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Potential Energy

J

Jasen Betts

Jan 1, 1970
0
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as potential
energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential energy. Couldn't
anyone invent a good way of coming down so the potential energy could be
converted to other forms of energy that could be converted to electricity
when needed??

an escalator driving a generator ?
piezo-electric stair treads?
 
K

karela

Jan 1, 1970
0
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as potential
energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential energy. Couldn't
anyone invent a good way of coming down so the potential energy could be
converted to other forms of energy that could be converted to electricity
when needed??
 
D

Doc O'Leary

Jan 1, 1970
0
karela said:
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as potential
energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential energy. Couldn't
anyone invent a good way of coming down so the potential energy could be
converted to other forms of energy that could be converted to electricity
when needed??

How much are you willing to spend on a contraption to power a 100W light
bulb for less than 1 minute?

<http://www23.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=potential+energy+of+100kg+at+5m>
<http://www23.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=100W+*+1+minute>
 
D

daestrom

Jan 1, 1970
0
karela said:
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as potential
energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential energy. Couldn't
anyone invent a good way of coming down so the potential energy could be
converted to other forms of energy that could be converted to electricity
when needed??

Well in *theory*, yes you certainly could. Something as simple as a bucket
and rope tied to a pulley turning a shaft. When you want to go downstairs
you just climb into the bucket and let it lower you through a hole in the
floor. Of course there will be *some* losses.

But lets look at just how much energy we're talking about. Raising a 200
lbm man up 10 feet in normal gravity would put 2000 ft-lbf of energy into
the man. If you could recover *all* of that, that is a mere 0.75 watt-hours
(not kW-hr, just watt-hour). So if he goes up the stairs 20 times a day for
a year, he'll have used 20*365*.75 / 1000 = 5.5 kW-hr of energy. Recover
*all* of that perfectly and you have about $1 worth of electricity for the
year.

Going up stairs 20 times a day is great exercise, but it won't generate much
energy for you.

daestrom
 
C

Charles

Jan 1, 1970
0
karela said:
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as potential
energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential energy. Couldn't
anyone invent a good way of coming down so the potential energy could be
converted to other forms of energy that could be converted to electricity
when needed??

Jump onto a platform with pulleys and counter-weights. The resulting
rotational energy can be stored in a battery via a rotating generator. The
overall efficiency will be less than 15%. The time to pay of your
investment (for all of the pulleys, and gears, and a safe platform, and the
rotating generator with a storage battery) will be infinity years.
 
D

Don Stauffer

Jan 1, 1970
0
karela said:
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as
potential energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential
energy. Couldn't anyone invent a good way of coming down so the
potential energy could be converted to other forms of energy that could
be converted to electricity when needed??

I worked on a program for defense dept. The idea was to keep soldier's
battery packs charged (a modern infantryman carries a lot of battery
weight). One idea we looked at incorporated piezo-electric strips in
the sole of shoes. We didn't win the contract.

Modern magnetic design software is extremely good, and is allowing very
efficient small generators to be designed these days. Notice the
profusion of wind-up flashlights. If wearable computers ever make it to
mass production something like that will likely appear to keep the
batteries for those computers charged- or at least extend the life.
 
R

RogerGibb

Jan 1, 1970
0
karela said:
When we go upstairs we spend a lot of energy that gets stored as potential
energy. When we go downstairs we waste all the potential energy. Couldn't
anyone invent a good way of coming down so the potential energy could be
converted to other forms of energy that could be converted to electricity
when needed??

Be sure to capture the energy from rain falling too. Especially
when it runs down the spout from your eavestrough.
 
A

Alistair Gunn

Jan 1, 1970
0
In alt.energy.homepower RogerGibb twisted the electrons to say:
Be sure to capture the energy from rain falling too. Especially
when it runs down the spout from your eavestrough.

One of the micro-hydro places near me has it's gutters set to dump the
water into the mill-race it's on. Okay, I'm never going to claim it (or
the micro hydro plant further down said mill-race) generates significant
amounts of power due to this but I do think it's an elegant simple piece
of design.
 
D

daestrom

Jan 1, 1970
0
RogerGibb said:
Be sure to capture the energy from rain falling too. Especially
when it runs down the spout from your eavestrough.

So let's see, if you have a 45x28 roof, 20 ft up in the air and you get 4
inches a rain (quite a bit in most areas), and you manage 100% energy
recovery, that rainstorm would generate about 522480 ft-lbf of energy.

A whopping 197 watt-hours.

In my case, I wouldn't bother.

daestrom
 
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