Aeromine Technologies, a Houston-based company, has installed a bunch of silent, stationary wind turbines on the roof of the MINI plant in Oxford, UK. The idea is that they will complement the solar panels already installed at the factory and produce clean energy while taking up much less space.
How much less? Aeromine claims that each of its turbines (with no visible moving parts) requires just 10% of the roof area that a solar panel would need to produce the same amount of energy. The company also claims that they provide 50% more energy than solar installations at the same cost.
This stationary wind power system installed at the MINI plant is the first of its kind in the UK. As well as being small in size, these turbines are economical to build and maintain. They are made from easily recyclable materials, use a sealed generator that does not require regular lubrication and should last for 20 years.
How do they work?
These turbines are placed on the edges of building roofs, facing the prevailing wind direction. The wind is accelerated as it passes over the edge of a building and flows over vertical airfoils placed on either side of a tall central column. This creates a low-pressure zone behind the column, causing air to be sucked in through the bottom of the device, spinning an internal propeller and generating power.
These Aeromine wind collectors will complement solar energy, which can only generate energy when the sun is shining. This will give the plant a more robust energy production system overall. Since they take up little space, solar panels between the turbines are possible.
If this initial project is successful, Aeromine hopes that its systems will be implemented in the car manufacturer’s facilities in other parts of the world. BMW supports Aeromine through its project BMW Startup Garageso everything stays in-house.
