Where are all the Engineers?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Scott Huling on August 13, 2008 at 12:00pm

This discussion right here is the reason I joined. I will be busy for a long time checking all these great links. Thank you all.

Now I feel compelled to share my 2 cents. I think beth and some others have the "big picture " slightly skewed. First, I don't think Mr. Pickens is asking the government to build wind farms is he? We just need the Gov. to provide infrastructure and incentives like they do for other industies. Second, One million homes, farms, churches and small bussinesses with a 1kw wind turbine contributing to their own power needs would equal ....uhm............ alot of power.
Some of you mathematically inclined folks help me out. How much does 1kwh of power equal in carborn emmision. Or how about a formula for watts/ounces of opec oil?

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Permalink Reply by RWC1972 on August 13, 2008 at 12:10pm

Read this about residential wind power. It pretty much answers all of the questions that I've seen thus far in this post:

http://www.bergey.com/School/FAQ.Residential.html

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Permalink Reply by Chris Tidman on August 13, 2008 at 7:06pm

They'll come back when we start using the trains again. If we copied the low energy using countries like India we would be moving more freight with trains burning 20% bio-diesel made from Jatropha.

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Permalink Reply by M J on August 13, 2008 at 9:49pm

As a Commissioning Technician for one of the 5th largest Wind Turbine Generator manufactures in the world, I think people of the United States need to learn the proper terminology for the items that they are talking about. These giant, three-bladed, things that you see are not "Windmills", they are (WTG) Wing Turbine Generators. They produce electric power via a complex process. Windmills use the power of the wind to pump, turn a shaft to crush, or various other application. They can not use the wind to produce electricity. I have a degree as a Electronic Engineer and make plenty of money to support my family. It all boils down to how hard you are willing to work. Many engineers want a 9-5 desk job in an air-conditioned office with limited physical activity. Well, times have changed! We must do what we have to do to support the loved ones that are at home. I spend weeks at a time away from my family and with two small children it gets difficult at times. I have to do this to give my family a fighting chance in today's world. All I ever hear is whining about the economy and how savings are dwindling away. Do something about it!! Get out there and work.

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Permalink Reply by M J on August 14, 2008 at 6:43pm

I am the only one who sacrifices for my family. Yes that is true!!!!!

You stated:
"this is simply stupid.. turning a shaft by any means while wrapping that shaft with wires and creating a magnetic field will in FACT generate ELECTRICITY.. thats how the alternator in everybody's car works.. either you're the worst Electronic Engineer ever or you misstate the facts.."

When you alter the basic function of a windmill, it is not a windmill anymore. You are reading to much into this. When you wrap a windmill shaft in wires, like an alternator in the car, it becomes a basic Wind Turbine Generator. Doesn't that change the name and function? Guess you need a better understanding of this before you start accusing people of being stupid. You need to go back to school!!!!

As for the generic name for the layman person, that is what I am talking about. The people of the U.S. should be tired of being referred to as "layman". We need a better understanding of knowledge! Do you want your son or daughter referred to as the stupid one in the class? Would you do everything in your power to make sure that they have a better education by helping out? This just makes me think that you are a selfish person and would rather blame someone else and not take responsibility yourself.

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Permalink Reply by Andy-Paul on January 14, 2009 at 9:18pm

I am unsure as to whom MJ has addressed the preceding replies, but I would suggest that we all take a break before answering anything in the way of inflammatory print, let alone firing off flamethrower posts in the first place!

I'm only a layman at interpersonal affairs myself, but it is amazing at how much melarkey becomes precisely pegged as such and utterly unworthy of reply with no more than a few minutes' careful consideration...

This is a very scary time to be an engineer, true. It is also an unbelievably exhilarating time to be an engineer for precisely the same reason.

I have a notebook full of ideas for useful alternatives to our current setup as well as things that could prove useful and/or profitable depending upon what technology comes out on top next. Will I get to develop/see/use any of it? Well, that's not particularly in or out of my hands (as close to theology as I go), but it sure is fun to think of it.

How many of us can remember having to call in credit card numbers because the customer was above the store's floor limit? Or having to get to a bank before closing because there was no ATM?

I am willing to cut some slack to the technician who pointed out the difference between a windmill and a WTG. If he/she could be considered guilty of anything, it might be coming down on the side of extraneous detail in the difference between the two--which would be a crime of passion, given his/her love of the field.

As an engineer, I should like to point out that the term 'mill' has had many uses in the past 300-400 years, and the one that first comes to mind for me would be any shaft-driven energy transformation device--ie the windmill for the well-tank at my grandparents' farm. Using the wind sure beat the Livingston B Jeebers out of hand pumping 500 gal up 30ft...so if we add some wiring and change our goal from mechanical energy generation to low-grade wattage, have we gone far enough to start changing names and calling them, as well? Let us all breathe deeply neighbors, and hope the cow #$% is down wind.

Lay man implies clerical man, working class vs owning class. Perhaps the issue is, as MJ says, that we have allowed ourselves to assume entitlement to 8am-5pm, air-conditioned office space. The outcome is not pretty, is it?

.Namaste.

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Permalink Reply by Greg. Schwab on February 22, 2009 at 1:03pm

Be assured, you are not alone. I am an engineer (Va Tech!) and retired from Intel Corp (now working in real estate). The wind turbine on my property should go online this week. I have also installed the required wiring to add solar panels at a later date.

Oh, by the way, engineers rule!

http://www.SonoitaValleyRealEstate.info

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Permalink Reply by Chris Tidman on February 25, 2009 at 11:15am

I understand that 50% of home energy is used for space heating and 25-30% is used for water heating. I also know that PV is energy intensive to produce and does not capture much energy. Batteries to store energy are expensive, and solar thermal is about the cheapest most productive system available.

With this in mind I have purchased 4 - 6volt 210 amp/hr deep cycle batteries for $66 each (on sale) and a 30watt solar panel with charge controller for $143 (on sale). The plan is to use this energy source ( which is pretty useless for running anything on 110v around the house) to pump water through a solar water heater into a storage tank which can be used to preheat hot water or pumped into a rad in the home when heat is needed. I have a micro processor on order to manage the system and am presently determining if I can use 12 volt auto fuel pumps to move the water. I believe that such a system will provide the most energy for the lowest cost. It has few energy converters to reduce efficiency and uses resources as best I know how. I am now also looking at what are available / makable as solar water heaters.

Any comments or assistance from real engineers would be appreciated.

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Permalink Reply by neil cox on February 25, 2009 at 4:55pm

You should charge your 4 batteries to 6.6 volts (or a bit more) each before you connect any significant load, such as a 12 volt water pump. Charging may take several weeks at 30 watts, so you may want to help the charging with a battery charger. Since most pumps use more than 30 watts, you may need to use a battery charger one or more times per week to keep your batteries above 6.3 volts even with a load such as a pump.
Otherwise your plan is good as far as I know. Your batteries will deteriorate rapidly if you let the no load voltage fall below about 6.2 volts.You can buy a multitester from Harbor Freight for about $3. Check with the battery manufacturer's web site for other suggestions. An aquarium store may know where to get 12 volt pumps which need less current, and/or come with more suitable fittings. Neil

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Permalink Reply by Chris Tidman on February 25, 2009 at 5:49pm

Thanks Neil,
Do you have any info on desulphateing batteries - I think that's what it is called ? I have been looking at auto fuel pumps and chemical sprayers. 7amp pumps 1gal/min. We only need a little pressure pump to get this system operational, then we can tune it with the correct sizes for everything once we get the CPU handling the switching correctly. I have also picked up some temp sensors that turn on the auto cooling fan when the water temp gets near boiling and some temp switches from clothes dryers. Not sure how they fit into the equation yet.

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