Generator idea.

[bigegg]

First off, I'm halfway down a glass of rum, which has gone straight to my head after 4 days of not much sleep, so I'm obviously missing something.


Take two tall cylinders.
one filled with water, the other has a copper coil in the wall.
An airlock connects the two at the bottom.
Take a hollow magnetic iron sphere which is of correct dimensions so that it is buoyant.

The ball falls through the coil, generating electricity.
It is then passed through the airlock and floats to the top of the water, where it then falls through the coil again.
A sufficiently heavy ball with a high enough drop could make air resistance andythe energy used to transfer weight through airlock negligible.

Perpetual motion is impossible - so where is the mistake in my thinking?

 

[the snooper]

The ball is buoyant yet falls ? And even if it did magnetic fields would stop it

 

[Pete.]

Switch your rum for Teachers. You might learn something useful

 

[bigegg]

A 100,000t iron ship floats.
Dropped 1m, it would have 1GW ? (Mxgxh?) of potential energy.
The coil would slow it down depending on how much is converted to electricity.
But it wouldn't levitate it.

 

[dannyp]

youd have to get the water out the airlock

 

[roofman]

Going to keep tabs on this thread..sounds intresting, now wheres the cooking wine

 

[bigegg]

youd have to get the water out the airlock

Still negligible compared to the potential energy.

 

[wookie]

First off, I'm halfway down a glass of rum, which has gone straight to my head after 4 days of not much sleep, so I'm obviously missing something.

<SNIP>

so where is the mistake in my thinking?

Problem number 1 ...
How does the ball get from the air filled cylinder to the water filled one without the water leaking across ?

Problem number 2 ...
How does the ball get from the water filled cylinder to the air filled one ? since the ball will displace more water as it rises up the water column than when it's floating on the surface therefore the water level will be lower when the ball reaches the top so the ball won't be able to transfer across at the top either.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

Despite what *our current understanding of* physics says, I am still a believer that perpetual motion is possible (excluding wear and tear of materials which will need replacing at some point, so a machine cannot run forever)... and Im drinking sherry at the moment

 

[dannyp]

your 100,000 T ship dispalaces 100,000 T of water.

if you sink the ship 1 meter and get your 1GJ of energy problem is there is now 100,000T of water where the ship was that needs pumping out, pump eats 1.2 GJ of energy

 

[The_Yellow_Ardvark]

I am drinking Pussers' red and I know I can go on for ever.

 

[Tiggy_dorset]

Perpetual drinking... Now that is possible, I see it every week down the local. Now if only that could be converted to useful energy...

 

[bigegg]

your 100,000 T ship dispalaces 100,000 T of water.

if you sink the ship 1 meter and get your 1GJ of energy problem is there is now 100,000T of water where the ship was that needs pumping out, pump eats 1.2 GJ of energy

Got it. To force the weight into the bottom of the flooded tube takes more energy than can be gained from it floating.
Thank frak for that - I can sleep now.
One more glass of rum tho...

 

[wookie]

Now how about a wheel with hollow metal balls that can move from hub to rim, on the falling side of the wheel the balls are near the rim and on the climbing side they are near the hub so easier to lift. At the bottom the wheel runs in water that uses buoyancy to move the balls from the rim to the hub... and I'm drinking the really strong stuff (Vimto)

 

[waddycall]

I can't believe we don't make more use of tidal power. Hang your 100'000 T ship off some pretty hefty wires going to braked drums. Let the tide go out. Release the brakes and harness the energy through generators or something like it.

 

[rtbcomp]

perpetual motion is theoretically possible - but you wouldn't be able to extract any energy from it.

 

[J.F]

How is the ball going to generate any stable electricity? As it would be pot luck which orientation the magnetic field from the ball is in relation to the coil each time it falls and if the ball is spinning and at what speed it spins each time, one run might produce AC another DC, if anything. The ball would be affected by the electricity it generates as the magnetic field from the generated electricity would interact with the magnetic field of the ball, and since gravity is the weakest force (i.e. you can deify the entire gravitational force of the planet by picking an object up off the floor) and the electromotive force is one of the strongest the electromotive force would have the greater influence. Once the ball generates any electricity it would be forced to levitate in the coil, than as the coil electricity is used the coils field would dissipate and the ball would fall again.

 

[500e]

Please sign
A Pledge of Safety & Wisdom: To Abstain from Alcohol for Life


“Having considered the potential dangers and addictive nature of the drug alcohol, I __________________________ now make the promise never to drink an alcoholic beverage in any form. I recognize that this promise will not necessarily be an easy commitment to keep. However, peer pressure will never be used as an excuse for me as I commit myself to celebrating (and/or mourning) in a safe and healthy way. I promise to avoid situations which could leave me in a compromised situation involving alcohol. Realizing that I am guaranteeing myself freedom from this very negative influence, I now willingly and sincerely commit to the pledge that I will abstain from drinking alcohol for the rest of my life.”

Signed, ________________________________________________
Date: __________________________

Witnesses: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________

 

[mcostello]

If that was a pledge to abstain from sex the wives would gladly sign it and probably forge their Hubby's name.

 

[piman]

Hello Waddy,

tidal energy is low intensity energy and stops twice a day, it's not an effective generator as the huge amounts of cash being wasted at Swansea for a small amount of power demonstrates. Maintenance is high as an extra drawback.

Alec