| Windmills as presently
designed are expensive to build & maintain, unable to operate in high winds,
&
environmentally offensive (noisy, too tall, etc). |
| In 1975 R Buckminster Fuller
suggested a design that would seem to solve all of the above problems. |
| A wind turbine could be
enclosed inside a geodesic dome. |
| A ventilator mounted near the
top of the dome would cause part or all of it to rotate as the wind direction changed. |
| The low pressure area near the
exit of the ventilator would draw air in from the bottom of the dome & out through the
top, thereby turning the turbine blades & shaft attached to the generator. |
| A flywheel would regulate
fluctuations in wind speed. |
| This wind machine could be
operated in significantly higher wind speeds without being shut down. |
| Capital and operating costs
would be much lower because all heavy components would be on the ground and protected by
the dome. |
| Any noise would be contained
inside the dome, and it's height would be a fraction of conventional towers. |
| This breakthrough concept
needs to be thoroughly checked out by competent authorities & either proven or not. |
| If true, it could give a
dramatic economic boost to a major segment of the alternative energy industry. |
