Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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.

user:
pass:
register,


               

Wind Sail

 Sail boat power
  (+2, -1)
(+2, -1) 		  [vote for,
against]

A big sail boat with a propeller generator. Very simple in design just on a very large scale. The LARGE sail moves the boat with the wind and the large propeller in the water hooked up to a turbine to generate a lot of elecricity. Use the electricity generated to make hydrogen (much lighter than batteries) when the hyrdogen tanks are full return to port and offload. Such a scheme would have to be setup to take advantage of prevailing winds with unloading points along the way. I'm thinking such an operation could almost be totally computer controlled. For the naysayers think about the drone aircraft. This would just be a drone sailboat of huge proportion.

The sail being very large would 'capture' a lot more wind than a conventional wind turbine and turn it into energy beneath the boat. there could also be several of these turbines under the boat. To really make the idea work we could set sail using prevailing winds and turning the boat into prevailing currents. this would take advantage to both wind power and water power all at once.

—dameion, Feb 29 2004

Please log in.
If you're not logged in, you can see what this page looks like, but you will not be able to add anything.
Short name, e.g., Bob's Coffee
Destination URL. E.g., http://www.coffee.com/
Description (displayed with the short name and URL.)






       dameion -- I get it, but why can't this be a stationary wind turbine? Is the goal sailing, or is the goal hydrogen generation?
—theircompetitor, Feb 29 2004
   

       What we need is cylindrical, waterproof, frictionless ballast.
—Laughs Last, Feb 29 2004
   

       I suspect [humanzee] is related to Tom Sawyer.   

       I like this idea because of the durability of sails and propellers as compared to wind turbines. I think it is a shame that wind turbines must shut down to avoid damage during high winds. By converting the wind energy into forward motion and using the propeller as a brake, the possibility of turbine damage will be decreased.
—bungston, Dec 29 2006
   

       Sails have to "shut down" to avoid damage in high winds, too. Batten down the hatches, there's a storm a-brewin'   

       I likes it.
—BunsenHoneydew, Dec 30 2006
   

       Cool, then I could be a hydrogen pirate!
—MisterQED, Dec 10 2007
   

       Multi - function . add paying sea going experimenters and scientific sensing equipment .
—wjt, Dec 10 2007
   

       Awesome idea. Why not just run undersea cables to the installation though, and send the power to the grid? This avoids the inefficiencies associated with hydrogen production and consumption.   

       Also, LaughsLast's idea of a ballast is a good one. Think less "boat" and more "floating concrete block". Then, the wind just helps the block fight the current, so it stays in the same place and the cord idea works.
—Amall, Jul 27 2008
   


 

back: main index
business  computer  culture  fashion  food  halfbakery  home  other  product  public  science  sport  vehicle