SBIR Phase I: AirLoom Investigation -- Modular, Scalable Wind Turbine at 23x Mass Savings

SBIR第一阶段项目旨在将风力涡轮机的资本成本降低15倍。它的专利设计非常简单，还降低了运输、维护和土地成本，并提供了更大的位置和高度灵活性。它采用了与当今主流风力发电技术水平轴风力涡轮机（HAWT）相同的空气动力学原理，但在最近对空中风能发电的研究基础上进行了创新。多个6米长的翼型（它们看起来像模型飞机）的行为完全像传统风力涡轮机叶片的外尖端，这是HAWT中产生大部分功率的地方。机翼沿着一条轨道运行--就好像你抓住了风筝，把它们拴在短皮带上--一个线性发电机产生动力。拟议的研究是基于概念验证，证明这些原则是科学合理的。如果成功，该项目将大大降低风力发电的成本，使其与化石燃料竞争。因此，它将是一个完全自我维持的商业上可行的实体，创造就业机会和税收。通过与化石燃料竞争，它将利用市场力量鼓励可再生能源的发展，从而减少与能源相关的排放，改善国民健康、繁荣和福利。该项目的重量轻，低姿态，容易，灵活的设置也可能有军事应用，将有助于确保国防。拟议中的技术捕获的能量通过平移，而不是旋转运动的尖端的机翼，因为他们运行沿着一个轨道拴着缰绳。它的主要创新是一个专利的系索系统，该系统可以处理顺风力（空气动力学倾翻力），这是HAWT质量和成本的主要原因。另一个主要的创新是运行在一个椭圆形而不是圆形的翼型。这改变了扫掠面积背后的数学，扫掠面积是发电容量的关键输入。由于椭圆形的扫掠面积是长度和高度的函数，而不是半径的平方，因此该项目可以通过许多不同的方式增加容量，从而避免建造更大更高的圆形的暴政。第一个目标是设计、测试、建造、测量和改进一个100千瓦（kW）的阿尔法装置。一个有意义的alpha设备将展示该项目满足性能、重量和成本目标的能力，同时促进关于如何构建更大设备的决策，并对其成本进行建模。这些方法和途径将克服五个子系统的挑战：结构、空气动力学、发电、控制和电网集成。该团队包括学术界和工业界的顶尖专家，将设计子系统选项。它将召开会议，以找到最佳的系统范围的设计和建设的设备，与许多细化沿着。

This SBIR Phase I project seeks to reduce the capital cost of wind turbines by an astounding 15x. Its patented, remarkably simple design also reduces transportation, maintenance, and land costs, and provides greater location and altitude flexibility. It uses the same aerodynamics as today's dominant wind technology, the horizontal axis wind turbine (HAWT), but with innovations based on recent research into airborne wind energy generation. Multiple, 6-meter airfoils (they look like model airplanes) behave exactly like the outer tips of a conventional wind turbine blade, which is where most of the power is generated in a HAWT. The airfoils run along a rail- as if you captured kites and put them on short leashes - and a linear generator makes the power. The proposed research is based on a proof-of-concept demonstrating that these principles are scientifically sound. If successful, the project would drastically reduce the cost of wind-generated electricity, making it competitive with fossil fuels. It would thus be a completely self-sustaining commercially viable entity, creating jobs and generating tax revenues. By out-competing fossil fuels, it would use market forces to encourage renewable energy development, thus reducing energy-related emissions and improving national health, prosperity, and welfare. The project's light weight, low profile, and easy, flexible set-up may also have military applications that would help secure the national defense.The proposed technology captures energy through translational rather than rotational motion in the tips of the airfoils as they run along a rail tethered by bridles. Its major innovation is a patented bridling system that handles downwind forces (aerodynamic tip-over forces), which are the primary cause of the HAWT's mass and cost. Another major innovation is to run airfoils in an oval rather than a circle. This alters the math behind swept area, the key input for generation capacity. Because the oval's swept area is a function of length and height, rather than radius squared, this project can add capacity in many different ways, escaping the tyranny of building ever-bigger and -taller circles. The first objective is to design, test, build, measure, and refine a 100 kilowatt (kW) alpha device. A meaningful-scale alpha device will demonstrate the project's ability to meet performance, weight, and cost targets, while facilitating decisions about how to build far larger devices, and modeling their costs. The methods and approaches will conquer challenges in five subsystems: structures, aerodynamics, power generation, control, and grid integration. The team, which includes leading experts in both academia and industry, will design subsystem options. It will convene to find the best system-wide design and construct the device, with many refinements along the way.