Your Next Car... whether you want it or not

[Aerotech]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rAqPMJFaEdY

[92ss satinsvoice]

that video was freaking Hilarius. love it!

[evolutionmovement]

My state's representation is an embarrassment. I love the reputation Kennedy has for the environment even after shooting down the coal-plant-displacing wind farm at sea because he could, if he didn't have glassy alcoholic eyes also degenerated by age, maybe if he squinted while looking out one side of his mansion, see the tips of white towers, like 1/4 size toothpicks on the horizon, far smaller than the sailboats that frequent the area.

[93forestpearl]

But, they're still an eyesore....



The only reason we have so many mindmills here in MN is because Xcel Energy asked the state to store more nuclear waste at the two nuclear power plants, and the state said OK if they put up a ton of windmills.

I read the other day that there is enough wind energy to power the world ten times over. Its just a matter of doing it for a reasonable cost, which at the moment is not the case. The power per money invested is still way higher with nuclear power plants, and there are a few that will be done in the next couple years.

[evolutionmovement]

They're not an eyesore in open water to anyone but Kennedy and his imagination. It's almost all coal, oil, or NG up here. There's one nuclear plant in NH, but no one is going to put another one in with the population density and value of waterfront real estate. Hard enough to keep the coal plants around—now THOSE are an eyesore! There's one next door to me in Salem, taking up a large chunk of historic waterfront, that bought and demolished nearby homes for liability purposes and remaining neighbors get their houses and cars cleaned for free. Nothing for their lungs, though. Cape Wind was supposed to supply most of Cape Cod and the islands with its power.

The big problem with wind, besides NIMBY, is that they only seem to want to use less efficient designs.

[93forestpearl]

I happen to think they look sweet, but I'm a geek like that.

Anything to reduce our dependence on coal and oil or oil derived products is good by me. The people that whine about it have a lot of money, and are generally a bunch of idiots.

[Redlined]

they only seem to want to use less efficient designs.

More like only want to be concerned with their coal interests and profits from existing coal burning power plants.

[evolutionmovement]

I wouldn't doubt that. More efficient designs are out there and not vaporware.

[Legacy777]

Only issue with wind is that it is not a good base load power source. I had read about wind farms usings compressed air storage systems to provide a more steady base load.

The wind turbines would generate power during the day, and use a small amount to inject compressed air into storage caverns/wells. During the night or times where wind is low, they would use the stored compressed air to power (different) air turbines.

Interesting idea....not sure how it would practically work....

[evolutionmovement]

That's partly down to inefficiency as well. There are designs, vertical, one that uses a venturi housing around a small turbine to increase air speed (an idea I thought of a few months before I learned about it), and probably a few I don't know about that can produce power at low wind speeds and with smaller size. Perhaps they're impractical for an offshore application, I don't know, but they would likely work much of the time since the area they are considering for Cape Wind due to steady conditions, but yes, you would still need a back up source, storage system, or tandem power generator, like tidal perhaps.

I think the ultimate ideal is to get as much people nearly off-grid as possible with main renewable plants as a backup, but that won't happen until solar cell efficiency and cost catch up to practical levels of production and people learn to not be as wasteful with electricity. Too bad power tools consume so damn much power.