Free MIT Engineering Text For Download

An anonymous reader writes " The (sci-tech) Library Question is reporting, "The third edition of A Heat Transfer Textbook, written by John H Lienhard V (MIT) and John H Lienhard IV (U Houston), has been made available on the web. The book is an introduction to heat transfer, geared towards engineering students. It may be downloaded free of charge. The authors explain: We are placing a mechanical engineering textbook into an electronic format for worldwide, no-charge distribution. The aim of this effort is to explore the possibilities of placing textbooks online -- effectively giving them away. Two potential benefits should accrue from doing this. First, in electronic format, textbooks can be continually corrected and updated, without the delays inherent in printed books (second and later editions are typically published on a five-year cycle). Second, free textbooks hold the potential for fundamentally altering the economics of higher education, particularly in those environments where money is scarce."

Comments

It could be the key to renewable power.

[Moderation abuser]

Sure, sounds dull but heat is looking like a viable way of storing energy generated from renewable sources.

CAES systems use air compressed using energy from off peak generation to provide generation capacity during peak hours:

http://www.pbworld.com/pbenergy/caes.htm

Already implemented in Germany and Alabama.

The Solar II power tower system in California stores concentrated heat from the sun in molten salt in order to generate power at night and during cloudy periods.

http://rhlx01.rz.fht-esslingen.de/projects/alt_e ne rgy/sol_thermal/powertower.html