Plurion Systems Answer

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Plurion
Answers Back

This morning, Monday 20th August, I received a reply from Dr. Ian Vallance of Plurion. He firstly takes a swipe at me. (perhaps justifiably, and my apologies for any grief taken, I have been highly annoyed by many companies ignoring information requests, so I now tend to operate on a hair trigger) He then goes on to give some useful information.

Here is the e-mail verbatim:

Firstly,

Can I suggest before making “humorous” statements in your blog you allow small professional organizations the opportunity of a little time to respond appropriately to a request for information. You do neither yourself, your organization, nor your cause/interest any service by potentially insulting those who you seek to make contact with.

Plurion as I say are still a small organization and have limited resources to commit to requests for information about our activities but I hope my answer will convey that we are very serious about making a significant contribution to the future energy supply business. We are in the process of establishing a new website where we hope to include background information which may be useful for an organization like yours

In the meantime my specific comments (given in blue) to you enquiry are included below and will perhaps explain why an immediate response was not forth coming.

In the meantime I am interested in any views you might have on “the domestic” market, e.g. what storage capacity would you think suitable and how long should it last at maximum capacity, sustainable cost to end user of any storage unit. And on the short comings any of technologies capable of supplying this market.


Dr. Ian Vallance
Project Manager
Plurion Limited
Southfield Industrial Estate
Glenrothes
Fife KY6 2TF
UK


Here is my original email to Plurion with the answers interspersed:


Hi,

I write a small blog on alternative energy. Currently I am looking at storage systems and came across your site. Is your battery system scalable to domestic level? The household with a 3Kw wind turbine system needing storage?

Plurion’s Ce/Zn technology can in principle be operated on any scale, and in fact we use low Kw units for development purposes. However the main thrust of Plurions strategy is not the domestic market.

We are currently still in the product development phase and involved in projects which will see us product a 1 megawatt electrical storage facility for a major electricity supplier by late Q4 2008/ early Q1 2009. This unit will be capable of supplying at the 1Mw level for up to 8 hours. (The unit of course could be drawn upon at various rates e.g. it would supply 8Mw for one hour or at 125kw for 64 hours.

This unit will be made up of X4 250kw (Valid Production Prototype (VPP)) units, (also naturally with 8 hour capacity) simply linked together, the easy of combining their operation being an important plank of our development approach

On the way to producing these 250Kw VPP we will operate a 65Kw unit here at our Glenrothes operation. We hope to make appropriate announcements on this issue on our new web site when it is up and running soon.
Our aim is to supply the electrical energy storage market with 250Kw batteries which can be easily combined by end users to provide storage on any scale their generation facilities require. I know you understand the various generation methodologies we know will benefit from our technology offering.


I would like to write a piece on your systems. Do you have some photographs of your product in operational situations that you would be willing to send me?

As we are still in the development phase I hope you will understand why we are not in a position to supply you or anyone else with photographs of our products.

I would be obliged to hear from you,

Regards,
Woodpellet


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Plurion Batteries couldn't be Arsed to Answer

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I have been researching large capacity battery storage and was pointed towards Plurion Batteries by my West Cork friend. I found the information on their site very interesting and wrote to them asking for some photos and specific information to publish here on the blog.

I received no answer, so the best part of a week later I wrote again, AND AGAIN received no answer.

Ignoring requests for information seems a rather stupid thing from any manufacturer wanting to promote their goods. It could of course be put down to oversight (double oversight), or ignorance on the other hand.

Dear Plurion Batteries,
Being ignored is not a very nice thing and is perceived
as "couldn't care less" attitude at the least, or downright
ignorance at worst by myself and, I suspect, most people.

Yours Sincerely,
Woodpellet.




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Storing Wind and Solar Power

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Batteries
Capable of
Serious Storage

I have been directed to looking at battery storage by a good friend in West Cork who is an expert on wind power and alternative energy generally.

I have been reading up on an exciting type of high capacity battery called "Flow Batteries". These are a species of rechargeable battery where the battery fluid or electrolyte is what is charged up and hold the energy. Therefore you could take a flat battery and pour in some charged up fluid and hey-presto you got power.

You can therefore use large storage tanks for this fluid and pump it through the battery cells – increasing the capacity of the battery many times.

Flow cell batteries are a type of “fuel cell”

Redox Battery

One type of Flow Battery of note is the the redox (reduction-oxidation) flow battery this is where the fluid has all the juice dissolved in it AFAIK. The energy of this battery is related to the volume of fluid in the tanks. The power on the other hand is related to the size and number of cells.

What I think that means is:

MORE CELLS = More Volts (Size of Engine)
MORE FLUID = More Ampere Hours (More petrol in the tank)

Then the Heavy Duty Science and Chemistry Kicks In.

It all gets very-very technical and complicated after that. Suffice it to say these batteries have some serious storage capacity and are suitable for holding gobs and gobs of power derived from windmills, PV Solar Cells etc.

This is most useful because with wind turbines, much of the time the wind is blowing in the middle of the night when you don’t want the power – so it goes to waste. With a redox battery – you could store up all this nice juice and use it to cook the lunch and heat the house.

I will be writing up more as I learn it on battery storage systems.

Batteries ain't what they used to be.



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Wind to Hydrogen

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Link to media VIDEO of wind to hydrogen project:

http://www.kfyrtv.com/News_video.asp?news=8896



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Wind to Hydrogen Energy Storage

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The US has developed
Wind to Hydrogen Energy Storage

U.S. National Renewable Energy Lab has announced a system that uses electricity from wind turbines to produce and store pure hydrogen. This is an important development, as the problem with wind energy is how to store the unwanted power at certain time for use at peak periods. It therefore doesn’t matter when the wind blows, as energy can be stored in the form of hydrogen – a readily usable fuel.

The gizmos in question are called electrolyzers, which pass the wind-generated electricity through water to split the liquid into hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen is used later to generate electricity from either an internal combustion engine or possibly from fuel cells.

The coupling of wind turbines with hydrogen production overcomes some difficult problems with storage and does it in a clean and environmentally friendly way.



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New Record in PV Solar Cell Efficiency

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New Record in PV Solar Cell Efficiency

The University of Delaware and associates have achieved solar cell efficiency of almost 43% from sunlight in normal terrestrial conditions.

The current record for solar cell efficiency is 40.7% was announced only last December. The consortium will continue working to achieve an interim 50% target efficiency. They believe that much higher efficiency rates are achievable.

The highly efficient solar cells use a novel optical system that splits light into three different energy levels and focuses them onto cells of differing light sensitive materials to cover the spectrum. An interesting feature is that the concentrator is stationary and has a wide-angle optical system that captures large amounts of light and eliminates the need for complicated tracking devices.



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Chinese Vertial Axis Wind Turbines part 3

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Shanghai Aeolus Wind Technology
Answer Some More Questions

Further clarification of specifications etc. from Shanghai Aeolus Wind Technology Ltd. This company has been very forthcoming and communicative - top marks to them in this respect!! They would also appear to have some interesting features in their technology. I will try to follow up on their installations and get feedback if possible.

Here is the conversation:

Can you perhaps expand a little on the "pneumatic" governor system what is the technical basis??? and How safe in 80 - 90MPH gusts that we experience here at certain times of the year???

According to the aerodynamics, the pitch angel of the blades is charged automatically with the diversification of the wind speed so that the windmill rotates at the same speed to avoid the generator burn out, when the wind speed is over 43.2 MPH and become stronger.
Our turbine can still work at the wind speed of 80 - 90MPH. But when it is over 90MPH, you'll need to stop it.

Are your VAWT OK in very wet and damp climate or in corrosive climate near the sea??

To use in such specific whether, our mechanical parts like sustaining arms and joint spots need extra surface treatment. It will cost extra.

What is the estimated useful life of these units?

20 years. Almost needs no maintenance.

Also, do you have any installations of your VAWTs in western Europe? or better still in the UK or Ireland?

We've just started selling for several months. There's few customers who received our turbine in west Europe. One in Italy, they received for 2 months. One in Norway by sea, they should have received. We also delivered two by air to Germany and Switzerland around July 10th. But I don’t know where the turbine are mounted. Regards,



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Revolutionary Irish Wind Turbine

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An Irish man has come up with a revolutionary light weight design of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine suitable for urban domestic use. Ben Storan was the Winner of the Sustainability Design Awards 2007 at this years Royal College of Art Summer show.

The turbine is very light and flexible so it can be installed in just about any location. It uses textile aerofoils which have ribs to stiffen them. The pole is fibreglass. It weighs only 9kg, so that the total weight of an installation is 25kg roughly half that of a windmill of similar output. The inactive structure is not unlike that of a rotary clothesline, with the blades lying nearly vertically or close to the centre pole.

The height is 4m and diameter in use is approximately 2.5m. The projected selling price including generator is just under £1000. Power output is estimated to be 1.2 kW at 12m/s. The average wind speed in Ireland is about 5.5m/s more or less depending on the geography.

The flexible design would make the windmill safe in severe weather by simply bending in the wind.

Good luck with the development stage Ben.


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Chinese Vertical Axis Wind Generators part 2

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Interesting Wind Turbines
from
Shanghai Aeolus Wind Technology

I had a very prompt and comprehensive reply from one Chinese Wind Generator manufacturer Shanghai Aeolus Wind Technology Co. Ltd. who make a line of vertical axis wind turbines. And yes, the Chinese can offer wind generators at substantially lower prices. See the price list below. I publish also two photos, which they sent me, which clearly show the design of the rotor blades

Here is their reply to my query;

Thank you for your email.
Our products line now extends from 200watts, 300w, 500w, 1000w, 3kw to 10kw.

Our 3kw and 10kw products "pneumatically" control the rotating speed of the wind mill when wind speed is over the rated speed. Therefore our products can be used where the wind is very strong, they could still work stably and continuously. This technique is unique and is one of our patents. All of our products are patented and owned by us.

Compare the VAWT (vertical axis wind turbine) with HAWT (horizontal axis wind turbine). VAWT has no noise and is safer. They have different structure, different use, different market. We have the most advanced VAWT technology in this field.

Our turbine can be used in both rural and urban areas given that the local wind and site conditions fit. In public lighting, monitor controlling system, oil fields and other city facilities and commercial purposes could our products be used as well. Because wind directions don't affect the function of the equipment, it works even better on yachts, islands, offshore oil fields where wind is more turbulent.

Attached the specification of each model and price list(FOB Shanghai) for your reference. Our minimum order quantity is 1 set. Delivery times is 30-45 days.

Let me know if you have any other question.

Regards,

The Shanghai Aeolus Wind Technology Co. Ltd. site link is as follows: http://www.sawt.com.cn/index_en.asp





Here is a very interesting piece of information - the price list!! Prices are in US Dollars and are less shipping costs.


Price(USD) Fob Shanghai
Model -Power -- mill system - controller = inverter (off grid)
P200 - -200W US$1080
P300 - 300W US$1230
P500A - 500W US$1730
P500B 500W US$1630
P1000 1000W US$2580
P3000 3000W US$6480
PK10 10KW US$19000

Note: This price is for goods. The sample price is 1.05 time of goods. And we have no MQO.

A 3Kwatt turbine and gear for US$6500 that's approx €4715 plus shipping and tax. You must also add in the cost of a mast and installation. These prices look to be very reasonable.

If any reader has experience of these turbines I would really appreciate hearing from you.




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Chinese Vertical Axis Wind Generators

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Chinese Wind Generators

I came across a lot of Chinese windmills while digging for information. But this one is especially interesting as it uses the vertical axis design.

I am waiting to hear from the company regarding prices etc. Hopefully they will offer low cost products and it will be interesting to see how these pan out for reliability etc. when tested in the west. I just hope the Chinese are not to coy with communications and information!!!

Here is the technical specs. for their 3Kw model: Model P-3000-G
Mill diameter: 300 cm Blade length: 360 cm
Start up wind speed: 2 m/s Working wind speed: 4-25 m/s
Rating wind speed: 12 m/s Safe wind speed: 50 m/s
Rating power: 3000 w Rating out put: DC 200～450 V
Governed speed style: Aerodynamics Brake style: Mechanism
Pillar high: 5.5 m Net weight: 500 Kg (No Pillar)

I have copied some of the company's blurb on their product along with some very poor quality photos. Here is the site link:

http://www.sawt.com.cn/service_en.html










(Sorry for the terrible quality of the photos but this company use absolutly tiny jpegs and not great photos to begin with)




The company blurb:

We are an innovative company engaged in vertical axis wind turbine generator technology. We entered Shanghai China in 2005. Our research focuses on vertical axis wind turbine generator including systematic study on aerodynamics, materials, structures and generators.

We have made breakthroughs in commercializing of vertical axis wind generator, the worldwide Sphinx's riddle. We have completed product designs for 200-watt, 300-watt, 500-watt, 1000-watt, 3000-watt,10kw and ready for marketing and sales. 200-watt and 300-watt products have successfully gone through experiments many times in wind tunnel.

One 300-watt product has been installed in the national highway monitoring system in northern part of China. With more financing, we will begin manufacturing samples of megawatt products and conduct on site tests. We have obtained 8 international invention patents which is the threshold to enter the vertical axis wind turbine section. Our products are going to completely replace the products of traditional horizontal axis wind turbine generator in the near future.

Q: What is Vertical Axis Wind Turbine compared with traditional horizontal axis wind turbine?
A: If the pivot of the turbine is vertical to the ground, then it is a vertical axis wind turbine, and visaversa. Most of the wind turbines, the ones with three blades that we see frequently today are horizontal axis wind turbines.

Q: Why vertical axis wind turbines make much less noise than horizontal axis wind turbines?
A: The cause of noise is mainly because of blades cutting through air flow. However, air flow
through vertical axis wind turbine is different and the rotation speed is much lower. As a
result, it produces much less noise, almost no noise at all.

Q: Why are our products most advanced?
A: The design and development of the products followed a strict process. Firstly, we verified
our ideas by relevant theories, and then conducted computer facilitated simulation (CFD).
When choosing materials, we calculated, compared and adjusted intensity of various types of
materials. Before finalizing the design, each new product has to go through countless
experiments in wind tunnel to further prove its functions. We already have 9 international
invention patents resulted from the research. So Aeolus is the leader in the vertical axis wind
turbine section of the industry with cutting edge products and it is the only one who has
successfully transferred the technology to manufacturing.

Q: Who are the potential users of vertical axis wind turbine?
A: As it has advantages such as lower noise, it can be used in both rural and urban areas given
the local wind and site conditions fit. Public lighting, monitor controlling system, oil fields
and other city facilities and commercial purposes could use our products as well. Because
wind directions don’t affect the function of the equipment, so it works even better on
yachts, islands, offshore oil fields where wind is more turbulent.





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