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wiredInUSA - January 2013
wiredInUSA - January 2013
PolyU's Department of Building Services
Engineering, and the water supplies
department (WSD) of the Hong Kong
government have been working together
to turn water mains into a source of power,
reports the PhysOrg website.
Hong Kong has a 7,800km water mains
network, comprehensively monitored by
WSD. The monitoring devices use power,
so small turbines are to be placed within
the pipelines to produce electricity from
drinking water.
The pipes are just a meter wide and hold
far less water volume than a conventional
dam, so the research team has created a
highly efficient small turbine. The turbine will
fit into a pipe, and uses just a small amount
of hydroenergy to generate about 80 volts,
enough to power four compact fluorescent
light bulbs.
The novel device consists of an external
hydroelectric generator and highly efficient
spherical water turbine that dips into flowing
water and reclaims residual pressure. When
water passes through, the turbine drives
a central rotating shaft and a micro
generator to produce electricity.
Turbineblades arecarefully sized to intersect
the largest possible area of water flow
and minimize water bypassing. To achieve
maximum power output, the central
rotating shaft is hollow on the inside to
minimize energy losses when driving the
generator and utilize the harvested energy
in full. The team has also made the water
more energetic, producing a stronger
current to compress and accelerate the
water flow. The turbine has no moving parts
and does not need any lubricant.
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ASIA / AFRICA NEWS
ASIA
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Picture : Alessandro Paiva
INDEX36
Power generation from
water pipelines?