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Environment

Video: Airborne Wind Turbine in flight

By James Holloway
April 20, 2012
Video: Airborne Wind Turbine in flight
Altaeros Energies has been in touch to show Gizmag a video of its Airborne Wind Turbine in flight
Altaeros Energies has been in touch to show Gizmag a video of its Airborne Wind Turbine in flight
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Altaeros Energies has been in touch to show Gizmag a video of its Airborne Wind Turbine in flight
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Altaeros Energies has been in touch to show Gizmag a video of its Airborne Wind Turbine in flight

Remember the Airborne Wind Turbine covered by Gizmag towards the end of March? The creator of the prototype, Altaeros Energies, has been in touch to show us a video of the prototype in operation and we can confirm that a) it flies and b) the turbine goes round.

Though we wouldn't typically post an update with relatively scant new information, the combination of this product's uniqueness and the interest the original story garnered among Gizmag readers means we thought this was worth letting you know about.

Also, it's nice to have a video without unnecessarily distracting and incongruous music suddenly blasting out of your cans, but perhaps that's just me. Judge for yourself...

Altaeros - Airborne Wind Turbine Prototype 2012

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EnvironmentRenewable EnergyWind PowerPrototypeWind turbineBlimp
17 comments
James Holloway
James writes about science and technology from his home in rural East Anglia. Whether it's the internet, nature, video games or AI, he pays particular heed to the flash points with culture, society and the planet.

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17 comments
Dan Alger
cost / MWhr?
benfelts70
http://www.magenn.com/
L1ma
May be better to suspend your Turbine from beneath a dirigeable, at least then they can be dropped and raised without damage to the envelope (this design has bare blades inside one).
Also in crosswinds a dirigeable can easily turn into the wind, the current design looks stable only when it is turned into the wind direction, being only semi rigid I would not like to see what happens when it is buffeted from the side and the envelope meets the blades.
In short get a blade housing.
Slowburn
re; L1ma
It has fins that will keep it turned into the wind.
Given the blade clearance and the stiffness of the inflatable structure any additional blade housing should be unnecessary. However a rigid housing that provides for smoother airflow might be worth the cost.
Denis Klanac
why don't they use hydrogen? this way they could transport deflated from site to site and inflate onsite rather than what they showed in the video, not to mention the supply of helium is finite.
Florin Nicoara
This design is really bad, complicated, and inefficient. They should have kept it as a typical balloon with the generator suspended underneath, and instead of a prop it should have had a large spiraling ribbon hanging on a double joint hanging from one end of the generator. Then it would not matter how, which, or when the wind is blowing because the the ribbon would always be flowing with the direction of the wind and away from the cable while the balloon would have no negative angles or unnecessary turbulence due to its shape.
L1ma
Re; Dennis Klanac
The supply of helium is effectively infinite because it is produced by radioactive decay and trapped in shales. We have far more than it is possible to ever use, but it is all wasted because there is no market. It is a normal byproduct of natural and shale gas production.
Slowburn
re; L1ma
The aerostat is tethered by a single cable and it has fins to keep it pointed into the wind. Between the stiffness of the inflated structure and the wide clearance the envelope will not meet the blades except in conditions that make the thing fall out of the sky the good option. The contour of the air channel could be improved. ...........................................................................................................................
re; Denis Klanac
Hydrogen leaks a lot faster than helium, and the supply of helium is not near as limited as you think.
windykites
Slowburn, don't forget that the Hindenburg flew across the Atlantic. I know it had an unfortunate end, which killed off hydrogen balloons( the fire was mostly caused by the aluminium paint) Hydrogen is a lighter element than Helium, but is a lot cheaper, and this device is unmanned, so safety is not so critical.
cwc
Articles as this and their presentation is why this site is so great. Obviously a favorite that stimulates the imagination.
thank you cwc
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