Total new way for wind energy

This wind energy catching device, if you haven't already seen, is way beyond anything you could imagine, and apparently it not only works, but does so 2.5 times more efficient at less than half the cost of conventional bladed windmills. No less than Microsoft  is going  to invest funding for the project

Would be better for bird strike problems too!


http://www.saphonenergy.com/


Paul

They make an unqualified statement that it has no effect on birds but their demo unit is thrashing around mightily and would likely not be good for any bird that came too close. I'd want to see some serious proof that birds won't fly into it before believing them.

Even if not a perfect  solution  certainly a much , much, better one. But FWIW in my opinion, I wouldn't think a bird would miss this solid device  and so run into it. Also with that surface area to work with,  there's probably many patterns that would serve to deter the birds as does eyes painted on airplanes for example. As compared to an unexpected blade coming at them traveling over one hundred miles an hour, this device should maybe solve most of the problems with bird strikes.


Paul

pleverington wrote:Even if not a perfect  solution  certainly a much , much, better one. But FWIW in my opinion, I wouldn't think a bird would miss this solid device and run into it and so run into it. Also with that surface area to work with,  there's probably many patterns that would serve to deter the birds as does eyes painted on airplanes for example. As compared to an unexpected blade coming at them traveling over one hundred miles an hour, this device should maybe solve most of the problems with bird strikes.


Paul

I would hope so, and you may well be right, but I do think they need to do the studies first and provide the evidence rather than make an unqualified statement. Just change their website to say they have hopes but are doing the experiments before starting to sell these devices.

I despise Wind Farms and any solution would be a great improvement. Many Audubon groups are finally realizing that to wipe out endangered or threatened species is not the answer to our issues. And then it's hypocritical to have to clear-cut thousands of acres of forest to make room for these inefficient "eye-sores" and then call yourself Green!!!  There is noting green about the brown barren spaces these bird killers are occupying...Yes "Clear-cutting"!!  Just look at the Appalachians of Pennsylvania, Western Maryland and other locations where forests have been removed and ridge-tops flattened to make space for these things!! And then they always seem to place these killers on ridge-tops that are major migration routes of song birds and raptors. Last Spring I made weekly walks under one such farm on State Forest property and found plenty of death and destruction....

I'm only seeing "limited impact" as far as claims. Sounds like they know they don't have empirical data yet that would take years to gather in to make any definite claims but common sense surely to anyone would reveal that this thing would be so incredibly less of a problem for birds than a spinning bird slicing conventional bladed windmill. Personally,IMO, I don't see any problem whatsoever for a bird. They only get into trouble when they can't see anything and this windmill is totally visible and that is is wobbling would deter it as a landing perch or anything else of use for that bird. Sort of like one of those moving scarecrows. In fact these could double for that use too maybe. Well I wish them luck cause windmills as they are now are nowhere near a perfect solution. I wonder exactly how big they can make these things??


Paul

pleverington wrote: http://www.saphonenergy.com/

Hey, Paul!
Thanks for posting this.  Unfortunately, the link doesn't work as I expected it to.  All it does is take me to the Saphon Energy home page.  On that page, I did not see an explanation of the technology you are referencing.  I clicked on a couple of things there from the home page, but still did not see what you are talking about.  Do you have a more precise link that will take us directly to the explanation of the new technology?  I'd rather not have to click my way around a website to find what I am looking for.  
Thanks
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Personally, I believe that wind energy, in general, is one of the most fraudulent concepts in the "green" movement.  For some reason, people kind of just assume that it is environmentally friendly, which is most definitely not the case.  I have seen numerous wind farms up close.  And I have seen them being "built".  It is an environmental travesty.  For a deeper explanation of why I feel this way, here is something I wrote a couple of years ago on this topic.  This is based on my own in-person observation of sites that have been turned into wind farms.  

[font=arial, sans-serif]Many thousands of acres are torn up when they build wind farms. [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]The components themselves are huge!  Just the center part - the part that looks like the hub" of the windmill, is larger than a full-size tractor trailer cab!  Each of the three blades is comprised of several sections, and each section is transported individually.  This means several dozen trips - usually across the country - for every windmill that is erected.  That results in thousands of gallons of fossil fuels being burned & consumed, just to get the parts in place for a single windmill. [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]Due to the immense size of the windmill parts, a road has to be built to each windmill.  Native prairie land is torn up so that a foundation of compacted gravel can be laid for the road.  Then the site for each windmill is excavated - a process that results in the upheaval of hundreds of tons of virgin soil for each fixture. [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]The installation of roads and deep foundations is not enough.  There are deep, wide trenches dug throughout the entire windfarm. These trenches are excavated so that huge conduits can be installed.  The wires within the conduits are what carries the current, thus transporting the electricity generated by the windmill to wherever it is needed.  Each windfarm results in many, many miles of torn up habitat, just to accommodate the installation of the equipment. [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]But that environmental travesty is still not enough!  The roads that were made during the construction of each windmill are maintained forever - so that vehicles can access each windmill for service, repairs, and upgrades.  [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]Any of the habitat that was not torn up during the windfarm installation is practically useless to many species of birds and wildlife, due to the habitat fragmentation that has taken place.  Animals need large expanses of uninterrupted habitat; a bunch of little 5 and 10 acre areas, separated by compacted roads, concrete foundations, and security fences is not going to do the wildlife much good, and many of the critters that lived there before the windfarm was built will either abandon the area entirely or simply die off.  [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]So, the result is a completely devastated landscape . . . for what?  One to 1.5 megawatts per turbine?  Windmills are known for hardly producing anything, compared to the amount of electricity generated by hydroelectric dams and nuclear power.  We can tear up all of our prairie habitat, and build hundreds of windmills, and still not produce anywhere near what a dam or a nuclear generator will produce.  It's just a foolish waste of our valuable natural resources that results in a negligable gain of power production.  [/font]


[font=arial, sans-serif]Yet, many people think of wind as a "green" energy source . . . where the heck does that idea come from!  People who believe that - are they stupid, or just uninformed?  I'll bet that many of the people that think that wind is "green" have not even been present when a windfarm was being installed!  Really!   So, how the heck would they know if it is "green" or not?  And yet they dare to have an opinion on the subject, uneducated as they are.  Wind energy is not "green" at all, and the very existence of wind farms makes thousands upon thousands of acres of habitat completely useless to wildlife.  [/font]

Tom there's a glimpse of it operating in this video starting at about 23 seconds in. There is little in the way of full disclosure on it's operation...... I assume so as to protect their rights to it. But it wobbles from what I can see, and captures the full force of the wind for the area of circle it  operates in, unlike the small amount of area to the incoming wind on a typical turbine blade alone does. The wobble then drives what looks to be four pistons(look up wobble plate technology) and that pumps liquid I believe which then drives a generator.

http://www.saphonenergy.com/site/en/ill ... on.59.html

I have always felt energy generation should be done right at the source if for no other reason than to eliminate transmission losses. Some solar panels and a wind generator at every house would be the way to go. But then the poor homeowner has to come up with another 50,000 dollars. Ah well...this will be our lot someday whether we like it our not once the cheap fossil fuel energy sources run out.

Folks that have visited Amherst Island for the owls have probably noticed the windmill farm on the next island over....It's mind boggling. I feel your right we cannot go the way of forests of these behemoths.

But they say our buildings are the single biggest consumers of energy in this country...so we can do a lot at that level..


Paul