You're swimming upstream against the "Agenda Gap" John. :-) Some Solar Storage info:
http://www.ces.purdue.edu/extmedia/AE/AE-89.html Frederick > [Original Message] > From: John Steck <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > To: <[email protected]> > Date: 9/15/05 11:12:38 AM > Subject: Open Source Energy Project Proposal > > Ahhhh.... I almost forgot this was a science/engineering discussion list. > 8^) > > Thank you very much for tossing this one in Michael. Lets start with a > practical application and work backwards to 'how'. I want to generate 100 > kWh of electricity per day on a 12,000 sqft lot in a residential suburb of > Chicago. Excess to be dumped into a storage system or sold back to the > grid. > > Some ideas: > 1) Solar cell electrolysis to feed a fuel cell stack. > 2) Solar thermal to drive a sterling generator. > 3) Solar thermal to steam drive a bladeless turbine generator. > 4) Solar thermal to dump into a geological reservoir to drive a Sterling > generator and/or heat pump system > 5) Solar thermal to produce ethanol from biomass to drive an ICE/Sterling > generator. > 6) ? > > I am with Fred on this one... Looking for something to fill the immediate > need that is not prohibitive in cost or complexity, relatively safe, and > that can be ready in time to offset energy needs this winter. CF ain't it. > Lets please stop the mindless religious, political, and conspiracy debates > and get working on something that will actually make a positive impact right > now. > > Just my 2 cents. Anyone else interested in participating in an open-source > project like this? Happy to contribute all the resources at my disposal to > the effort. > > -john > > ~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~ > John Steck > High Impact Product Development Services > DESIGN - ENGINEERING - MANUFACTURING - MARKETING > ~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~ > > Quality is never an accident; > it is always the result of high intention, > sincere effort, intelligent direction, > and skillful execution. > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Michael Foster [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Thursday, September 15, 2005 12:47 AM > To: [email protected] > Subject: Fresnel Dream > > > > A number of recent posts on this list have concerned various schemes to use > solar concentrators. This is something I've been fascinated with and have > played around with all my life. > > I own a company that manufactures, among other things, fresnel lens arrays. > Unfortunately, these have been used exclusively for rather > trivial decorative purposes. Their main form has been arrays of metallized > negative fresnels. This is quite attractive and results in a rather > convincing and compelling 3D illusion of a shiny metal ball floating behind > the surface of the substrate. You can seen the results of my work on the > cover of the latest Guiness Book of World Records. There is a picture of > this at: > > http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/ > > The picture, of course, doesn't show the 3D aspect very well. (End of > self-promoting commercial) > > The thing is, it's actually much easier to make a single large fresnel than > to make these decorative arrays. What I have in mind is to make not a large > single fresnel lens, but a quarter of one. The quarter sections could then > be assembled on a light-weight frame into a relatively large solar > concentrator. The process I use has a number of advantages over those > previously implemented > > These lenses are made in continuous rolls, rather than pressed as > individual parts. Because of a number of other innovations I am able to > manufacture and sell this stuff for less than a dollar per square meter. > This is roughly 1% of the cost of conventionally manufactured fresnels. > Further, these are made on a high tensile strength polyester substrate, > allowing thin pieces to be stretched on a frame. The stuff is so cheap it > might be less expensive to replace it than to clean it. > > My largest machine runs film 65 inches wide, meaning four sections assembled > together would give you a square 3.3 meters on a side. So you have 10.9 > square meters of concentrator area capable of focusing a spot about 3cm at > f1. Direct measurement of the type of fresnel I make gives about 80% of the > incident sunlight delivered to the focus. Now surely someone could figure > out what to do with more than 8kW of concentrated heat in a 3cm spot. > > The frame structure I have in mind would be a pyramid with cross bars > traversing the base to support the quarter sections and the focus would be > at the apex. Clearly, this type of frame could be made light-weight and > relatively inexpensive. Nevertheless, the fresnel lens would be the least > expensive part of the whole thing. My production capacity is really quite > large and can be expanded quickly. > > Unlike reflective concentrators, fresnel lenses can undergo considerable > flexing and disortion without seriously affecting their performance. > > What I would like to know, since there is such a variety of knowledgable > people on this list, what would be the best use of 8kW of concentrated solar > energy? Thermoelectric? Stirling? Zinc reduction? What? I really don't > know what do with this, if anything. > > M. > > _______________________________________________ > Join Excite! - http://www.excite.com > The most personalized portal on the Web! > >
