Self-powered Turbine

[jambul]

Hi

 

I've had an idea for a self-powered turbine but I know about as much about engineering as I do about putting on make-up.

 

Here's the idea and if anyone can tell me if it's the greatest invention since the knife and fork - genius, but I still have trouble eating soup - or the crazed machinations of an intellectual ameeba (I don't think I've spelled that right) I would be very grateful.

 

We have a large central rotating column, attached to which are 8 arms reaching out.

 

On the end of each arm is a circular frame.

 

Each circular frame has a large fan in the centre with 8 smaller fans spread equally around the circumference.

 

The central column is given an initial spin and with this the 72 fans start to turn.

 

The energy created by the 8 large fans is used to keep turning the central column with the energy produced by the 64 smaller fans being usable energy.

 

If this makes any sense to anyone, is this possible?

 

I presume it's a simple question of, will the 8 large fans produce enough energy to turn the central column?

 

Of course, this machine could work anywhere, anytime as it does not require wind, it uses drag - I think.

 

Any help with what I have called the Octurbine would be greatly appreciated.

 

All the best.

 

jambul

 

P.S.

 

What is a tag? I'm new to this forum stuff.

[ydoaPs]

Can we get a picture?

[insane_alien]

no it wouldn't work. inefficiencies would mean that it would stop on pretty short order as it'd lose energy very fast.

[Sisyphus]

The main rule you need to know is that it is impossible to get more energy out of a system than you put in.

 

The fans get their energy from the spinning column. You can only get less energy out of them than that, and they won't keep the column spinning. The whole thing will stop immediately, and you will get less energy out of it than you used to start it spinning in the first place.

[jambul]

The main rule you need to know is that it is impossible to get more energy out of a system than you put in.

 

The fans get their energy from the spinning column. You can only get less energy out of them than that, and they won't keep the column spinning. The whole thing will stop immediately, and you will get less energy out of it than you used to start it spinning in the first place.

 

I've no idea if I am doing this right but here goes anyway.

 

Thanks very much for the advice, I had a sneaky suspicion it would crash and burn but at least now I won't have Russian Energy Gangsters knocking on my door.

 

Cheers.

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no it wouldn't work. inefficiencies would mean that it would stop on pretty short order as it'd lose energy very fast.

 

Thanks for the prompt reply.

 

Ah well, it was worth a try.

 

Back to my biscuit powered television project.

 

Cheers.

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Can we get a picture?

 

Thanks for the reply.

 

A couple of other members have said it wouldn't work.

 

Macaroni and cheese gangs, you should write comedy scripts.

 

What does it mean or am I being dumb - I am English!

[Anikirol88]

Kindly can you attach any picture of it? Perhaps it can make it more clear for us.

 

What do you mean by self-power? Is it the thingy you attach on top of the car roof and when travel it will spin and produce some energy?

[PaulS1950]

no matter how hard you try you can never use the power generated by a machine to power it. The losses in the system make it impossible.

 

Alternators are at best 90% efficient.

Electric motors are at best 90% efficient.

All wires and circuitry have resistance.

All semiconductors have voltage drops when conducting.

A simple circuit consisting of a battery connected with a wire with a diode will lose .3 to .5 volts through the diode. If we are talking about a 1.5 volt battery that is 20 to 30% loss.

On your "self powered" turbine (lets take one arm of it) you have a large center fan that moves the arm and around it you have 8 turbines that produce power to run that center fan. Disregarding the fact that if they are 1/2 the diameter of the center fan the air will only affect them at 1/4 of the power of the central fan, you have eight turbines that have 10% losses each trying to drive the fan that has 10% losses (power in to power out) within it not allowing for any electronic controls and takes much more power to drive it. You won't have enough power to turn the fan fast enough to keep the smaller fans working. Instead of producing power you will have a brake that slows the system faster than if it had no fans at all.

Think of it this way:

If I built a four wheel cart with an electric motor on one wheel and an alternator at each of the other three wheels would it power itself? If I added a battery to get it up to some optimal speed then disconnected the battery would it continue to travel at its optimum speed?

The answer is that it would slow faster than if you just disconnected the alternators and coasted because the drag on the alternators would slow the cart faster than without them. Even so they can never make enough power to keep up with the motors demands.