The activity of both individuals and all of today's humanity is almost impossible without electricity. Unfortunately, the rapidly increasing consumption of oil and gas, coal and peat leads to a decrease in the reserves of these resources on the planet. What can be done while earthlings still have all this? According to the conclusions of experts, it is the development of energy complexes that can solve the problems of world economic and financial crises. Therefore, the most relevant are the search and use of fuel-free energy sources.
Renewable, sustainable, green
Perhaps it is not worth reminding that everything new is a well-forgotten old. People have learned to use the strength of the river flow and the speed of the wind to obtain mechanical energy for a very long time. The sun heats water for us and moves cars, feeds spaceships. Wheels, installed in the beds of streams and small rivers, supplied water to the fields as early as the Middle Ages. One windmill could provide flour to several surrounding villages.
At the moment, we are interested in a simple question: how to ensureyour home with cheap light and heat, how to make a windmill with your own hands? 5 kW power or a little less, the main thing is that you can supply your home with current for the operation of electrical appliances.
It is interesting that there is a classification of buildings in the world according to the level of resource efficiency:
- conventional, built before 1980-1995;
- with low and ultra-low energy consumption - up to 45-90 kWh per 1 kV/m;
- passive and non-volatile, receiving current from renewable sources (for example, by installing a rotary wind generator (5 kW) with your own hands or a solar panel system, you can solve this problem);
- energy-active buildings that generate more electricity than they need, get money by giving it through the network to other consumers.
It turns out that own, home mini-stations installed on the roofs and in the yards, may eventually compete with large electricity suppliers. And the governments of different countries in every possible way encourage the creation and active use of alternative energy sources.
How to determine the profitability of your own power plant
Researchers have proven that the reserve capacity of the winds is much greater than all the accumulated centuries-old fuel reserves. Among the ways to obtain energy from renewable sources, windmills have a special place, since their manufacture is simpler than the creation of solar panels. In fact, a 5 kW wind generator can be assembled with your own hands, having the necessarycomponents, including magnets, copper wire, plywood and blade metal.
Connoisseurs say that not only a structure of the correct form, but also one built in the right place can become productive and, accordingly, profitable. This means that it is necessary to take into account the presence, constancy and even the speed of air flows in each individual case and even in a particular region. If the area is periodically calm, calm and calm days, the installation of a mast with a generator will not bring any benefit.
Before you start making a windmill with your own hands (5 kW), you need to consider its model and appearance. Do not expect a large energy output from a weak design. Conversely, when you only need to power a couple of light bulbs in the country, it makes no sense to build a huge windmill with your own hands. 5 kW is enough power to provide electricity to almost the entire lighting system and household appliances. There will be a constant wind - there will be light.
How to make a wind turbine with your own hands: a sequence of actions
At the place chosen for the high mast, the windmill itself is strengthened with a generator attached to it. The generated energy goes through the wires to the desired room. It is believed that the higher the mast design, the larger the diameter of the wind wheel and the stronger the air flow, the higher the efficiency of the entire device. In fact, everything is not quite like this:
- for example, a strong hurricane can easily break the blades;
- some models can be installed on the roof of a conventionalat home;
- The right turbine starts easily and performs well even in very light winds.
Main types of wind turbines
Classic are designs with a horizontal axis of rotation of the rotor. Usually they have 2-3 blades and are installed at a great height from the ground. The greatest efficiency of such an installation is manifested with an air flow of a constant direction and its speed of 10 m/s. A significant disadvantage of this bladed design is the failure of the rotation of the blades in a frequently changing, gusty wind direction. This leads either to unproductive work or to the destruction of the entire installation. To start such a generator after stopping, a forced initial spin-up of the blades is necessary. In addition, with active rotation, the blades emit specific sounds that are unpleasant to the human ear.
Vertical wind generator ("Whirlwind" 5 kW or other) has a different placement of the rotor. H-shaped or barrel-shaped turbines capture wind from any direction. These designs are smaller, run even at the weakest air currents (at 1.5-3 m / s), do not require high masts, they can be used even in urban areas. In addition, do-it-yourself (5 kW - this is real) assembled wind turbines reach their rated power with a wind of 3-4 m / s.
Sails are not on ships, but on land
One of the hottest trends in wind power todaywas the creation of a horizontal generator with soft blades. The main difference is both the material of manufacture and the shape itself: do-it-yourself windmills (5 kW, sail type) have 4-6 triangular fabric blades. Moreover, unlike traditional structures, their cross section increases in the direction from the center to the periphery. This feature allows not only to "catch" a weak wind, but also to avoid losses during a hurricane air flow.
The following indicators can be called the advantages of sailboats:
- high power with slow rotation;
- self-orientation and adjustment to any wind;
- high vane and low inertia;
- no need for forced spinning of the wheel;
- completely silent rotation even at high speeds;
- lack of vibrations and sound disturbances;
- relative cheap design.
Windmills do it yourself
5kW of required electricity can be obtained in several ways:
- build the simplest rotary structure;
- to assemble a complex of several successively located on the same axis sail wheels;
- Use neodymium axle construction.
It is important to remember that the power of the wind wheel is proportional to the product of the cubic value of the wind speed and the swept area of the turbine. So, how to make a 5 kW wind generator? Instructions follow.
You can take as a basiscar hub and brake discs. 32 magnets (25 by 8 mm) are placed in parallel in a circle on the future disks of the rotor (the moving part of the generator) for each disk, 16 pieces, moreover, the pluses necessarily alternate with the minuses. Opposite magnets must have different pole values. After marking and placement, everything on the circle is filled with epoxy.
Coils of copper wire are placed on the stator. Their number should be less than the number of magnets, that is, 12. First, all the wires are brought out and connected to each other with a star or triangle, then they are also filled with epoxy glue. It is recommended to insert pieces of plasticine into the coils before pouring. After the resin has hardened and removed, holes will remain that are needed for ventilation and cooling of the stator.
How it all works
The rotor disks, rotating relative to the stator, form a magnetic field, and an electric current appears in the coils. And the windmill, connected by means of a system of pulleys, is needed in order to move these parts of the working structure. How to make a wind generator with your own hands? Some start building their own power plant by assembling a generator. Others - from the creation of the bladed rotating part.
The shaft from the windmill is coupled with a sliding joint to one of the rotor discs. A lower, second disk with magnets is placed on a strong bearing. The stator is located in the middle. All parts are attached to the plywood circle with long bolts and fixed with nuts. Between all the "pancakes" be sure to leave the minimumgaps for free rotation of rotor discs. The result is a 3-phase generator.
Barrel
It remains to make windmills. With your own hands, a 5 kW rotating structure can be made from 3 circles of plywood and a sheet of the thinnest and lightest duralumin. Metal rectangular wings are attached to plywood with bolts and corners. Preliminarily, wave-shaped guide grooves are hollowed out in each plane of the circle, into which the sheets are inserted. The resulting two-story rotor has 4 wavy blades attached to each other at right angles. That is, between each two hubs fastened with plywood pancakes, there are 2 wave-shaped duralumin blades.
This design is mounted in the center on a steel pin, which will transmit torque to the generator. DIY windmills (5 kW) of this design weigh approximately 16-18 kg with a height of 160-170 cm and a base diameter of 80-90 cm.
Things to consider
Windmill-"barrel" can be installed even on the roof of the building, although a tower 3-4 meters high is quite enough. However, it is imperative to protect the generator housing from natural precipitation. It is also recommended to install a battery pack.
To obtain AC from a 3-phase DC current, a converter must also be included in the circuit.
With a sufficient number of windy days in the region, a self-assembled windmill (5 kW) can provide current not only to a TV and light bulbs, but also to a video surveillance system, air conditioning, a refrigerator and other electrical equipment.
