Dear Mr. Barnett,
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Congratulations on initiating your city's new water tower to be shaped somewhat like a wine glass according to the news about that.
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I have a number of improvements to that design that I'd like you to consider. They will reduce the operational overhead and be more environmentally friendly to birds and healthier for humans in the towers' vicinity, alike.
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The impact on health is now in extensive discussion on many CR4 threads. The immediate engineering improvements that could be incorporated during this the design stage, however, are the main purpose for my contacting you at this point. Here are public links to those discussions, whether you have an account with CR4 or not.
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Thank you for you time and attention:
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I believe that Addison's great Water Tower idea could stand some improvements such as installing water turbine generators at its base, to scavenge electric energy when the water is flowing back into the city water system (An impeller located inside the gravity fed discharge caisson, with an offset gear and shaft out the side of the caisson coupled to an infinite speed transmission and a gen-set coupled to that, is what I mean); and a horizontal generator powered by low speed, high torque (quiet) vanes rotating around the entire outside of the wine-glass goblet shaped water storage tank. It could be greenest and the most Avaunt Gard water tower on earth! Here is the link: http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/35864
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One could arguably label me a wind turbine maven. Below are posts that address pro's and con's for this burgeoning electric generation industry. Not all of what are posted are pro-wind turbine in nature. Like all alternative energy industries, the engineering and the economic consequences of wind turbines and wind farms are still just coming into the light.
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Their environment impacts, once focused on bird hazard potential, are now expanded to human health issues, as well. As a result, I have dropped tower mounted turbines from my quiver as an urbane area alternative electric generation solution and now favor low speed, high torque vertical or horizontal, high aspect ratio slat blade types (similar to blower wheels in air conditioning systems) because they are quiet and can handle structurally induced turbulence; unless they are miles and miles from everyday view and hearing.
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R.E., Wind Turbine Experiences http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/30077
Comment #11 Wind turbine visual shuttering problems and down wind sounds Reference video link: http://www.youtube.com/philbloomstein
Comment #11 Wind turbine visual shuttering problems and down wind sounds Reference video link: http://www.youtube.com/philbloomstein
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The YouTuber's recommendation is minimum 3,000 feet (3/5ths of a mile) minimum set back. No recommendation for visual shuttering problems set back. One would assume that one should have some sort of structure or vegetation block their view of turbine shadows especially at sun up and sun down when their shadows can reach quite far.
The YouTuber's recommendation is minimum 3,000 feet (3/5ths of a mile) minimum set back. No recommendation for visual shuttering problems set back. One would assume that one should have some sort of structure or vegetation block their view of turbine shadows especially at sun up and sun down when their shadows can reach quite far.
According to the thread named "Are Wind Turbines Hazardous to Your Health?" Industrial wind machines may cause ringing in the ears (tinnitus).
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In the thread: Windmill on a Kite http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/33795#21 I made the point that there are no standards that rate the viability of electric power from wind farms. Distance to consumer markets is also a factor that has been successfully exploited by the oil industry in Texas taking advantage of surplus electric energy during night time operations when demand is down but the wind is consistently stronger in their wind zones 3 and 4 neck of the woods; all made possible by the subsidization process (Taxes which guarantee the wind farms make money for their investors, the oil business makes millions in windfall profits and the tax payers remain clueless that we've have been ripped off with the blessings of the public utility commission by their tacit silence on this thorny issue.).
Last but not least, "Windmills on a Kite" solves the problem of tinnitus and shuttering, it would appear: http://cr4.globalspec.com/thread/33795
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pro-active advocate
