Thursday, May 28, 2009
Self contained rechargeable lamps
LED light, battery, charger and small solar panel all in one neat package. Can be used for automotive uses, reduce electrical use from the auto batteries. Great for bicycle uses
Wireless communication for auto/commercial vehicles
Instead of using wires for communication (J1939, etc) some can use wireless protocols. For example, PTO controls on the cherry picker bucket, portable remote PTO controls, etc
Cylinder deactivation on commercial vehicles
- cylinder deactivation when there's no load
- active communication with transmission for smooth shifts
- maybe use the exhaust brakes over the cylinders and convert that to air pressure or to an air motor for charging batteries?
- full communication with electrical system, if there are enough electrical demands, use just enonugh power from the engine to power it, if not, do batteries need charging, if not do air tanks need topped off, if not deactivate cylinder by not squirting fuel
- active communication with transmission for smooth shifts
- maybe use the exhaust brakes over the cylinders and convert that to air pressure or to an air motor for charging batteries?
- full communication with electrical system, if there are enough electrical demands, use just enonugh power from the engine to power it, if not, do batteries need charging, if not do air tanks need topped off, if not deactivate cylinder by not squirting fuel
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Coal plant conversion to solar
How it works today
Simply, a coal plant heats up a tank of water until it turns into steam and that pressurized steam is used to turn a turbine which turns a generator to generate electricity. Currently coal power plants supply about 50% of the electricity in the US.
How it can work tomorrow
Instead of heating the water tank with coal fired burners, heat it with concentrated solar (simple mirrors are the cheapest). This is most efficiently done on plants that are being decomissioned anyway. Conversion of currently operational plants can be costly. The excess heat can also be used to generate a smaller amount of power by using a Stirling engine generator. On days where the sun is not very strong, the Stirling engine should still provide some power (all it needs is a difference in temperature, the larger the better). It is possible to use geothermal for the Stirling engine
The downside
Cost, there will be a cost associated in installing the mirrors and preparing the system to be heated by solar. Not all locations will be appropriate for this application, there may not be enough sunshine available. The plant will be able to supply power when the sun is hot enough to heat up the water.
Simply, a coal plant heats up a tank of water until it turns into steam and that pressurized steam is used to turn a turbine which turns a generator to generate electricity. Currently coal power plants supply about 50% of the electricity in the US.
How it can work tomorrow
Instead of heating the water tank with coal fired burners, heat it with concentrated solar (simple mirrors are the cheapest). This is most efficiently done on plants that are being decomissioned anyway. Conversion of currently operational plants can be costly. The excess heat can also be used to generate a smaller amount of power by using a Stirling engine generator. On days where the sun is not very strong, the Stirling engine should still provide some power (all it needs is a difference in temperature, the larger the better). It is possible to use geothermal for the Stirling engine
The downside
Cost, there will be a cost associated in installing the mirrors and preparing the system to be heated by solar. Not all locations will be appropriate for this application, there may not be enough sunshine available. The plant will be able to supply power when the sun is hot enough to heat up the water.
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