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Cool Salvaged ICE- Junk car or lawn-mower
makes "instant" kite generators
Many classes of old internal combustion engines can
find new life as compressor/generator/kite hybrids. It will be possible to
run engines at their full rated power with kites. The worthless old
gas-guzzler nobody wants suddenly becomes a 300kw green wonder. The engine
could be switched modes; compression, electrical, or both. Kite power
could enter via the original transmission, or via a spare cylinder
directly to the crankshaft.
For a crude quick demo, the pull cord starting mechanism found on the
common lawn mower enables it be driven by a pumping kite to both compress
air and make a trickle of electricity. Compression is easily tapped at a
spark plug hole.
Air in many ways is a superior power medium to electricity for work.
Air-tools are higher in power-to-weight, lower cost per unit power).
Heavy-duty air-tools are shop standard while essential electrical devices
are becoming micro-powered. The heat of compression can space-heat nicely.
Air could be run back through the engine for slow local propulsion of an old
car. The possibilities are endless.
CoolIP
~Dave Santos 25October2011
AWE4556
Comment and development of this topic will be occurring here.
All, send notes, drawings, and photographs!
Terms and aspects:
- ICE internal combustion engine
- hp
horsepower
- Cogeneration (also combined heat and power, CHP)
wiki
- Air car
Related links:
Commentary is welcome:
- Air tools are popular because air motors
are light and compact, but it takes a 5 hp air compressor to do the job
of a 1 hp electric motor on the tool. The heat of compression makes it
possible to run a CHP system at over 100% thermal efficiency, but only
if the needs for heat and power are serendipitously balanced. Usually,
the heat of compression, made from high-grade electricity, is simply
wasted.
The Air Car is a stock fraud; but what people also miss is that as an
energy source, compressed air is far more dangerous and less compact
than even Hydrogen. Unlike a fuel, it does not need mixing with oxygen
to release its energy, it is all available instantly, like a high
explosive. ~~ Bob Stuart
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Yeah, air cars are real pigs (hauling the tank), but in our case
repositioning upwind on the kite field during calm may be enough for
that mode to pay. CO2 motors for model planes was not so bad.
The explosive power of air is quite true, so use it as you make it (or
own a cave to pump up), but that's exactly why we used air for many
amazing robots in Austin during the 80s and 90s. I use shop air for
metal fabrication and specify
air wherever it kicks butt. We could never have done this sort of feat
with electric actuators:
Concept Description-. The X-1 is a high performance humanoid fighting robot for martial
arts training,
demonstration, and entertainment. It consists of a mobile ...
Note- That's my buddy, computer scientist Wan-Yik Lee,
sparring. Brooks Coleman was a key man in this project and we intend
to fly this air-robot someday as a "winged humanoid". Brooks is now
developing AWE in Llano, TX, where kite god Joel Sholz also lives and
is in our circle since '84 or so.
- v
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