rexresearch.com
Michael WATERS
Wind Turbine
http://watersturbine.weebly.com/waters-turbine.html
hpcconcepts@yahoo.com
574 849 6236
Waters Turbine
Optimizing energy extraction from a moving
fluid
( Patent pending )
The goal of a wind or water turbine : Convert the force of a fluid
passing through a given area into electrical or mechanical force.
Current designs maximize aerodynamic efficiency like an aircraft.
This results in long thin wings that comprise less than 5% of the
total disk area in the region of maximum torque (the tip). Much of
the air passes through unaffected or in a region that contributes
low torque (the root). Only the tip of the blade maximizes
leverage.
A typical Horizontal axis (HAWT) and Vertical (VAWT) is shown
below. A VAWT) has to fight upwind on one side as it rotates,
usually resulting in less efficiency.
Waters Turbine approach
1. Utilize as many molecules as possible.
2. Divert all flow to the maximum point of leverage.
3. Accelerate all flow prior to extraction of energy.
4. Place all of the blade area at both the maximum point of
leverage and the highest flow velocity.
There are two choices for accelerating flow. Divert around an
object or constrict through. Diverting flow to the outside
provides more leverage for a given size object. Generally, large
costs more than small. Complex costs more than simple. Here is a
basic design that meets the criteria.
In the above illustration, all of the flow has to go around the
back plate, accelerating in the process. A band of blades is
mounted around the perimeter at both the maximum point of leverage
and maximum flow velocity. As a result, all of the fluid is
utilized and accelerated to maximum velocity prior to use.
Third party and direct comparison test
There have been three separate third party tests, including
computer flow analysis. My own direct comparative tests against a
conventional high performance wind turbine in a broad range of
conditions confirm theory. We ran direct comparisons in real world
conditions for days because 3rd party results seemed too high. An
aerodynamicist study over several months of tests found a maximum
of 122 times more efficient at 14 mph.
The conventional design was a molded precision product with an
accurate airfoil. Mine was far from optimized, using no airfoils
in order to build at low cost. Comparing my 4' design against a
stock 5' three blade, under the same load, the conventional
product starts at over 7 mph and produces very little torque or
rpm at that speed. My turbine, under the same load starts at under
1 mph. If the square force relationship is used that is 49 times
more force required to turn the conventional design. If the cube
rule is used the difference is 343 times. Then there is a size
difference. The actual formula is more complex and varies with
wind speed but the results are interesting. Startup velocity is
just one factor but this shows that a much broader wind velocity
range can be utilized.
In analyzing many wind turbine polars, real world generator
efficiency range usually results in electrical output falling
somewhere between square and cube relationship.
Another interesting data point, under extreme shaft load, the
conventional turbine would not turn, even at 28 mph. My design in
the same conditions self starts at 11 mph.
Test equipment involved a pony brake, rpm meter and wind meter.
Accuracy of both wind and rpm meters was within 5%. Pony brake
measurements were comparative and direct, utilizing the same
shaft, load and conditions for both designs.
Wind Velocity & Pressure
Profiles
http://peswiki.com/index.php/Directory:Waters_Effect_Turbine
September 25, 2014 / June 29, 2015
Waters Effect Turbine
Compiled by Sterling D. Allan
In October, 2013, at the Global Breakthrough Energy Movement
Conference in Boulder, Colorado, in his presentation, my friend
and associate, Mike Waters, previous President of the New Energy
Systems Trust (NEST) we founded 2.5 years ago, showed a wind
turbine design he came up with that is ridiculously simple. It's
basically a squirrel cage arrangement set 90-degrees perpendicular
to the incoming air, diverting all the incoming air to the
perimeter where the torque is.
Let me say that again. The further away from the rotation point
you are, the more torque you get. This design harnesses the wind
at the extreme perimeter -- only. All the incoming wind is
deflected there, where it achieves the maximum torque conversion.
Let me say part of that again: all of the incoming air is
utilized.
Furthermore, Mike says that even the "drag" effect contributes
rather than diminishes in this design, much like a ridge
accelerates air flow. A good analogy for this is when you are
driving on the freeway close behind a semi-truck, your mileage
improves, not just from his breaking the wind but because he is
actually pulling you to a certain extent, so his mileage goes
down.
Also, Mike's turbine will start rotating at less than 1 mph wind
-- so slight that you can't even tell there is a breeze.
Compare Mike's design to the typical three-bladed turbine you see
deployed in most commercial applications nowadays. At low speed,
most of the wind (like 95%) misses the blades, and the bulk of the
blade is near to point of rotation, where the least torque is.
Another advantage is that birds will have no problem seeing this
one and will fly around it, in contrast to the 3-bladed designs
that they try to fly through, with often fatal results.
Finally, it's very quiet. That, alone, is a huge advantage over
the 3-blade design.
Inasmuch as Mike's focus for the past dozen years or so, mainly
under the radar, has been on exotic free energy technologies, both
in helping other inventors as well as his own innovations, he
wasn't really motivated to put much time into pursuing his wind
turbine design. Wind is not nearly as reliable as some of the
exotics that harvest energy from other plugs in the wheelwork of
nature continuously, inexhaustibly.
But a NASA aerodynamicist tested the design for several months,
and someone from the audience at his Global BEM lecture built
another prototype. What they found, independently, was so
unbelievable that Mike didn't dare tell us the numbers until he
had more corroboration. He certainly did not want me making any
announcements until further validation.
I met the second guy at the Tesla Tech conference in July, who
repeated to me what Mike had told us in private.
Using a wind tunnel to compare Mike's design to the conventional
3-blade design, they were getting numbers like 50x more efficient.
FIFTY TIMES!!
In the wind industry, if you can get 5% improvement, you'll be
making all kinds of friends and business deals. Mike's exhibits
ONE THOUSAND TIMES MORE IMPROVEMENT THAN THAT!
Geoffrey Miller of EnergyBat Labs, who I've done extensive
reporting on in recent days, replicated a ~4-foot diameter Waters
turbine. We didn't get around to uncovering it from its tarp while
I was there on June 19, 2015, but I could see its shape under the
tarp. Geoff told of an early demonstration he saw Mike do inside a
car. He had the person turn their heater blower to full, and he
placed a 3-bladed turbine in front if it, and it barely turned.
Then he had them turn the blower to its lowest setting, and he
took a similar diameter turbine of his squirrel cage design and
held it back about 2-3 feet, and it was spinning rapidly from that
low air flow.
What this means is that the size of the turbine can be much
smaller to perform the same amount of energy harvesting as the
much larger and cumbersome three-bladed design. You could easily
transport and assemble this design and it can be used as a wind or
water turbine.
Furthermore, the design is potentially much sturdier, hence able
to hold up to high winds.
Speaking of high winds, with Mike's design you can turn the
turbine 90 degrees like the old-fashioned wind turbines. The tail
fin would keep it in that orientation. I'm guessing that you would
still be harnessing the wind, but you would be harvesting maybe
1/5 to 1/10 of it and it would self limit rpm.
Mike is also involved with a number of other energy technologies
and inventors and several are being tested with this turbine. This
includes SERPS and Kairos TGen, MES generator, a generator from
India, several options from EnergyBat Labs and Al Throckmorton's
Lord's Pump. Mike feels they should be able to conservatively
boost output by at least 4 times using the SERPS/TGen alone.
By connecting a growing number of energy breakthroughs and
inventors, Mike hopes that more people will be motivated to
collaborate rather than try to compete. The more inventors align
in the energy field, the greater the chance of success. Mike
discusses more about collaboration on his website.
http://cureforglobalcrises.weebly.com/
A provisional patent has been filed on the design and it is also
being covered under a global copyright trust structure.
Mike is open sourcing for people to build for themselves and basic
license arrangement for manufacturing. The design can be built in
many different ways – as a blimp, windsock/parachute/umbrella,
applied to wind or water. Blades can be made in bands or
individually molded, fixed or variable pitch. The main disk or
entry tube can be stationary or rotate. The generator can be
mounted at the hub or the edge.
There is already interest in rolling out the design in the US,
Brazil, India, Africa and China. A 12’ test is currently being
built in Australia and water turbine variations in the US and
Peru...