SBIR Phase I: Non-mechanical harvesting of wind energy

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是推动将风能转换为电力的技术。风力涡轮机需要巨大的支撑结构，产生噪音，需要持续维护，并对一些野生动物造成负面影响。该项目将提出一种利用不需要移动部件的新型变压器收集风能的方法。目前的估计表明，这种发电方法需要的维护更少，成本更低，对环境的影响也更小。该SBIR一期项目将推进风力发电的静电发电。拟议的发电机设计通过日冕发射产生负空气离子。当风把负离子带离发电机时，发电机只剩下净正电荷和相对于地面很大的正电压。拟议的项目将探索大规模风电变压器的贸易空间。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to advance a technology for converting wind energy into electrical power. Wind turbines need massive support structures, generate noise, require ongoing maintenance, and negatively impact some wildlife. This project will advance a method to harvest the wind’s energy using novel transformers requiring no moving components. Current estimates indicate that this approach to electrical power generation would require less maintenance, lower costs, and have lower environmental impact. This SBIR Phase I project will advance electrostatic generation of wind power. The proposed design of the power generator creates negative air ions by coronal emission. As the wind carries negative ions away from the power generator, the latter is left with net positive charge and a large positive voltage relative to the ground. The proposed project will explore the trade space of wind-to-electricity transformers at scale.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.