Really Cool Invention Brings Teens Awards (Amazing Kids-Invented What GM Couldn't)

The Salt Lake Tribune ^ | 07/06/2005 | Jessica Ravitz

[myself6]

Thanks for the explanation. :)


Although you could have made it a little higher level than that. :)


I was an Electronics Tech in the military and ACED BEE and damn near aced Advanced Electronics. Wave guide theory still screws with me.

My problem here is that I am not as familiar with the construction of an alternator as I thought I was. Plus I didn't think through the effects of increasing current and magnetic fields of the equipment until AFTER I told everyone they were wrong.

[TalonDJ]

"While your speed may stay the same and your RPM may stay the same there will be an increase in the throttle opening. This throttle change will happen automatically by the cruise control."

Even if cruise control is not on there are systems that give your engine more gas when loads like this kick on.

[null and void]

I refuse to drive a car that modifies the RPM of the engine according to the electrical needs. F--k THAT!

Start walking.

The energy has to come from somewhere.

[AFreeBird]

Google is our friend...

Found this page with a listing of links on Peltier Chips.

[absolootezer0]

that's right. no a/c. this is the jeep that i used more for trail riding. i dumped alot of unnecessary items to improve power and mileage. my point was, that by dumping the a/c compressor, you gain noticable increases in mileage and power. which is a much larger advantage of putting this new system in vehicles than just getting rid of freon. also the system would be much cheaper to install and maintain.

[whd23]

So... they are dumping the heat where? outside? on a hot day? Efficient? Some kids need to look up the word and learn how to calculate it.

Where do you think a traditional AC unit dumps its heat? Surely you don't think it stores it away into a heat piggy-bank to be used when you turn the heater on in the winter...

[Lee'sGhost]

Well, fudge. I thought you had pulled off some cool conversion. I think it was the idea you installed a bigger alternator that made me think that.

[null and void]

My problem here is that I don't see how the rotor becomes more difficult to turn.

It's not very obvious, is it? Underlying all the details is a simple fact. Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, only converted in form. (Motion to friction to heat, for example)

In order to get more electrical energy out of a generator/alternator you have to put more mechanical energy in.

An engine takes chemical energy from the fuel and converts it into mechanical energy. More energy out requires more fuel in.

That being said, these kids may have a more efficient way of converting the engine's motion to cooling, and still achieve a fuel savings.

[Sloth]

You were wrong, but a lot of people were attributing a position to you that you didn't actually take (i.e., free energy). I understood your position -- that a given alternator at a given speed produces up to X watts of electrical power, that may or may not be used, but can't be exceeded.

[TalonDJ]

The traditional system does not just move heat around. Do you know about the temperature effects of pressure change?

[TalonDJ]

But yeah, the traditional system does dump heat. It just does not need as much of a heat difference in order to move that heat. My last post was missleading if not inacurate. Peltiers need help to get rid of heat. AC closed loop systems don't need much.

[null and void]

Although, cars switched to a more 'friendly' coolant than freon years ago.

Yeah. I have a cast iron bitch of a time getting my system refilled.

[null and void]

I didn't think through the effects of ... until AFTER I told everyone they were wrong.

I'm glad that's never happened to me...

[TalonDJ]

That is to say a traditional AC unit DOES just move heat around but it does it in a way that produces a massive temperature difference without having to have a piggy bank to put the heat in.

[Sloth]

The traditional system does not just move heat around.

It doesn't? What does it do?

Here's my understanding of how a car A/C works. The refrigerant expands adiabatically from its compressed state, rapidly cooling. The cold refrigerant passes through a heat exchanger where it absorbs heat from the car's warm interior air. The refrigerant gets compressed & heats up even more, then passes through another exchanger to give off some of its heat to the outside air, and then back to the expansion valve again.

I.e., it moves heat from the interior car air to the outside air.

[litehaus]

"(The Army makes the world safe for democracy. The Marines make the world safe for the Army.....)"

Get any static on THAT one? LOL..........

[whd23]

pV = nRT ;)

My home AC unit has a big honkin' fan surrounded by lots of cooling fins. This is where the coolant dumps its heat into the atmosphere.

Now, if you're talking about home use, geothermal is the way to go! Constant ground temperatures; run it one way and heat the house, run it the other way and cool the house. Very nice.

[Sloth]

Ah, OK, I see you revised your remarks.

[coloradan]

The rotor of an alternator does NOT become harder to turn as the electrical load increases.

Very. Wrong. Again.

[Red Badger]

None to speak of..........Even some Army guys agreed........