When it comes to green energy, the problem has always been about cost. Fossil fuels may be ruining the atmosphere, perhaps throwing the world into a climatic tail spin from which it will never recover, but their short-term cost effectiveness remains attractive, a benefit that green technologies have had a tough time matching.
The challenge that tends to rob most green energy solutions of bottom line efficiency is an almost total dependence upon uncontrollable variables of nature. With photovoltaic or passive solar, the energy fades whenever the sun goes away, and nobody has yet figured out an efficient way to remove clouds or eliminate the night. With wind power, calm days are impossible to completely avoid, regardless of where the turbines are located or how efficient they operate. Even biomass depends upon a good market or a good crop.
Such inherent variability means that expensive assets must occasionally, and unpredictably, run poorly or perhaps not at all. To achieve a dependable level of power then requires over-building, which in turn increases project costs and reduces overall cost effectiveness. There may be no way to totally remove natural variability, but a reduction in such variability increases operational and cost efficiency, making green energy projects more viable.
It’s a challenge that is now being addressed in a brand new way by Solar Wind Energy, a green energy company with a new approach to capturing the power of nature. The company has developed a unique way to extract the energy from the sun, essentially combining the principles and benefits of solar and wind solutions. Instead of waiting passively for the sun to heat up and drive the wind, the company makes its own wind by transforming hot dry desert air into fast moving wind. The process requires a very large open tower, enclosing a large volume of air. Water is sprayed through the air in the enclosed space, cooling the air and making it dense, causing it to fall. The falling air pulls in more dry air, and the process continues. Soon there’s a massive downflow of over 50 mph wind, easily directed to wind turbines to generate electricity. It’s a process that can operate 24 hours a day in almost any weather conditions, and the design suggests high-cost efficiency.
For information on Solar Wind Energy visit www.cleanwindenergytower.com
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