Solar Panel Oven
i want to make something solar powered. please give me ideas and/or instructions.?
Hi. i want to make something that is solar powered. I really hate using electronics for a long time. It's not that I'm one of those people that go super crazy about going green. It's because America's economy is in the crapper and paying the bills in my house is hard enough.
i don't mean something like one of those little solar paneled ovens, that everyone makes in third grade, i want to do stuff with actual wiring. A simple battery charger would be nice.
I'm 14, but apparently I am supposed to be 15. I have all AP and Honors classes. I want to be an engineer. I ask for more independence than most kids my age, and I have a variety of ways to earn myself money(all are legal). I'm just saying this because i don't want anyone telling me I can't do it because I'm too young. I also don't want anyone to tell me to go buy a solar panel for $500.
I don't have much money right now, so.... ya.
thanks in advanced.
Something a young teen with limited funding could build and operate with solar energy is a Minto Wheel. Google “Minto Wheel” for more information or visit this web site:
http://www.rexresearch.com/minto/minto.htm
A Minto Wheel is basically a collection of pairs of sealed containers mounted on opposite ends of connecting tubes and arranged together like the spokes on a bicycle wheel. The principal is one of heating (with solar energy) the container(s) at the bottom of the wheel, vaporizing the liquid contained therein, and condensing same liquid in the container at the top of the wheel. The weight of the condensed liquid at the top of the wheel provides torque to turn the wheel. Depending on weight of the liquid and diameter of the wheel, a lot of torque can be produced, although at a very slow rotation rate.
Most Minto Wheels use a freon-type refrigerant with a low-temperature boiling point, but I would not recommend that. Try using liquid propane instead, under adult supervision. The containers must be sealed vacuum-tight before adding the propane. I would suggest using discarded Freon containers fitted with Swagelok or Gyrolok compression fittings and connected with steel tubing, ¼” diameter or larger. A light-weight plywood wheel frame should be constructed to hold the containers. Use a good bearing, perhaps from the front wheel of a bicycle, for the hub.
Mechanically connect the shaft of your Minto Wheel directly to an Archimedes Screw type water pump and you have a solar-powered irrigation system ideal for use in underdeveloped parts of the world lacking technology or electricity.
Or gear it up and drive a small dc permanent-magnet motor as a generator to recharge a battery.
Simple Solar Panel Cooker Demonstration
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