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 Robert Dedomenico May 3, 2014 12:09  |
This proposal would use far more energy than it could ever return, and that is a problem.
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 Jeff Harti May 8, 2014 12:09  |
@forespidy: Thank you for the proposal. I would appreciate further details and supporting evidence in order to better understand the merits of what you are proposing. Initially, I share @robertdedomenico's concern and would appreciate some more specificity regarding the potential costs. As well, would it be feasible to build an on-shore 'plug' capable of accepting potentially 100s of MW of electricity from such a floating wind farm only sporadically, when it is docked?
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 Michael Brown May 22, 2014 10:44  |
This idea is interesting, but needs a lot more thought. You also must be careful of hyperbole:
"Billions of dollars, since wind farms generally cost about that much."
False, and also a guarantee that no one will pay attention to your proposal.
"Suddenly there will be no barriers to how many offshore wind turbines can be made. If people hate them, just move them somewhere else."
There are many non-social barriers - financing, technical capacity, grid interconnection, maintenance, suitable wind regime... don't act like towable wind turbines solve all problems. It undermines your argument.
"Furthermore, large farms shall be made all at once (i.e., don't half-build something or do a small-scale pilots), because there is no point in doing that."
No. There is no way you will ever get financing (especially at the billion dollar scale) without a demonstration project. Do not underestimate the importance of pilot scale demonstrations - these are critical.
Neat idea, needs work.
-Mike
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Michael Brown May 22, 2014 10:26 |
I'll also add that, if you encounter significant public opposition to your wind farm after it's built, you haven't done your due diligence. Community engagement is critical to the success of these types of projects. Early (and honest) public engagement is very important in planning large-scale renewable energy projects.
-Mike
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 Takako Wakiyama Jun 6, 2014 07:00 |
This is not clear how electricity generated by the wind turbines transport to the places that need electricity. Does it consider maritime rights and interests? Even within a country, it should need a permission to approach to an area.
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 Mark Johnson Jun 17, 2014 04:25 |
Hello Espidy - Please take the following counterpoints as constructive feedback -
Point 1. They can travel to locations with the highest wind speeds over the impending weeks, as predicted by ever more accurate weather forecasting techniques.
Counterpoint #1: Over time, "prevailing wind patterns" are well established (e.g., "western trade winds" - "CA Santa Ana Winds") and therefore your solution would count on prevailing wind pattern variance. It's true that High Pressure cells rotate counterclockwise (low pressure cells clockwise) and these cells do shift a lot.
Counterpoint #2: Such wind pattern variance would trigger moving islands to the best location to capture better wind energy - but this mobility comes with costly investments in time and energy.
2. They won't be an eyesore to the public for very long, for any one moment in time, since they can move. They may even offer a pleasant surprise to beachgoers at any unsuspecting location.
Counterpoint #1: A business case can be made if highest wind speeds were predictable in terms of timing and location, and the time and effort to move islands were reasonable. But the Counterpoints made above in para 1 seem to suggest otherwise.
Thank you for suiting up, participating and presenting your vision. Mark
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 Climate Colab Aug 13, 2014 04:19 |
Interesting but without details.
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