Testing Validity of MicroCube® power output.
Overview
NetZero Solutions, Inc inquired about the viability of the MicroCube™ power out. We traveled to Huntsville, AL to perform tests in person.
“We believe this could be one of the most important inventions for renewable energy in a long time, the power creation is just remarkable. We are just scratching the surface of this application.”
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Introduction
Objectives
Net Zero Solutions, Inc inquired about the viability of American Wind, Inc’s MicroCube, and WindWall technology. To confirm their data for ourselves, Net Zero Solutions traveled to their headquarters to test a scenario that we designed and do the measurements of the products under the supervision of Amercan Wind, Inc staff to make sure installation of the MicroCube products were installed into the test article appropriately. The main objectives were to test the following.
Prove to ourselves that the MicroCube® produced significant energy.
Test the backpressure in the ducted environment.
Possibly verify any data points on the product’s power curve.
Testing
The test was conducted with a 2 horsepower Allegro 20 Industrial Fan 230/v 10.5amps / 1 Phase Motor Blowing 7500 CFM. These specs are important. A one-phase motor is quite inefficient. You multiply amps * volts to calculate how much electricity the fan is using. In this use case. 10.5 x 230 = 2,415 watts. If my same fan was a three-phase motor, you multiply horsepower or 2 x 0.746 = 1,492watts. Three-phase motors were more expensive and time was not available to purchase one before the testing.
The mathematical conversion of 7500 CFM in a 20″ (inch) square duct converts to ~30mph.
Wind speed at turbine contact is not 30mph. The microcubes are 36″ from the fan, the surrounding ducting creates friction and slows airflow, and most importantly, the ducting forces the air through the turbines. This “forcing” creates a little back-pressure. Not much though (~1.3-1.55″ static pressure), which is super important for HVAC design.
We determined the wind speed was in the 25-26mph range at turbine contact. We measured the exit velocity around 22mph give or take. That measurement was another 36″ PAST the turbines, with air to push and ducting to further slow the air. So we can deduct that the exact turbine exit velocity was at least that. The importance of this is to note that there is no significant airflow decrease, which is part of the design intent.
Keep in mind, this test is different from the wind tunnel test or an outdoor air environment.
Ducting eliminates any backside negative pressure to assist in the laminar airflow. We are basically forcing air through, creating differing forces of drag and resistance.
Video
Results:
Confirmation of power curve
The results were nothing short of extraordinary. We were looking to see where average 368-volt readings fell into the power curve, and we were excited to see the strong correlation. Using 92volts per cube (368volts was a decent average reading for 4 cubes in our tests), we were able to safely say that our wattage output is between 1,227 watts and 1,790 watts, as this is a four cube summation of the verified power curve output. Furthermore, as voltage increases more cubically with wind speed, it was logical to determine that 92volts output falls approximately to 23mph data, which corresponded just above where we measured the exit velocity 36″ past the turbines.
It is also logical to say that there is a small amount of deviation that occurred in our readings. The typical voltage fell between 360 and 375 volts. But we are confident that our wattage fell in the range of the verified power curve readings of 20 and 25mph. It is also strongly determined that our voltage readings fall more in the middle of this range than to say it fell to the low or high side of 20 or 25mph verified data.
Volts = 368v (held constant)
Low End Amperage @21mph = 3.9amps
High End Amperage @24mph = 4.3amps
FINAL RESULTS OF TEST
Low End Wattage = 1,435 watts
High End Wattage = 1,582 watts
Summary Statement
We believe this could be one of the most important inventions for renewable energy in a long time. The power creation is just remarkable. We are just scratching the surface of this application.
Comparison Chart: Experimental Data vs. 3rd Party Power Curve Data.
| WIND SPEED | Total Watts | ||||
| MPH | M/S | AMPS | VOLTAGE Per Cube | Watts Per Cube | 4 MicroCubes® in Series |
| 20 | 8.9408 | 3.7 | 83 | 306.7 | 1,227 |
| 21 | 9.38784 | 3.9 | |||
| 22 | 9.83488 | 4.0 | |||
| 23 | 10.28192 | 4.2 | 92 | 381.5 | 1,526 |
| 24 | 10.72986 | 4.3 | |||
| 25 | 11.176 | 4.5 | 99.5 | 447.5 | 1,790 |
| 26 | 11.62304 | 4.7 | |||
| 27 | 12.07008 | 4.9 | |||
| 28 | 12.51512 | 5.1 | |||
| 29 | 12.96416 | 5.2 | |||
| 30 | 13.4112 | 5.4 | 124.5 | 597.6 | 2,390 |
