Factor E Farm Blog

It has been almost a month since we started the Factor e Live Distillations series and the 1000 True Fans – 1000 Global Villages campaign. We have gathered 24 True Fans so far. We have 2 more episodes to go – on the open source product development collaboration process, and on the economic model for open production. We will then summarize the series in the final episode – as a call for action. We will then begin a concerted marketing effort for the 1000 True Fans campaign, with a goal of gathering the 1000 True Fans within 6 months. The countdown is on. We have 702 days left to complete the basic pieces of the Global Village Construction Set.

Today’s episode outlines our work on the Solar Power Generator. This is our solar thermal concentrator – which uses linear reflectors to power a simple steam engine for making electricity. This was formerly called the Solar Turbine – because we thought, erroneously, that the Tesla turbine should be the heat engine of choice.

We outline a program necessary to deliver $1/watt solar electricity with this system. The experts scream that this is impossible on the small scale. We agree with them wholeheartedly – if we use the same assumptions as they are. Our assumptions are different, however. We are phrasing the problem simply by stating a set of conditions that have to be met to achieve this cost prediction. We are applying the conditions to a particular system design, and calculating costs and performances based on available components and industry standards. We are then making conclusions on the required costs of each component – as applied to the overall system – to make the overall cost prediction a reality.

Our question reduces to this: are the predicted costs achievable? Absolutely, if we base the analysis on materials cost and digital fabrication techniques. Are we going to achieve these? This questions boils down to – are you going to help make this happen – and can we gather the necessary collaboration?

This puts the validity of digital fabrication, open souce design, and open collaboration to a real test. Are the grand promises of a Mini-China on a Desktop fiction, or are they real? We’ll know much more after Open Solar 2, the second convergence on solar power at Factor e Farm, Aug. 1-31, 2009.

The enabling feature that we have working for us in this project is the feasibility of cheap electronic controls for many of the components. The entire project requires zero invention – just the integration of a number of particular components into a very particular package. It’s all based on proven technique, and the project boils down to opensourcing various components for cost reduction. Is this going to be easy? Short answer is no, and the long answer is that it depends on how you look at it. From an open source mindset, it means collecting the necessary components for a very important problem. From the proprietary mindset, it means solving a bunch of engineering issues with questionable reward. Enough said.

Our work in general is aimed at building the infrastructure for real-life Global Villages – which you can replicate in whole or in part. You can also see our earlier presentation on the Global Village Construction Set. To support this work, join the 1000 True Fans – 1000 Global Villages campaign – by committing to $10 per month for 24 months. Here is the PayPal subscription button, where you can use either PayPal, credit card, or bank account to commit to the subscription.

See the wiki for a transcript of this video. The transcript offers additional pictures, links, and explanation beyond what’s found in the video, so be sure to review the transcript if you are interested in learning all that we know so far. Perhaps the first place to go for clearing up many questions is the Open Solar 2 Frequently Asked Questions. We are taking this project seriously because of its potential, and we understand that the proposition is extremely forward-thinking. As such, we ask you to post informed critique on any explicit points of our work – either after this blog post or on our wiki.

We are convinced that what we are proposing is doable. The question is, are we all willing to create the infrastructure to make low-cost fabrication of the solar generator a reality? We know that mass production could make such system feasible. Could it also be done via a community supported manufacturing model? We think so. Solar power is too important to continue in its obscurity. We also tend to think that Factor e Farm will be the world’s first, replicable community supported manufacturing operation. May 1, 2009 will show this with the CEB press as the first product – update on this process forthcoming. On to the video.

It has been almost a month since we started the Factor e Live Distillations series and the 1000 True Fans - 1000 Global Villages campaign. We have gathered 24 True Fans so far. We have 2 more episodes to go - on the open source product development collaboration process, and on the economic model ...

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No, this is not the steam engine that we’re working on…

First off I should introduce myself, I’m Nick and I’ve been watching OSE’s efforts for the last year or so and thinking along tangential lines for a while longer. After graduating in mechanical engineering at UW-Madison and working my previous two years as an engineer at a coal power plant I came to the conclusion: a very fundamental change in the way we power our society is in order. So I have left the job with a personal commitment to try to work towards solutions that make sense for future generations to come.

If you are reading this you probably have similar sentiments – I’m excited about the possibilities of open collaboration towards local sustainable technology. I’ve been to Factor e Farm a couple of times in the past year and have pitched in on the recent compressed earth brick building. After seeing the success of the CEB press and getting a feel for the advantages of open collaboration I decided that working on developing a solar power generation system with OSE would be a good outlet for my commitment towards sustainable energy solutions.

So for the last month or so my mind has been stuck on a subject considered by most to be locked in the history books for good: steam engines. Family, friends and concerned acquaintances wonder if I’ve popped a gasket myself in devoting perfectly good time to this research . Please allow me to share my thoughts on this subject and why I think it is worthwhile to revive it and put some modern touches on it. We are developing a steam engine as the heat engine of choice for the solar power system, and we are aiming to convert our open source tractor to steam power as well.
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No, this is not the steam engine that we're working on... First off I should introduce myself, I'm Nick and I've been watching OSE's efforts for the last year or so and thinking along tangential lines for a while longer. After graduating in mechanical engineering at UW-Madison and working my previous two years as ...

[30] Comments

In a historic convergence of December, 2008 – Solar Turbine work of OSE merged with a UK linear concentrator development team. Both teams have arrived at essentially the identical design, down to critical details – for a breakthrough, low cost solar concentrator system. Two versions will be field tested – one with steam power, and another with PV power. As it stands, Factor e Farm will adapt and replicate the exsiting prototype. Any necessary sourcing adjustments will be made. We will be building upon 6 years of past work of the UK team, in the true spirit of open source collaboration.

The UK team, led by Ph.D.’s who consulted to leading solar concentrator companies, has verified the OSE prediction that low complexity, flat mirror arrays – which are low to the ground and eliminate costly wind load-bearing structures – are the most cost effective solar concentrator option. The UK team is making similar price predictions and several contributions:

• Low-cost mirror mounting mechanism has been refined
• Electronics and mechanical drive has been worked out for controlling individual mirror slats instead of gangs of slats (the latter is also protected by patent) at a cost of about $5 per drive unit.
• Closed-loop (feedback) controls have been worked out for solar tracking at a cost of $15 for a tracking detector
• Control software has been written

Field testing will be performed in the south of France in 2009, as a joint project between OSE and the UK team. This will mark a historical, side-by-side comparison of two systems – steam engine and PV systems. Both are calculated to be cheaper than coal power. Breakthroughs are expected in both systems, and the OSE team predicts approximately 30% lower system cost for the steam engine version, on a small, 3 kW prototype. Scaling is expected to be favorable for steam power in larger systems. The PV system offers the advantage of being more economical on a small scale (1 kW and under). Modularity is expected in 1-10 kW units.

I will be visiting the authors after I present on the Global Village Construction Set and on our new 1000 True Fans – 1000 Global Villages campaign at the Oekonux Conference in Manchester. More on the 1000 Squared campaign soon.

In a historic convergence of December, 2008 - Solar Turbine work of OSE merged with a UK linear concentrator development team. Both teams have arrived at essentially the identical design, down to critical details - for a breakthrough, low cost solar concentrator system. Two versions will be field tested - one with steam power, ...

[4] Comments

We have posted an updated conceptual drawing of the solar turbine collectors and reflectors at the OSE wiki.

Please study the drawings and comment here or at the wiki. Please pass this on to others who may be knowledgeable about the topic.  A discussion of some of the features of the design are found in a past blog post.

The total cost, with foundation, steam engine, and generator – is $3066 for the first prototype, with 60 kW of solar intercept. That would meet the $1/watt prototype prediction (5% efficiency), and once we optimize the system to overall 10% performance, we are expecting $1/watt for complete systems produced via flexible fabrication for outside markets.

We predict collector efficiencies of 60%. The steam engine cycle is documented historically to offer simple systems with at least 12% efficiency for the relatively modest (150 PSI, 500F) conditions. Historical data indicates that 5% overall efficiency for our system should be achieved relatively easily.

We have posted an updated conceptual drawing of the solar turbine collectors and reflectors at the OSE wiki. Please study the drawings and comment here or at the wiki. Please pass this on to others who may be knowledgeable about the topic.  A discussion of some of the features of the design are found in ...

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We are taking the Solar Turbine project to the next level. Nick Raaum is our Project Manager, and he will be arriving here in about 2 weeks. He has put in his 2 week’s notice for leaving his post as a performance engineer in a coal-fired power plant.

Here is a brochure on the Solar Turbine:

We are serious about the first link in this brochure. Http://OpenFarmTech.org/Solar.html links to a working paper for developing the Solar Turbine, under a Community Supported Manufacturing model. This is OSE Working Paper #1. It is on the OSE wiki – so you can review, edit, and comment. We are making some heavy claims there – so we invite you to poke holes in any of the arguments.

Here’s how you can get involved.

• Print a copy of the brochure above and pass it to your friends and networks. You can dowload a high resolution version and source files here. Let us know if you can help us with at-cost color printing or bulk mailing by email.
• Review and comment on the technical aspects of the proposal at the wiki
• Donate to the Solar Turbine Project

Let others know about this project. Together, we can make Solar Thermal Concentrator (STC) electric generation a viable decentralization technology.

We are taking the Solar Turbine project to the next level. Nick Raaum is our Project Manager, and he will be arriving here in about 2 weeks. He has put in his 2 week's notice for leaving his post as a performance engineer in a coal-fired power plant. Here is a brochure on the Solar ...

[12] Comments

Solar electricity generation remains a hot priority for us – as one of the essential parts of the Global Village Construction Set. We are taking the solar turbine project to the next level – a working prototype, 3kW of electrical production at $3k in material costs.

If you read this post carefully, you will believe that this performance figure is achievable – utilizing proven technologies. At the very least, you’ll be introduced to this possibility even if you don’t believe it – as we are proposing an explicit implementation path. (more…)

Solar electricity generation remains a hot priority for us - as one of the essential parts of the Global Village Construction Set. We are taking the solar turbine project to the next level - a working prototype, 3kW of electrical production at $3k in material costs. If you read this post carefully, you will believe ...

[7] Comments

- Guest post by Benjamin Gatti from our Solar Turbine Google Group.

This post features an eye-opening perspective on photovoltaic (PV) panels. The claim is: it is very unlikely that PV will ever be cheap. Personally, I’ve been following PV since 1995. I’ve heard predictions to the tune of “$1/watt PV panels coming out next year” since then. This has not yet materialized. My recent personal experience in self-made solar panels is that it cost us $2/watt in materials just to turn donated solar cells into panels – which is the same cost as we are aiming for in our complete Solar Turbine concentrator solar power (CSP)project. Moreover, my bottom line statement is: if it costs $2/square foot for mirrors, and $40/square foot for silicon PV material – I do not see any chance that solar cells will compete with concentrator solar power, if both yield approximately 10% efficiencies. This thinking stems from our discussions within, and motivation behind, the solar turbine project. Read the following guest post, discussion, and see if you can poke any holes in the arguments presented. We don’t have any final words here – just thoughtful perspective for worshippers of PV.

(PS. I must add that while I presently don’t believe that ‘solar panels will ever be cheap,’ this applies only to the ‘pure capitalist’ mode of production. I do believe that innovative, participatory, open source, community-supported manufacturing scenarios – supported by a mindset that values clean energy over war – can succeed in making affordable PV a reality.) (more…)

- Guest post by Benjamin Gatti from our Solar Turbine Google Group. This post features an eye-opening perspective on photovoltaic (PV) panels. The claim is: it is very unlikely that PV will ever be cheap. Personally, I've been following PV since 1995. I've heard predictions to the tune of "$1/watt PV panels coming out next ...

[14] Comments

Friends, the latest developments on the Solar Turbine project, outside of the documentation clips in Factor e Live 6 and Factor e Live 7, are ambitious. We are presently leaning to mirrors and a modern, high-recirculation ratio uniflow steam engine as the heat engine of choice. The long-term motivation for the latter is to not rely on industrial detritus – such as some turbine from another application or non-modern steam engine from other suppliers. The long-term supply of the former is uncertain, and performance and cost of the latter are in question.

The results of the Solar Turbine convergence are promising. We got hands-on insight into what may or may not work – and that is what informs our direction. We still have a promise on the whiteboard – of $3/W as Milestone 1 with a 5% efficient heat engine – and $1.5/W as Milestone 2 with a 10% efficient heat engine. Talk to me or join the Solar Turbine google group if you are interested in understanding these cost predictions deeply.

Here’s the good part. The above predictions rely on off-shelf mirrors at $2/sq foot. In the long term, we have to replace this cost, which now constitutes over 50% of the cost in our design, with industrial swadeshi mirrors. I predict a mirror cost of 50 cents per square foot in this scenario. Critics, of course, say that we can never beat commodity production costs for mirrors – but I think open source production can, given that sand or glass cullet feedstock is readily available – and the commodity production process is fraught with inefficiencies of global supply chains. Plus, mirror production is old technology – we’re not talking about rocket science.

In short, we will pursue mirror fabrication and high-recirculation ratio uniflow steam engine fabrication in house. If you know anything about these topics or know people that do – help us with the engineering. Here we have great opportunity for open source engineering – on a topic of huge relevance to societal well-being. Concentrator solar power is in vogue – read the commentary in the next post.

Friends, the latest developments on the Solar Turbine project, outside of the documentation clips in Factor e Live 6 and Factor e Live 7, are ambitious. We are presently leaning to mirrors and a modern, high-recirculation ratio uniflow steam engine as the heat engine of choice. The long-term motivation for the latter is to ...

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Here is video documentation for making the first two parabolic reflectors for the Solar Turbine project:

The Solar Turbine Convergence is here – Elliot and I are continuing on the next reflector version, and we are picking up Stuart today.

We’d like to note that we ran into a serious snag with using 4′ wide parabolic receivers in an east-west array of reflectors – which is our latest implementation concept. Daily solar motion changes the distance of the solar path to the receiver – such that at best, it appears we can get 2x concentration from parabolic dishes – such that the image size at 9 am or 3 pm will be half the reflector width – or 2 feet here. If you are familiar with this dilemma – helps us – and consider joining the Solar Turbine group. It looks at present that we’ll be returning to 1 foot wide slats instead of these 4 footers. We are going through one design issue after another – which is good. We’ll see how far we’ll get by the end of the Convergence on Sep. 3. We are presently aiming at about 50x concentration.

Here is video documentation for making the first two parabolic reflectors for the Solar Turbine project: The Solar Turbine Convergence is here - Elliot and I are continuing on the next reflector version, and we are picking up Stuart today. We'd like to note that we ran into a serious snag with using 4' ...

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The trick for making solar thermal electrical generation a reality is to reduce the cost of the solar thermal collector system to absolute minimum. Why? If one familiarizes oneself with the costs of putting such a system together – it becomes apparent why solar thermal electrical generation is not widely used. As elegant as solar energy is – the costs of putting together a working system are prohibitive.

The potential is there: 4 megawatts of solar radiation hit every acre of the Earth’s surface.

I just went through the design that we’ve been evolving in the Solar Turbine Yahoo Group – where after some heated design debates it looks like we’ve got an absolute winner. We now have a system design that costs $750 for all the materials for intercepting 30 kW of solar energy and focusing it on a 2” diameter receiver tube – with 48-fold solar concentration ratio. This cost does not include the heat engine or controlled feed-water delivery. (more…)

The trick for making solar thermal electrical generation a reality is to reduce the cost of the solar thermal collector system to absolute minimum. Why? If one familiarizes oneself with the costs of putting such a system together - it becomes apparent why solar thermal electrical generation is not widely used. As elegant as ...

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