"Researchers in China have reportedly tested a new, gravity-defying wind turbine system that they say could generate power from the airspace above cities. The turbine is called the S2000 Stratosphere Airborne Wind Energy System, or SAWES. Held up by what is essentially a helium blimp, the machine reportedly generated 385 kilowatts of electricity from 2,000 meters (more than 6,500 feet) above the city of Yibin in China's province of Sichuan, according to a recent Euronews report."
"Traditional wind turbines operate by rotating their blades when wind strikes them, thereby generating electricity, said Weng Hanke, co-founder and chief technology officer of the turbine's maker, Beijing Linyi Yunchuan Energy Technology, to Euronews. This generator functions similarly, except that power generation occurs not at ground level but in the air. As the blades spin, cables carry electricity to the ground."
A helium-buoyed turbine called the S2000 Stratosphere Airborne Wind Energy System (SAWES) was tested in China and reportedly produced 385 kilowatts of power at roughly 2,000 meters above Yibin, Sichuan. The device functions like a conventional wind turbine with spinning blades, but the generator operates in the air and electricity is transmitted to the ground via cables. The system remains a prototype after similar tests the previous September. The developer is Beijing Linyi Yunchuan Energy Technology. China leads in wind and solar deployment despite being the largest carbon dioxide emitter and continues to pursue novel renewable technologies.
Read at www.scientificamerican.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]