h a l f b a k e r y
Nice swing, no follow-through.
idea:
add, search, annotate, link, view, overview, recent, by name, best, random
meta:
news, help, about, links, report a problem
account:
Browse anonymously,
or get an account
and write.
Login
Create account.
|
|
|
My house has two trees nearby. They are big maples, about 50ft high. Even in a gentle wind, the main trunk can be seen swaying several inches laterally at 30ft high.
A stout wire, lashed around the tree could be run into a dynamo - maybe at the top of the house, or maybe down to the ground, secured
by a cement block and with a wire trailing inside. This dynamo could power a cell to supplement the house's main power supply. Some equations I've just done - and I'm too ashamed to publish them for fear of mocking, but I think are on the right lines - suggest that a 25%-efficient dynamo could suck in and store 10kwh worth of leccy from the two trees wobbling about for the afternoon. Enough to cook supper and do the ironing. And maybe watch X-Factor too. Actually, that's a lot of juice to store in a battery. Let's say it warms the bath water instead. Simple DC immersion heater. Lovely. Greener than green.
The creaking might be a problem.
[link]
|
| |
Post your equations, we're curious. There will be a large "fudge factor" of course, but it may help identify limits to useability (tree height, pulses/day, obstructions). |
|
| |
As for storage of that energy, forget about it. Just have it spin a motor in reverse (dynamo), and gear it appropriately to get 60 Hz, with a transformer to get to 120VAC, and you could pop it right back into your main circuit breaker and spin your meter backwards (most utilities allow it, as it's needed for solar too). All those gears & transformer could be in a black-box with a little engineering. |
|
| |
On still days you could run it backwards. |
|
| |
I could watch my trees sway in silence. |
|
| |
What about coupling piezo-electric transducer(s) directly to the trunk, in some appropriate manner? |
|
| |
Could bring a whole new meaning for a treehouse. |
|
| |
Sorry, but it's somewhat baked, I think... A survivalist friend mentioned this kind of setup for "stealth power generation, for when they're lookin' for ya". Used cables down to the ground and wrapped around a "free-wheel" like a bicycles' back axle, then to a flywheel and generator. Should generate enough power to keep a battery trickle-charged, and would be ultra-cool for a camping trip. |
|
| |
Your name reminds me of something, sorry for all the "hoo rah"! |
|
| |
Isn't this just another way to harness wind power? |
|
| |
If so, it gets my vote for being green[+]
If not, it gets my vote anyway for the ingenuity [+] |
|
| |