Patent Application
20110133467
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the development of a means for capturing and the recycling of kinetic energy from already existing energy sources into usable energy as an alternate energy power supply for equipment or return to the public power grid.
2. Background of the Invention Prior Art
There are limitations with previous hydroelectric applications. The problem with dammed up streams and waterfalls is the cost and hindrance of location relative to the power generation facility. Srybnik, U.S. Pat. No. 7,605,490 date of issue Oct. 20, 2009 was developed to try and use the energy from lower pressure streams as described in. This unit uses a secondary pump to increase the pressure to the impeller which adds to the energy demand of the system. Sipp, U.S. Pat. No. 7, 602,076 date of issue Oct. 13, 2009 will have the concern of low or lost water flow during drought conditions with units that utilize streams and small rivers. Davis, legal representative, et al. U.S. Pat. No. 7,471,009 Dec. 30, 2008 describes a sea submersible apparatus that is high cost and limited to the coastal areas.
Kj.ae butted.r, U.S. Pat. No. 7,607,304 date of issue Oct. 27, 2009 uses a turbine assembly driven by high pressure steam. There are concerns with the danger of using high pressure steam. There is also the damage that high pressure steam and thermal shock can have on turbines and internal components. The control of pollution is also a concern when fossil fuels such as coal and gas are burned; harmful substances are released into the atmosphere that damages the air we breathe and the ecosystem that people live in. In the northeast United States, acid rain produced by these chemicals released into the air kills plants and crops. There is also the cost of transporting this fuel to the power generating site.
Cripps, U.S. Pat. No. 7,452,160 date of issue Nov. 18, 2008 describes a system that suggests using waste water flow to power turbines to generate electrical power. This system is restricted to highly populate municipal locations to have a waste water system with enough water flow to capture the energy to drive the system.
Heidel, U.S. Pat. No. 7,190,088 date of issue Mar. 13, 2007 also utilizes municipal water flow which is limited to highly populate municipal locations to supply water flow to support the energy generating system. There is no mention of using the generated energy to then supply energy back to the existing water flow system.
My Kinetic Energy Recycling System has many advantages and they are:
(a) To recycle the already existing kinetic energy that is created and captured in any man-made fluid and air conveying system.
(b) There is no need for additional booster pumps to increase the amount of energy or pressure delivered to the turbine, water wheel or rational energy conveying device.
(c) The fluid that is present in irrigation systems is already pressurized thus delivering a consistent fluid flow to pass over the turbine, water wheel or rational energy conveying device.
(d) There is enough kinetic energy to supplement and/or support the energy needs of the irrigation and fluid flowing systems.
(e) There is no additional energy use to capture the kinetic energy from air conveying system exhausts. This is free energy that is exhausted to the atmosphere.
(f) There is no hazardous impact to the environment because the kinetic energy is already present in the existing fluid and air conveying systems but has not been captured and recycled to a usable form of energy.
(g) The energy that creates the kinetic energy that is being captured and recycled into usable energy is going to be used to power the existing system whether the kinetic energy is recycled or not so there is no added demand on the utility system.
(h) The recycling of this kinetic energy will lessen the energy demands on the public power grid during the summer months when both the public for cooling and the agricultural community for irrigation are in need of electrical energy.
(i) The exhausted air flow from air conveying systems will provide a consistent and controllable energy source that will provide a far greater efficiency over natural wind turbines.
This process will allow us to create usable energy by recycling the kinetic energy that is created by agriculture and industry utilizing man-made motion systems every day. The creation of this usable energy will have no hazardous impact on the environment. It will give us the ability to lessen the energy demand on our public energy supply grid.
These agricultural irrigation systems are used every day to provide us with food and goods that are used in our lives. This process recycles that energy in a way that can be reused by the very system that created it. This process also reaches the rural areas of the country where the energy is being used for irrigation.
This process will capture the kinetic energy that is exhausted in to the atmosphere on a daily basis by industry. Industry exhausts a consistent energy source by means of air flow from fans used on dryer, cooler and air circulating systems. Through this process existing industry can give back to the communities that they provide for.
There will continue to be an increasing demand for food in the world and thus more and more remote areas will be utilized for crop production. This process will lessen the demand of energy to irrigate these areas. The reduction in overall energy demand will allow for smaller energy generating systems needed to operate larger irrigation systems. Though irrigation is a key industry that would be able to utilize this process, the process is not limited to just this application. Any means by which fluid, air or a combination of these is set in motion shall have the potential to utilize this process.
The preferred embodiment shall be described in the terms of the
The operation of the process starts with the fabrication of the impeller assembly 15 and then the housing 20. These components of the system shall be made out of strong and durable material that will withstand the pressure of the fluid contained in a pipe 10, vessel or transferring component. The dimensions of the impeller assembly 15 and then the housing 20 shall vary to correspond to each application.
A hole will need to cut into the piping 10, vessel or transferring component to provide an opening for the insertion of the impeller assembly 15. A flange shall be welded to the piping 35 and a flange shall be welded to the housing 35a that will encompass the impeller assembly 15. These flanges shall bolt together and create a tight seal to prevent leakage of the fluid contained in the pipe.
The housing 20 will be made of a strong and durable material compatible with the material that the pipe, vessel or transferring component is made of. There will be a hole in each side of the housing 20 to allow the mounting shaft to pass through. The shaft will be held in place by a bearing 30 on each side of the housing.
The shaft 25 will be long enough to pass through both bearings and protrude past the housing far enough to mount a pulley 40 or type of coupling assembly. The impeller assembly 15 shall be mounted on the shaft 25 and held in place by key stock 15c and set screw 15d.
The impeller assembly 15 will capture the kinetic energy of the pressurized fluid flowing over its fins 15a. The impeller assembly 15 will then transfer the rotational energy to the shaft 25 and pulley 40 which will then transfer this energy to the device for generating electrical power 45.
The device for generating electrical power 45 then recycles the kinetic energy captured by the impeller assembly 15 to usable electrical energy. The generating device 45 will have a weatherproof cover to protect it from the weather and natural elements.
The electrical power that is created by the generator 45 then conveys the electrical power to the automatic transfer switch 55. The automatic transfer switch 55 then transfers the electrical power to each of the irrigation components dive motors for the towers 70 and the pump for the well 5. There is also the option of transferring the electrical energy back to the public power grid by the use of the automatic transfer switch 55 sending the power back to a substation.
This same process can be utilized by installing the impeller assembly 15 into the exhaust stream of air conveying systems. The kinetic energy would be captured by the impeller assembly 15 as the airflow being discharged to the atmosphere passes over it. The drive shaft 25 which is connected to the impeller assembly 15 shall convert the kinetic energy to rotational energy. This rotational energy will then drive the generator 45 producing electrical energy. This electrical energy can then be relayed by use of an automatic transfer switch 55 to a substation for public utility or more efficiently back to the industries that operated the air conveying system as a means of supplemental power.
This same process can be utilized for any man-made system that creates kinetic energy through the movement of fluid, air or combination of said energy in motion.
The said processes depicted in the figures contained in this application are not limited to the examples shown. These are merely examples to explain the process and could be subject to various ranges of size, speed, material types in reference to construction and material types in reference to material flows containing kinetic energy.
The above process utilizes the kinetic energy that is already present in our world of manufacturing and agriculture today. The process is a means by which this kinetic energy shall be recycled into usable energy that can be reused to lessen the load on the public utility grid system. There is the benefit that exists because the energy that is creating the kinetic energy is going to be used whether the kinetic energy is recycled or not. The potential energy sources that could be utilized this process for recycling is limitless. There is the added benefit of this process is that it is as valuable in the agricultural field of business as it is in the manufacturing fields. In each of these fields of interest there is always motion of fluid and air.
This is also a process that is not limited to use in the United States of America. With the increase demand for agricultural production, there will also be additional opportunities for this process to benefit mankind. This process will also be able to be utilized in remote areas that might have limited electrical utility access.
There will also be an increase in jobs directly and indirectly related to this process. There will be the jobs related to the manufacturing of the components used in the process. There will also be jobs in the sales and installation of the equipment used for the process.
At a time when energy demands continue to increase and stress on the environment is at it's highest. This process offers a means whereby recycled usable energy to benefit all of us with no harmful impact on the environment. We have harnessed the power of nature for many years and now it is time to capture some of the man-made energy that we produce every day. Like the very essence of this process, motion is everywhere kinetic energy recycling is just collecting it to use again.
