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Open Project to Develop Renewable Energy System
rohar writes "We have been working on a system that combines some existing indirect solar technologies to build a location independent, renewable, reliable and economically feasible indirect solar electrical power generation system. The idea is to 'roll-your-own' geothermal source by capturing heat from the ambient air with a solar powered absorption heat pump, store it underground and generate electricity from the air cooling convection. When the air is cooler the stored heat is then used in a reverse process to generate electricity by transferring the heat back to the air when it is cooler (at night or seasonal). There are many additional benefits including clean water capture from the "dehumidifier" effect of the air cooling, construction from common materials and thermal storage that may be incorporated into dwelling heat systems." After reading over their description, how likely do you think it is to work?
So this relies on a difference in ambient temperatures. You could also drill a hole deep into the ground and send in heat pipes, since it's pretty hot underneath the ground. The issue here is economics, how much power you get out compared to how expensive it is to build the system. Drilling a deep hole probably isn't cheap, and I don't think building a tower is either. At least you don't have to worry about temperature swings underground (sure it could happen, but I'd think air temperature would change more drastically). I think the issue is pretty much based on economics, there are cheaper ways to get energy, and the concept of using ambient temperature isn't new.
They cite a mistaken analogy to Linux as one of the reasons they feel their project could succeed, but in fact the problem is that such a system will require capital to run. This in fact makes it the opposite of the situation obtaining with Linux, when one of the key ingredients, low-cost commodity PCs, helped drive and unify development.
Dog is my co-pilot.
And i suppose you think that generating electricity from wind turbines or solar panels is impossible too?
c t
:)
Generating electricity from a heat difference is entirely possible, its just a matter of how efficient the whole process is as to whether its worth it. Actually if your after more information on that (it works both ways too!), then have a read here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peltier-Seebeck_effe
And the water thing is just a by-product http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Condensation
Jacko
Not very likely at all - because the creator doesn't really have any idea how steam engines, or refrigerators work. Also, like most armchair engineers he's really, really light on the math.
I find this part particularly amusing;
I think the creator quite misundertands how F/OSS works - he somehow thinks that people who aren't programmers get together and somehow create the programs, and that the same magic wand will work for making this kludge a reality.
Then he makes laughable statements like this:
I guess in his world structures and machinery aren't subject to wear and tear - but here in the real world they are.
And I think the point KFG was making was a parallel one, that alternative sources of energy, right now, net so little gain in comparison to the fossils fuels that there's little point. And when the fossil foils become horribly expensive unfortunately so will all the the alternatives, since producing and maintaining them depends on a rather nontrivial amount of fossil fuels. It's easy for people to shrug off fossils fuels as just another energy source but really, think about what they are... millions of years of condensed, stored, solar energy, with a dash of geothermal thrown in too. And we're burning through that million years of energy in decades. When the oil is gone, I think our descendants (assuming any survive the bloody resources wars) are going to be absolutely furious with us that we just burned the stuff.