kennedy himself went on a personal crusade to have as many built as possible. He often exclaimed of their efficiency and cost-free beauty, extolling his fellow multi-millionaires to join him in his crusade.

Wait. I'm wrong? Oh, never mind.

[cripplecreek]

I agree that the days of the big hydro projects are over but many smaller reservoirs east of the Mississippi could be returned to production. Just a couple years ago the DOE listed hundreds of old dams that could become effective power producers with modern state of the art retrofits.

One big advantage is the long useful lifespan of a hydro plant. As much as 100 years with basic maintenance compared to 10 to 20 years for a windmill.

Hydro isn’t portable but it does ease the burden.

[moose07]

Could be down to the design of the blade?
The smaller ones ,here, are also noisy and so rare. :)

[moose07]

Tad Kennedy probably had shares in the manufacturer.

[samtheman]

I don’t care about the birds all that much. They’ll either evolve to avoid windmills or they’ll stop pooping on my car.

But I do hate lies. And to call wind-power “free” is a stupendous lie of Global Warming proportions.

[samtheman]

You forgot the tax breaks...

You are right! I forgot the tax breaks. And they are huge.

[tpmintx]

Wind power is not free. Winds are not reliable (Source, I’m a recreational sailor).

For every Mega-watt of wind power you install, you must also install a Mega-watt of backup power, generally gas-turbines, that you can switch on as needed.

Seems like a waste, duplicate installations of power generation systems. Maybe just build a big coal plant and be done with it? Much cheaper per watt and per KWh than either wind or gas, and even more cheaper than buying both wind + gas.

[i_robot73]

Been there, done that. I guess the brain-iacs haven’t played Bioshock Infinite, or watched any recent anime (blimp lofted turbines tethered to hub)

Sticking w/ the idea, I’d love to go Fallout (mini-nuke reactors to power home, car, etc.)

[moose07]

Hyperion
"Hyperion is another very small modular reactor that produces only 25 megawatts, but what it lacks in power it makes up for in portability. The reactor vessel is only 8 feet (2.5 m) tall and 5 feet (1.5 m) in diameter, has no moving parts and can go for ten years without refueling. When refueling is needed, the reactor is returned to the factory and replaced rather in the manner of a gas bottle. This configuration not only makes it possible to build multi-reactor power plants, but the individual reactors can also be used for applications like providing heat to extract oil from shale beds, steam for industrial uses and running desalination plants."

[Disambiguator]

One of the simplest ideas being developed is the wind lens. Inspired by "experience and a eureka moment", Prof Yuji Ohya from Japan's Kyushu University is leading a team designing a conical structure placed round the turbine blades to generate low pressure and accelerate wind speed.

Anyone who has worked on carbureted vehicles could have figured this out. "Let's use a venturi!"

[moose07]

Should help protect Birds from the Vortex off the blade tips too.
Hovercraft have used the same idea for years to improve the power output from the fans.

[freedomlover]

“Should help protect Birds from the Vortex off the blade tips too.
Hovercraft have used the same idea for years to improve the power output from the fans.”

---

And to keep the eels off their tips.

[i_robot73]

Did a quick search. Looks great...on paper.

Though, I’d hate to think I’m the only one who hates the phrase ‘nuclear waste’...if it’s still nuclear, it’s definitely a waste to put it in a mountain, no (gov’t I’d suspect...dollars to doughnuts)?