Startup hopes solar-wind turbine will power growth (TN)

[jpak]

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20111202/BUSINESS04/312020040/Startup-hopes-solar-wind-turbine-will-power-growth?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CBusiness%7Cs

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New Wind LLC installed its first solar-wind turbine here on Thursday in a parking lot off Korean Veterans Boulevard between First and Second avenues.

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Just don’t expect huge windmills to start popping up around Middle Tennessee. The company’s units have some major differences from the giant fan-like contraptions seen at many wind farms.

For one, they’re much smaller. They also spin like a carousel instead of rotating like propellers, allowing the cupped blades to catch turbulent air closer to the ground and generate less noise because of slower rotation speeds.

The company’s units also contain not one but two sources of energy — a solar panel and a wind turbine. They convert sunlight and wind into energy that’s stored in batteries. For the Nashville parking lot, the energy will be used to power an LED streetlight.

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[democrat_patriot]

1. Can we line highways with these?

The wind created by vehicles used to create power?

just wondering...

[Bill USA]

2. oh my! Vertical Axis wind turbines!! ....making use of smaller spaces where horizontal axis turbines

are not practical. Good post!

[pscot]

3. I figured photon driven turbines

perched at the edge of the ionosphere. Now I'm disappointed.