Houston-based Aeromine Technologies has fitted a bunch of silent and motionless wind energy harnessing airfoils on the roof of BMW's MINI manufacturing plant in Oxford, UK. They're meant to complement the factory's solar panels to produce clean energy, while taking up a lot less space.
How much less? Aeromine says that each of its turbines – which contain no visible moving parts – require just 10% of rooftop area as a solar panel to produce the same amount of energy. The company also claimed they deliver 50% more energy than solar installations at the same cost.
Aeromine noted back in 2022 that it had been testing its contraptions at chemical manufacturer BASF Corporation's facility in Michigan. The recently installed motionless wind energy system at the MINI plant is the first of its kind in the UK.
Beyond their small footprint, these turbines are also inexpensive to build and maintain. The company says they're made from easily recyclable materials, utilize a sealed generator that doesn't require periodic lubrication, and should last 20 years.
How do they work?
These turbines are placed on the edges of building roofs, facing the predominant wind direction. As wind accelerates when it goes over the edge of a building, it flows over vertical airfoils positioned on either side of a tall central column. This creates a low-pressure zone behind the column, which causes air to be sucked through the bottom of the device, turning an internal propeller to generate power.
The big idea with Aeromine's wind harvesters is to complement rooftop solar – which can only generate energy when it's sunny out – so you have a more robust system overall. Since they have a small footprint, you've got lots of space to fit solar panels between turbines.
If this initial project with BMW is successful, Aeromine hopes it'll lead to a wider rollout of its systems across the automaker's facilities elsewhere around the world. The BMW Group is supporting Aeromine through its BMW Startup Garage project that sees it participate as an early customer in cutting-edge tech.
Source: BMW Group
