The present invention relates generally to equipment for production, distribution, or transformation of energy. More specifically, the present invention is a unit to facilitate the generation of electric power from solar and wind energy.
Wind energy is used to generate electric power from wind using a wind turbine. Earlier wind turbines have a 3-blade wind turbine unit. Further, solar energy is also used to generate electric power from the sun using solar photovoltaic cells.
The earlier method of extraction of wind energy has certain limitations. To begin with, the conversion efficiency of 32% due to the Betz limit is low. The earlier wind turbine also has architectural problems, is aesthetically displeasing in an urban environment, and may violate local zoning restrictions. Also, the earlier large wind turbine generator diameter is difficult to handle and repair. The earlier wind turbine also blemishes the aesthetic beauty of the countryside and poses a safety hazard in the event of inclement weather involving gale force winds, threatening great damage to life and property. The earlier wind turbine also has a lower efficiency of energy conversion of about 32%, in accordance with the Betz limit, and requires a large force to be imposed on the wind turbine structure in order to change the turbine rotor direction upon a shift in wind direction.
The earlier method of extraction of solar energy using solar photovoltaic cells also has certain limitations. Solar photovoltaic cells are expensive, the solar photovoltaic panel has to be kept clean of dust particles in order to deliver highest efficiency, and the earlier solar photovoltaic cell panel has an efficiency of conversion of solar energy to electricity of well below 20%. Therefore, what is needed is an improved unit to facilitate the generation of electric power from solar and wind energy that may overcome one or more of the above-mentioned problems and/or limitations.
It is therefore an object to provide a more efficient method and apparatus of harnessing clean, renewable wind and solar energy that could reach efficiencies of 90% by also harnessing solar heat and by tapering a duct that receives wind energy and thereby increasing wind speed.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method of harnessing clean and renewable wind suitable for a high building in an urban environment where zoning and aesthetics are an issue and where traditional wind turbine designs are inappropriate, to thus expand a range of locations harnessing wind energy can be exploited.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a technique and device to harness wind energy that is significantly less expensive than existing methods.
It is also an object to provide an apparatus to harness renewable wind energy that does not require adjustments of the structure upon shifts in wind direction and speed.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method of harnessing clean and renewable wind and solar energy that can simultaneously harness both wind and solar energy using a single apparatus.
It is further an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method of harnessing clean and renewable wind and solar energy that can also harness the energy of building exhaust air.
These and other objects can be achieved by providing a renewable power production arrangement arranged on a rooftop of a building to produce power for the building, the renewable power production arrangement including a wind capture unit to receive and collect ambient wind from an atmosphere, a duct having a first end opposite a second end, the first end being connected to the wind capture unit to receive the collected ambient wind from the wind capture unit and to pass the collected wind therein as an influx air flow, a generator connected to the second end of the duct shaped as a diffuser to convert the influx air flow into electricity, an enthalpy boosting unit to introduce heat and/or air mass flow into the influx air flow within the duct at a location between the first and second ends, the introduced heat energy being received from a source selected from a solar collector, ventilation exhaust from the building and air conditioning exhaust from the building.
The wind capture unit may be adapted to receive wind from all compass directions without by including a plurality of faces to collect air from differing compass directions. The wind capture unit may be adapted to automatically receive wind from all directions without adjustment, wherein the duct comprises a tapered portion between the first and second ends to increase a speed of the influx air flow by reducing a cross-sectional area of the duct prior to introduction of the influx air flow into the expansion turbine located in the diffuser section.
According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a renewable power production arrangement including a duct to allow an influx air flow to travel therein, a wind capture unit connected to the duct and including a plurality of faces to receive ambient wind from an atmosphere and produce the influx air flow and a generator to convert the influx air flow into electricity, the wind capture unit being adapted to receive wind from all directions without being adjusted, the arrangement being mounted on a roof of a building.
The plurality of faces may include at least four faces corresponding to North, South, East and West compass directions to receive said ambient wind from any and all compass directions without a need to adjust the wind capture unit. The duct may include a tapered portion to increase a speed of the influx air within by reducing a cross-sectional area thereof.
The arrangement may further include an enthalpy boosting unit to introduce energy into the influx air flow within the duct. The enthalpy boosting unit may include a solar heat exchange unit to harness energy from the sun and transfer said harnessed energy to the influx air flow. The enthalpy boosting unit may also include an exhaust air introduction unit to introducing received heated exhaust air from the building into the influx air flow. The heated exhaust air may be from one or both of ventilation exhaust air and air conditioning exhaust air.
The solar heat exchange unit may include a solar collector to absorb sunlight and produce heat energy from the absorbed sunlight, a heat transfer fluid to receive the heat energy from the solar collector and a heat exchanger to transfer the heat energy from the heat transfer fluid to the influx air flow within the duct. The solar heat exchange unit may also include a pump to circulate the heat transfer fluid between the solar collector and the heat exchanger, the solar collector being exposed to direct sunlight. The generator may be a DC generator and include an expansion turbine to receive the influx air flow from the duct and convert the influx air flow into rotational energy and a generating portion to convert the rotational energy received from the expansion turbine into DC electricity.
The arrangement may also include an energy storage unit connected to the DC generator to receive and store DC electricity produced by the DC generator, the energy storage unit being a system of batteries. The arrangement may also include an inverter connected from the energy storage unit to convert the DC electricity received from the energy storage unit into AC electricity. The produced AC electricity may be used to power appliances within the building. The generator being a DC generator that may include a turbofan or expansion turbine to receive the heated influx air flow from the duct and convert the heated influx air flow into rotational energy and a generating portion to convert the rotational energy received from the turbofan into DC electricity, the DC electricity being converted into AC electricity by an inverter prior to powering appliances within the building.
A more complete appreciation of the invention, and many of the attendant advantages thereof, will be readily apparent as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like reference symbols indicate the same or similar components, wherein:
As a preliminary matter, it will readily be understood by one having ordinary skill in the relevant art that the present disclosure has broad utility and application. As should be understood, any embodiment may incorporate only one or a plurality of the above-disclosed aspects of the disclosure and may further incorporate only one or a plurality of the above-disclosed features. Furthermore, any embodiment discussed and identified as being “preferred” is considered to be part of the best mode contemplated for carrying out the embodiments of the present disclosure. Other embodiments also may be discussed for additional illustrative purposes in providing a full and enabling disclosure. Moreover, many embodiments, such as adaptations, variations, modifications, and equivalent arrangements, will be implicitly disclosed by the embodiments described herein and fall within the scope of the present disclosure.
Accordingly, while embodiments are described herein in detail in relation to one or more embodiments, it is to be understood that this disclosure is illustrative and exemplary of the present disclosure, and are made merely for the purposes of providing a full and enabling disclosure. The detailed disclosure herein of one or more embodiments is not intended, nor is to be construed, to limit the scope of patent protection afforded in any claim of a patent issuing here from, which scope is to be defined by the claims and the equivalents thereof. It is not intended that the scope of patent protection be defined by reading into any claim a limitation found herein that does not explicitly appear in the claim itself.
Thus, for example, any sequence(s) and/or temporal order of steps of various processes or methods that are described herein are illustrative and not restrictive. Accordingly, it should be understood that, although steps of various processes or methods may be shown and described as being in a sequence or temporal order, the steps of any such processes or methods are not limited to being carried out in any particular sequence or order, absent an indication otherwise. Indeed, the steps in such processes or methods generally may be carried out in various different sequences and orders while still falling within the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, it is intended that the scope of patent protection is to be defined by the issued claim(s) rather than the description set forth herein.
Additionally, it is important to note that each term used herein refers to that which an ordinary artisan would understand such term to mean based on the contextual use of such term herein. To the extent that the meaning of a term used herein—as understood by the ordinary artisan based on the contextual use of such term—differs in any way from any particular dictionary definition of such term, it is intended that the meaning of the term as understood by the ordinary artisan should prevail.
Furthermore, it is important to note that, as used herein, “a” and “an” each generally denotes “at least one,” but does not exclude a plurality unless the contextual use dictates otherwise. When used herein to join a list of items, “or” denotes “at least one of the items,” but does not exclude a plurality of items of the list. Finally, when used herein to join a list of items, “and” denotes “all of the items of the list.”
The following detailed description refers to the accompanying drawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers are used in the drawings and the following description to refer to the same or similar elements. While many embodiments of the disclosure may be described, modifications, adaptations, and other implementations are possible. For example, substitutions, additions, or modifications may be made to the elements illustrated in the drawings, and the methods described herein may be modified by substituting, reordering, or adding stages to the disclosed methods. Accordingly, the following detailed description does not limit the disclosure. Instead, the proper scope of the disclosure is defined by the appended claims. The present disclosure contains headers. It should be understood that these headers are used as references and are not to be construed as limiting upon the subjected matter disclosed under the header.
The present disclosure includes many aspects and features. Moreover, while many aspects and features relate to, and are described in the context of the generation of electric power from solar and wind energy, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to use only in this context.
Overview:
The present disclosure describes an improved unit for the generation of electric power from solar and wind energy. The unit may generate electrical power based on one or more scientific principles such as the principle of continuity, the principle of conservation of energy, etc. According to the principle of continuity: what flows into a defined volume in a defined time, minus what flows out of that defined volume in that time, must accumulate in that defined volume. The principle of continuity is a consequence of the law of conservation of mass, and conservation of energy is defined as energy is neither created nor destroyed, but only converted from one form to another. The unit uses a wind capture unit to collect an influx air 200 from a plurality of directions. The influx air 200 is guided into a tapering duct, which helps in increasing the velocity of the influx air 200 in the tapering duct according to the principle of continuity. The tapering duct includes turbine-generator apparatus which is configured to generate DC power from the flow of the influx air 200 according to the principle of conversation of energy.
An alternative explanation for the present invention is the first law of thermodynamics and the conservation of energy. For a closed system, the first law of thermodynamics states:
ΔU=Q+W Equation 1
where ΔU is a change of internal energy U of a closed system, Q is heat energy of the system and W is work done on the system. In a closed system, energy can not be created or destroyed, it can only be converted from one form to another. If the system is heated, then the internal energy of the system is increased, and if the system does work such as make a turbine spin or generate electricity, then the internal energy U of the system decreases. The inventor has recognized that if heat is added to a wind capture system, then the amount of work that it can then perform can also increase.
In an open system, the first law of thermodynamics states:
ΔU=Q+W+ΔUmassflow Equation 2
where ΔUmassflow is the mass flow added to the system. The added mass flow ΔUmassflow is could be expressed as the added kinetic energy of the newly introduced mass flow, expressed as mv2/2, where m is the mass of the newly added material and v is the velocity of the newly added material. The inventor has also recognized that exhaust air from a building's air conditioning system and ventilation exhaust can be added to the wind capture system to increase the total energy U of the system to produce more energy. Also, the inventor has realized that the exhaust from a building may be heated, and therefore boost the enthalpy of the system by adding heat Q to the system. Consequently, Applicant has realized that by incorporating a solar heater as well as building exhaust into the wind collection, more electricity can be generated.
While a high-rise building is an example case, application to residential single user situations, as well as to commercial applications with multiple users such as an industrial park applications with multiple users, or to residential multi-user applications is intended. This disclosure contemplates forming the basis for a micro grid, in which case, it will require a DC distribution system to accommodate multiple users. Even when applied to a high-rise building, there are situations where DC power would be fed to more than one user. Therefore, while not a requirement, a DC network, local in nature, may be connected to the ESS. In addition, the power production arrangement could be in a remote location which would refer to any off-site location with respect to the building
Further, ventilation exhaust air (from a building) may be guided into the tapering duct to supply additional mass flow in the influx air 200. According to the principle of continuity, the additional mass flow may increase air velocity in the tapering duct. The increase in the air velocity increases the kinetic energy and therefore the internal energy of influx air 200 in the tapering duct, which may result in generating more power using the turbine-generator apparatus.
The unit is configured to facilitate the heating of the influx air 200 in the tapering duct using heat recovered from solar collector. Moreover, exhaust heat (from a building) may be used for heating the influx air 200 in the tapering duct. The heating of the influx air 200 may increase the internal energy velocity v of the influx air 200 within the duct. The increase in velocity v increases the kinetic energy mv2/2, which increases the internal energy U of the influx air 200 may e the velocity of the influx air 200 which may help in generating more power using the turbine-generator apparatus.
The unit may include a wind capture unit. The wind capture unit may be configured to facilitate the collection of an influx air 200 from a plurality of directions. The plurality of directions may include east-west-north-south directions. The unit may include a tapering ductwork to increase the velocity of the influx air 200. The unit may be configured to facilitate the heating of the influx air 200 in the tapering ductwork using a solar collector. The solar collector may facilitate an increase in energy content in the flow of the influx air 200. The solar collector may include a heat transfer fluid. The heat transfer fluid may transfer the heat energy to the influx air 200 in the ductwork using a heat exchanger. The HVAC exhaust air may facilitate the addition of mass flow rate and the energy content to the influx air 200. The exhaust air may facilitate the heating of the influx air 200 in the tapering ductwork. The unit may include a turbine-generator apparatus. The turbine-generator apparatus may include a turbofan. The turbofan may be associated with a multi-staged turbofan. The turbine-generator apparatus may generate DC power from the flow of the influx air 200. The DC power may be stored in an energy storage unit. The energy storage unit may include a DC battery. The unit may include an inverter. The inverter may facilitate the conversion of the DC power to an appropriate user-determined voltage and a mono or three-phase electricity. The unit may include monitoring devices and unit of sensors.
According to some embodiments, an improved unit for the generation of electric power from solar and wind energy is disclosed. The unit may be installed in industrial, institutional, commercial and residential buildings. The unit may be designed with the site characteristic in mind. The unit may include a wind capture unit to facilitate the collection of influx air 200. The wind capture unit may have openings (faces) in four directions. The faces may be covered with a screen to prevent damage to birdlife. The influx air 200 may contain energy. The influx air 200 may be associated with an energy density. The energy density may correspond to the energy contained in the influx air 200. The influx air 200 may be heated using a solar heater and HVAC exhaust air. The solar heater may provide thermal energy to the influx air 200, thereby improving the energy density of the influx air 200. The exhaust air may include ventilation exhaust air and AC exhaust air. The ventilation exhaust air may be ducted in the duct to supply additional mass flow in the influx air 200. The ventilation exhaust air may be ducted in the duct to add heat energy in the influx air 200, thus increasing the electrical output from a turbofan-generator unit. The AC exhaust air may facilitate the enhancement of electrical energy production. The influx air 200 may be fed into a DC generator to produce DC power. The DC power may be stored in an energy storage unit. The DC power stored in the energy storage unit may be converted into AC power using an inverter. The AC power from the inverter may be fed to a building power unit.
Turning now to the figures,
Referring now to
The arrangement 100 of
As illustrated in
In the arrangement 100 of
The exhaust air in exhaust unit 40 may come from one or both of a ventilation exhaust air 42 and HVAC or air conditioning exhaust air 44. The ventilation exhaust air 42 may be associated with internal ventilation of a building. The HVAC exhaust air 44 may be associated with the internal conditioning of air within the building. The exhaust air may be introduced into duct 20 in order to heat the influx air 200.
The arrangement 100 may also include generator unit 50 to generate electricity from the influx air 200. Generator unit 50 may be a turbofan-generator unit. The influx air 200 may be fed into the turbofan-generator unit 50. The turbofan-generator unit 50 may include a turbofan 54 that rotates upon being immersed within an airstream such as influx air flow 200 and a DC generator 52 that generates DC power from the rotation of turbofan 54. The DC power may be associated with a DC power reading that may be read from a DC meter. The DC generator 52 may be selected from a permanent magnet DC generator, a separately excited DC generator, a self-excited DC generator, etc. The DC generator 52 can be coupled to a turbofan 54. The turbofan 54 may be an axial flow turbofan.
The arrangement 100 of
The arrangement 100 may include transferring the alternating current (AC) power to a building power unit. The AC power may have a voltage and a phase required by facility power unit, and may run an electrical appliance of the rated voltage. Alternatively, the AC power could be sold to an electrical power grid.
Turning now to
Turning now to
In some embodiments, wind capture unit 10 may not be a single integral monolithic unit, which would allow for assembly and easy installation on tall building rooftops, especially in cramped environments when there is other equipment on the rooftop. Accordingly, four faces 14E, 14W, 14N and 14S may effectively capture all wind at an angle, effectively receiving wind from two of the four faces for any given incident wind direction. At most, only two of the four faces 14 of the wind capture unit 10 will be exposed to wind direction of influx air 200 at any point in time, except when oriented directly perpendicular to the applicable face, in general, allowing the device to be able to effectively catch wind from any direction.
Turning now to
The duct 20 may include internal baffles 22 to prevent cross-flow of the influx air 200. The internal baffles 22 may be adjustable allowing control over influx air flow 200. The duct 20 may also be provided with external insulation 26 (see
Turning now to
Although
Turning now to
Turning now to
Turning now to
It is to be appreciated that a user can select a generator unit from many possible generator units and select a duct 20 with a tapering portion 22 from many designs based on typical wind conditions for a locale that the renewable energy generation arrangement 100 is to be installed. If a wind speed range in a particular locale is light, then the generator and duct need to be selected so that the typical wind speeds for a particular region, when amplified by tapered portion 22, would result in a velocity within a range for a particular generator chosen. It is further to be appreciated that the arrangement 100 may further include a safety shut off switch to shut the arrangement 100 off if the incident wind speed is too great for arrangement 100 to safely operate or when amplified by tapered portion 22, would fall outside a range of the selected generator unit 50.
Turning now to
Accordingly, the renewable power generating unit 100 illustrated in
The renewable power generating unit 100 of the block diagram 500 of
The renewable power generating unit 100 of the block diagram 500 of
Electricity from generator unit 50 of arrangement 100 of the block diagram 500 of
Electrical portion 360 of the renewable power generating arrangement 100 may also include an inverter 70 to convert the generated DC power into alternating current (AC). For example, the inverter 70 may be a sine wave inverter, a square wave inverter, etc. The ESS 60 may be connected to inverter unit 70 to convert DC to any desired AC voltage, as well as single phase or 3-phase current can be delivered for ultimate use.
The renewable power generating arrangement 100 may further include transferring the AC power to a building power arrangement. The AC power may have the voltage, phase, frequency and waveform required by a facility power unit. The AC power may run electrical appliances of the rated voltage within building 300, or may be sold to an electrical power grid.
Turning now to
Unlike the arrangements 100 of
The arrangement 600 of
The arrangement 600 of
The arrangement 600 of
Accordingly, the inventive renewable power generating arrangements of the present invention allows for a more efficient production of renewable electrical energy and power on a rooftop of a building, and does so with a more compact and aesthetically pleasing construction. By being able to receive or collect wind from all compass points without the need for adjustment, simplicity and efficiency are improved. Also, the present renewable power generation arrangements use solar energy and exhaust air from building exhaust to boost an energy content of the influx air flow 200, thereby boosting electricity production.
Though the inventive concept has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawings, these are provided for an exemplary purpose only, and one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various modifications and other equivalent embodiments may be made therein. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the inventive concept should be defined by the following claims.
This application claims an invention which was disclosed in Provisional Application No. 62/932,366, filed on Nov. 7, 2019 in the USPTO, entitled “Unit to Facilitate the Generation of Electric Power from Solar and Wind Energy”. The benefit under 35 USC § 119(e) of the United States provisional application is hereby claimed, and the aforementioned application is hereby incorporated herein by reference.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62932366 | Nov 2019 | US |