Methods of Converting Mechanical Energy To Other Forms of Energy
The mechanical energy of the device may be converted to heat, sound, electricity, light, tension, pushes, pulls, laser, microwave, chemical changes, or compression of gases. Traction is a big direct use of the mechanical energy as in tugging cargo ships and kiteboarders. The methods of getting the mechanical energy from the wind's kinetic energy are several. Lighter-than-air (LTA) moored aerostats are employed as lifters of turbines. Heavier-than-air (HTA) tethered airfoils are being used as lifters or turbines themselves. Combinations of LTA and HTA devices in one system are being built and flown to capture HAWP. Even a family of free-flight airborne devices are represented in the literature that capture the kinetic energy of high-altitude winds (beginning with a description in 1967 by Richard Miller in book Without Visible Means of Support) and a contemporary patent application by Dale C. Kramer, soaring sailplane competitor, inventor.
Read more about this topic: High-altitude Wind Power
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