Portable Wind Turbines For All!
There was a time when a few of my relatives entertained having wind turbines on their farmland property. A particular company would rent the space on their land, and my family would reap the benefits of a steady amount of residuals over a 20-year amount of time. It made sense as the property wasn’t being farmed then, and it would have been an excellent form of passive income. Wind measurements were taken over time, but ultimately the flat farmland they owned was deemed to have insufficient wind for these large turbines. It’s probably just as well, as these wind turbines are large and stationary.
A company called Aurea has developed a product to take a wind turbine and make it more portable. Their patent-pending device, called Shine, is the size of a large water bottle.
This self-contained device will unfold and be ready to harness the wind within a few minutes.
From water bottle size to a standing height of three feet, this device is ready to provide some power.
Now for the details:
The three-pound Shine will automatically rotate into the wind direction as needed and begin to generate energy once the wind exceeds eight mph. This 40W turbine is a far cry from typical large wind turbines, which exceed 2.5 MW (2,5000,000 watts), but the giant turbines aren’t portable. You are also less apt to be accused of affecting the bird population with a turbine of this size.
Optimum performance is achieved at a sustained wind speed of 28 mph, which will charge the internal 12,000 mAh battery or connected equipment much faster. Expect to be able to charge items such as cell phones, portable speakers, or small led lights. The key is not to use the device at temperatures below 40 degrees, which is typical for all battery devices—the more intense the wind, the increased charge time.
More importantly, this wind turbine will work at night, unlike solar. My simplistic view of the Shine is as a large portable battery with renewable energy capability. Aurea states a fully charged battery could charge a cell phone up to four times. As the unit is equipped with a USB-A connection, you should be able to connect many different items. I’m anxious to test its real-world abilities to power devices in real-time on a camping trip or other venture.
A few questions I would like to answer in my testing would be:
How much wind can we harness at ground level?
How often do we experience “rocking winds” of 28mph?
Given that large wind turbines have life spans exceeding 20 years, what kind of lifespan should we expect from these units?
Indeed, all of this hinges on where we live or travel. Location, location, location will echo in my head when placing the wind harnessing unit. Only time will tell with this emerging technology. It can only get better!