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Wireless Electricity Set to Power Village
freedommatters writes "The UK Sunday Times has a story today about how "Scientists have successfully applied the technology used in microwave ovens to beam electricity without the need for unsightly pylons and overhead cables." A prototype has illuminated a handful of light bulbs and they expect to be able to power a remote village within three years."
This is a more detailed publication pdf file
Electricity can be beamed through the air without a pylon in sight
Roger Dobson
SCIENTISTS have successfully applied the technology used in microwave ovens to beam electricity without the need for unsightly pylons and overhead cables.
The power is fired through the air in the form of microwaves and collected in special antennas that reconvert the microwaves into electricity.
A prototype of the wireless power technology has shown the system works and a full-scale version is now being built to make a remote village on the French-governed island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean the world's first microwave-powered community.
According to a report to be published this week, the system is a cheaper way than either solar energy or local generators of supplying remote areas not connected to a grid.
"(Electricity) network distribution is effective at the centre but the costs increase quickly when you get to the edge," said Dr Guy Pignolet of CNES, the French space agency, which has conducted the trials.
"Extending it to remote areas is very costly, but with microwave technology you do not have those costs. You also do not have pylons, which you may not want in sensitive areas."
The technology works by converting direct current (DC) electricity into microwave power at the transmitting end in the same way that switching on a microwave oven converts electricity into waves using a device called a magnetron. Residents are unlikely to be baked as the frequencies in the two applications are entirely different.
Microwaves for the electricity are targeted via antennas and reflectors at a "rectenna" (from the words rectifier and antenna), which absorbs the microwave energy from the beam and converts it back into DC power with diodes.
In Grand-Bassin on Réunion, which lies at the bottom of a 3,000ft canyon with no road access, electricity is currently provided by solar panels placed on the roofs of the houses. But increasing the amount of electricity solely by using the panels is difficult because of the amount of surface area needed. It is also expensive.
The researchers have successfully produced a field prototype to illuminate a handful of light bulbs. A second prototype is being finalised and will be in operation in about 10 months, while the whole project to supply the village with power is scheduled to be completed within three years.
Additional reporting: Nick Speed
That old power line thing was disputed a while ago - mostly just a media fad. I was working at the NIH with one of the guys who first noticed the magnetic field effect on celles in culture.
It has never been shown to cause any cancers.
Radiat Res 2000 May;153(5 Pt 2):627-36 Related Articles,
Leukemia and lymphoma incidence in rodents exposed to low-frequency magnetic fields.
Boorman GA, Rafferty CN, Ward JM, Sills RC.
The PCB coolants used in/around many of those power stations is another subject.
Just to help hammer the nail home, there are many FDA approved devices that use magnetic or pulsed elctronic field devices to aid in bone healing. No reports of cancer yet in these either. Some increased cell growth yes, but cancer no.
This kinda crap science is usually perpetuated by the media and lawyers hoping to make a few bucks (well, usually they want a few million).
Bah!
..........FULL STOP.