Here we have another brilliant Chinese home-made invention. This is the Wind Car, developed by one Tang Zhenpin from Beijing’s Tongzhou District. His airplane-like vehicle is basically an electric vehicle but with a smart addition: driving generates wind, wind drives the propeller, and the energy from the propeller charges the battery.
Sure the wind alone isn’t enough for a complete recharge of the Wind Car, but if it saves just some energy this planet will be a little bit better again. Mr. Tang says it took him 90 days to built the Wind Car, he spend a grand total of 10.000 yuan, or almost 1600 USD. Tang also claims, and this I find very hard to believe…, that his Wind Car has a top-speed of 140km/h. Still, this wind car is a very nice idea. Sadly, it won’t be on the road very soon, today’s strict safety regulations likely won’t allow a large propeller up front, or anywhere else.
Via: Huanqiu.
The law of conservation of energy states that energy may neither be created nor destroyed. Therefore the sum of all the energies in the system is a constant.
Gotta love him for trying though!
Small correction: because of conservation of energy, in an ideal scenario he would neither lose nor gain energy.
But in the real world, the energy lost due to drag is greater than energy generated by the wind turbines. So it’s a stupid idea because the overall system is less efficient with the turbines.
Here’s a post that better explains it:
http://www.gavinshoebridge.com/electric-car-conversion/using-wind-turbines-on-your-electric-vehicle/
When the propeller rotates, it have to work against the current generator. So the presence of the “wind turbine” increases the charge consumption in batteries.
And the energy loss is greater than the energy generated by the turbine. This is only basic Physics.
But… it is useful to regain energy when the car is braking, or when is going downhill; because in that situations there is not need to use energy to increase or mantain the speed.
Nice look, the turbine looks like a daisy 🙂
Propeller creates drag,net loss of energy.Nice work,keep experimenting.Maybe read up on HHO generators too,they don’t work either.
His example of creativity in the eyes of curious neigborhood kids is sure to create energy in the long term.
He should rather put solar panels over his headlights and switch the lights on. It would also “generate” power at a wasteful and moronic nett loss.
hey to all of you out there that is putting this man down should think to them self’s, that this man is trying to find better ways to help and is doing something about it. can you say that for your self. i could go on but lets leave it at that.