Wind Power

[trikkonceptz]

This idea has been bugging me for some time now and I figured you guys should be able to put it to rest....

Can power be drawn some what efficiently from wind? Here is my idea;

-A wind capturing device of some sort mounted inside a scoop either on the bottom or side of your vehicle used to generate power to run a single 12V battery.

-A modified turbo and using the pressure to spin this device and generate power to keep a 12V battery charged

-A wind capturing device mounted inside a tailpipe in order to generate wind to keep a 12V battery charged

I just think that we can utilize some of the wind currents either created by our car or going around our cars in order to maintain a charged battery. Multiple of the system is efficient enough. This would at least allow us to run alternator free.

The floor is yours ...

[pawilkes]

i think you'd pay for the drag somehow but it might be a good way to charge batteries on a parked car. you could have a small generator pop out of the trunk or something when you park it.

[Ryland]

the short answer is no, it's not worth even thinking about on a car, the extra air drag will put more of a load on the engine then the belt driven alternator does.

[FastPlastic]

Originally Posted by pawilkes

i think you'd pay for the drag somehow but it might be a good way to charge batteries on a parked car. you could have a small generator pop out of the trunk or something when you park it.

I've pondered this idea as well. I agree with pawilkes in that it would have to be a set up that only runs when the car is parked. You would loose the potential gain if it was exposed while driving. Don't know what kind of power you could get out of it.

[FastPlastic]

Depending on how you designed it you could set it up for regenerative breaking as well.

[tputus]

From the great site called Green Car Congress:
http://www.greencarcongress.com/2005..._exhaust_.html

[MasterAlex]

With a windmill like that you wouldn't get more than 100% efficiency if it was always running, if you could find a way to make it not drag when you are cruising or accelerating and only spin while slowing down or while the car is off (pretty much anytime you aren't using the battery) it could work. I saw a video of a new type of windmill that looks promising and you might be able to put it on the bottom of your car and actually get more energy while driving than you are spending if the conditions are right.

I can't find the link to the video but it was basically just a sting that had magnets on the end that would vibrate up and down when wind was blown on it (like if you take a piece of string and blow on it the string will go up and down). As it blows up and down the magnets produce a charge with copper coils.

[IndyIan]

I think the harnessing the turbo idea has some merit, but someone with some engine engineering experience could say for sure. I would also assume an average turbo would produce far too much energy for a normal cars electrical needs, if you have batteries for propulsion though...
I always think steam would be a good add on, a couple water filled tubes inside the exhaust after the cat to capture some of the waste heat, how to harness the steam is another problem again.
How about true wind power? Folks in the plains with a north south commute and a steady wind from the west could use land sailing rigs, they may not work so well in traffic though http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_sailing
Ian

[cfg83]

trikkonceptz -

I would think that as long as it doesn't increase your frontal area, then there may be a benefit. Normally we like to do grill blocks, but how about a row of "tiny windmills" contributing some extra juice to the electrical system? They would need to be resilient up to 100 MPH (overengineered) I think. They would also "stagnate" to some degree because of their location. But, maybe you don't know until you try. My grill is a good candidate for this, but I would need to figure the electrical setup to add juice and protect the windmills.

CarloSW2

[IndyIan]

Is it Newtons Laws? that tells me that there is no free energy. So turning any kind of wind turbine costs you at least as much as you are getting out of it and often more. Now if you disconnect your alternator and can get by with a wind turbine and a solar panel you might be ahead but even that would have to be measured.
Ian