S-rotor with Dynamically Adaptable blades

Started by Hoofer, May 29, 2016, 08:57:27 AM

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Hoofer

I love these ideas - it's fun stuff to play around with, fun to build, and even if the most obvious element is forgotten, they always draw attention as the next whizz-bang invention.   Found this link - warning!!!  do NOT invest a cent on this idea, it's already been tried... I'm just one of those who did... back in the 1970's.

This is an S-rotor, vertical shaft, from the top view, it literally looks like an "S", but some variations are broken and offset in the center, allowing air to pass through, which gives additional "lift" to both airfoils.

http://www.patentsencyclopedia.com/app/20160123301

Here's the problem(s), it moves.  Rotating things need to be balanced for weight and (trying to think of the term), for drag/lift across the entire apparatus.  The faster they rotate, the faster the out-of-balance portion(s) tear the thing apart.

I build a 4 barrel system out of 55 gallon drums (ignoring the warnings about balance, figuring it wouldn't turn real fast), and after putting it up, it started in a gentle breeze, and as the center bowed from a slight imbalance, the bowed section REALLY exaggerated the imbalance, and it was on the ground, throwing dirt until the turbine stopped.

I remember thinking a Darrieus Rotor was probably a better idea.

http://www.iwr.de/wind/tech/bilder/VERT_ROT.JPG

Was a little imbalance going to stop me...?  Hell no!  Laws of physics be damned! 

My next project was an all wood design, vertical rotor, 8' in diameter, 4' tall, with wooden slats angled about 45 degrees off the center line.  Wind would easily pass through the unit on one side, but the other side would "catch air".   The vertical slats of wood were 4' tall, and about 10" wide and flat (curved might have worked better.).  Initially, I wanted to make the slats hinged so they would feather when going upstream and catch 100% of the wind downstream.

Here's the issue with vertical rotors, how to make the darn thing NOT waste energy when the blades are moving upstream.    I remember thinking a Darrieus Rotor was probably a better idea.   But, I forged ahead.  Remember, this is before Auto-Cad, Visio and all the nice software to test these ideas.  There was no internet to hop on and surf for the latest idea - nope, we had Mother Earth News and magazines like Home Power were just coming on the scene.  And, if you're ever read M.E.N. - we're just one invention from energy independence, not to mention virtually unlimited, non-polluting energy has always been there, but evil energy companies are suppressing... blah, blah, the latest energy conspiracy...  We crudely drew it all up on paper, usually graph paper because it had straight lines we could scale off.  4 squares = 1 foot.

It took about 5 rotations of the big "vertical slat turbine" for me to realize the balance problem was really serious stuff... and maybe I needed to embrace the the laws of physics instead of poo-pooing them.  Centrifugal force is pretty powerful stuff.  And ... come to think of it, every time a slat moved - that movement was energy wasted.  It takes (wastes) energy to start and stop a movement, and there's also friction involved, and if all the blades don't function perfectly ... alas... this one toppled over, and dug a nice rut in the lawn - like a golfer wildly swinging away, clods of grass filled the air as each slat grabbed another handful.  Sort of reminded me of a Tornado.   I'll admit, now that mom & dad have passed on, watching this stuff self-destruct wasn't all that bad - it was hard to contain my excitement, the ear to ear grin probably gave it away, "Wow, that was neat!"

But... I remember thinking a Darrieus Rotor was probably a better idea.   Yeah, REAL engineers designed these things, not some high-school kid with too much time on his hands to raid his dad's tool box, use up all the plywood and run the electric bill sky high on a project that required weeks of endless arc welding.  Ever had your dad say, "Stop welding!!!  You doubled our electric bill - what are you making - piles of metal slag!?"  Whatever materials I could find, were either welded or glued and screwed together - in hindsight, I think Dad wanted to shake my hand, "Thanks son, that invention of your's just gave the world energy independence, peace and prospertity - hey, fellas!  This is MY boy!!!" -or- hide the welding rods & power tools.

I never got it out my system, and I remember thinking a Darrieus Rotor was probably a better idea.

Now that we live in Virgina, were there is no straight line wind, nothing but useless air turbulence, our multiple weather stations are the reminder, wind generators don't run without steady wind.  I'd still like to build a Darrieus Rotor, it's like ducks quacking, watching that thing turn slowly is a peaceful sight, much like the sound of happy ducks.  Well, I get to see the 3 little cups on the weather station turn - that's alright.
All animals are created equal; Some just take longer to cook.   Survival is keeping an eye on those around you...

Solar

What, no govt grant? Seriously, how much money the govt is willing to waste on ideas is a ruler for supposed 'Success'.
Take Tesla, a nice product, assuming the nation is packed full of billionaires willing to burn cash, then yes, Tesla has a market.
Problem is, Tesla is a niche mkt, they don't make a SUV, it's range is totally reliant on fueling stations and your ability to sit several hours while the batteries charge.
In other words, it's totally impractical, as is a mass marketed wind turbine system, compared to that of a diesel gen set and a battery bank.
Unless one lives along the coast, wind energy is a boondoggle as far as grid supply goes, though for areas that have dependable wind, it's a God send.

I was really into this stuff back in the 70s also, but like all things in Omni zine, they made the future look bright, like the lib Utopia they dreamt of, but like reality always proves, Utopia is a unachievable fantasy, but fun to pretend and play with.
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