Water Towers to Catch the Wind

摘要

Rooftop water towers may be good for more than just storing H2O. They make ideal scaffolds for small-scale urban windmills, says Cleveland State University's Majid Rashidi, a mechanical engineer who is testing turbine kits that can be fitted onto water towers.rnAltitude is the first selling point. The squat, cylindrical towers are perched up high, where winds are best. What's more, their round shape acts as a "concentrator" -meaning gusts hitting the front of the tower gather and slide around it like a river flowing around a stump. That boosts the force of the wind hitting the turbine.