Wind

   Don’t be fooled: The utility companies (and even some enviro-politicians) do not want individuals messing with alternative energy. In the early seventies when America was suddenly shocked by escalating oil prices, major power companies were concerned that the flurry of alternative energy activity might erode their control. Power is power. Their pretense of interest in alternative energy is only real to the degree that they can maintain control. The rest of their rhetoric is – well, wind.
   One lonely teenage Christmas season in Oklahoma, over a thousand miles from home I found junk from an ancient telephone in an old shed. I somehow managed to bolt an automotive fan blade to the generator of this relic, and wired some laths to the blades to extend their reach. I clamped the contraption in a vice mounted on an old stump outside, and ran some wires into the shed.
   I had the simple nerdy pleasure of watching significant sparks. I have no idea of what the voltage or power was, but I was very impressed when I stupidly offered it a finger. It was even more impressive when I connected it to an unsuspecting friend.
   Beyond such play I have never done any wind-electric experiments, but that hasn’t kept me from thinking. So I’ll dump a couple concepts for somebody else to try – or not.
   Consistent with public-versus-private faces, it has been made extremely difficult to build wind powered systems in towns. The ruling reads that you must first calculate the maximum distance a windmill blade could be thrown if it came off at maximum speed as it was spinning in an upward portion of the arc. This distance must then be the minimum distance to the property line nearest your windmill. Most city lots are not that big, and I doubt if even decorative plastic garden ornaments actually qualify.
   In contemplating this obstacle, I envisioned a vertical column covered with light-weight flaps that would open with the vacuum caused by passing wind. If you mounted a much smaller fan in a venturi built into its base, the neighbors would be quite safe from any potential mishap, and if you called it a silo you might even be safe from the energy police.
   While contemplating light-weight flaps, consider a vertical axis turbine with flaps that would catch the wind on one arm while releasing it on the other. This too would be an omni-directional system.

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   Both these systems, being vertical axis, and omni-directional, are much simpler mechanically than conventional pole-mounted windmills. The electrical wiring doesn’t have to keep up with changing wind directions, and all the generator servicing takes place at ground level.
   Given the fickle nature of wind, I personally would relegate it to a status of “auxiliary power.” In a site where wind is fairly consistent, it could be a significant contributor to the over-all energy package.
   One technical detail I should toss in here for those truly interested is the fact that the energy available in wind increases with the cube of its velocity.