US20180202308A1

US20180202308A1 - Self-Sustaining Power Generation System (SPGS)

Info

Publication number: US20180202308A1
Application number: US15/530,452
Authority: US
Inventors: John Charles Bowles
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-01-18
Filing date: 2017-01-18
Publication date: 2018-07-19

Abstract

Once started the SPGS continuously generates turbine power many times the level needed to keep itself running; the surplus can be used to generate electricity or for other purposes. It operates in two frames of reference simultaneously; one stationary and one rapidly rotating. It also benefits from the equal pressure property of fluid described in Pascal's Law.

At the bottom of its outer containment cylinder, a centrifugal Recirculation Pump forces fluid/water up into an Injection Cylinder which introduces it into a rapidly rotating Pressurization Cylinder above. Internal impellers cause the fluid to rotate along with the PC itself and become pressurized by centrifugal force. Through a narrow slit surrounding the upper perimeter of the PC, the fluid is released driving an axial flow turbine rotating just above; mechanical advantage determined by blade pitch is employed in the process. Gravity returns the spent fluid to the bottom again completing the cycle.

Description

The SPGS is designed to generate turbine power by operating in two frames of reference simultaneously; one stationary and one rapidly rotating. It employs Centrifugal Force, utilizes Mechanical Advantage and benefits from the unique equal fluid pressure property described in Pascal's Law.
In the SPGS, fluid/water is constantly recirculated in a continuous cycle. A centrifugal Recirculation Pump supplies necessary operating fluid to an Injection Cylinder which introduces it into a rapidly rotating Pressurization Cylinder. There internal impellers cause the fluid to rotate along with the PC itself and be pressurized by centrifugal force. The pressurized fluid spews up through a narrow slit surrounding the entire upper perimeter of the PC, exerting its force on an axial flow turbine. Mechanical Advantage determined by blade angle is employed in the process. Gravity returns the spent fluid to the bottom of the containment cylinder completing the cycle.
The energy i.e. force and velocity of the escaping pressurized fluid, is redirected and converted into turbine force and velocity moving relative to and in the direction of the rotating frame of reference. With the spin of the rotating frame included in total turbine velocity, power output is boosted many times over; while the principle of equal fluid pressure is employed to keep power input requirements constant.
Experiments have confirmed that the equal fluid pressure principle can be relied upon to ensure no more power is needed to produce and use rapidly rotating pressurized fluid to drive an axial flow turbine than is needed to produce and use stationary pressurized fluid for that purpose.
Directly opposite the expulsion slit the PC base absorbs the reaction opposite the action of the escaping pressurized fluid. Although fluid pressure provides the force to drive the turbine in its horizontal plane, the principle of equal fluid pressure ensures there is no unbalanced horizontal pressure which might increase the SPGS's energy input requirements.
Once started the SPGS operates independently and continuously; no fuel or outside energy/power of any kind is required.
The descriptions, calculations and drawings relate to a relatively small version of the SPGS with overall measurements of 3′ D×3′ H. With a 2′ D PC rotating at 2400 RPM and using a MA of 5 to 1 the SPGS produces about 778 HP, more than 4 times the 172 HP needed to sustain its own operations; the remainder is available for generating electricity or other uses.

LIST OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1—Side view of the SPGS as seen through a transparent outer containment cylinder.

FIG. 2.—Angled overhead view of the Turbine.

FIG. 3.—Angled overhead view of a Pressurization Cylinder section.

FIG. 4.—Side view of the Central Control Mechanism for Shut-Off Slides.

FIG. 5.—Overhead view of a section of the Shut-Off Slides.

The 1¼″ D central shaft has a ¾″ hollow center. It is supported by shoulder bearings top center of the outer containment cylinder lid and inside bottom center.
The Recirculation Pump is a submerged centrifugal pump; impellers attached to the central shaft turn inside the pump casing which is anchored to the base plate of the outer containment cylinder. A RP 6″ D and 2″ H will produce approx. 16.7 PSI at a 50 FPS expulsion velocity supplying the necessary 2500 cu. in. of water through two 1.6″ I.D. hoses. Louvres cover the 3″ D openings around the central shaft on the top and bottom of the RP which guide intake fluid in the direction of spin.
The upper 3″ of the 4½″ Injection Cylinder has a 4″ O.D. The 2¾″ O.D. 1½″ H lower portion house two 2½″ O.D.×⅝″ bearings top and bottom. The upper perimeter of the IC fit inside a 4″ I.D. bearing which itself fits inside a central collar on the base plate of the PC. Inside the upper section, two 2½″ impellers driven by the central shaft rotate the fluid supplied by the RP hoses and feed it into the rotating PC.
The Pressurization Cylinder measure 24″ I.D.×10″ H and rotate at 2400 RPM, 251 Feet Per Second at the perimeter. The lid of the PC has a collar attached to the central shaft. Six evenly spaced ⅛″×⅛″ grooves inside this collar allow air to escape as the PC is being filled during start-up and during operation as any air bubbles develop. The ¼″ thick lid is secured to the impellers by small counter-sunk screws. The outermost edge of the lid form the inside edge of the expulsion slit. The outside edge is the inside edge of the ¾″×¼″ collar forming the top of the PC's outer wall. The bottom most section of the PC just above the base plate is firmly attached to the central shaft. The PC sections are fastened together with eight evenly spaced ¼″ D rods.
Inside the PC, eight ¼″ thick impellers cause the water to rotate right along with the PC, and be pressurized by centrifugal force. The centrifugally generated water pressure of 292.75 PSI escapes through a 1/75″ wide perimeter slit (a total expulsion area of 1 sq. in.) This pressurized fluid travels vertically upward through the blade section of the turbine just 0.01″ above, rotating the turbine relative to the rotating PC. Thus the potential energy of the pressurized fluid is transformed into turbine power in a rapidly rotating frame of reference with a perimeter velocity of 251 FPS.
During the streams 0.01″ upward transit centrifugal force tends to move it outward. But my experiments and calculations have shown that this outward movement is only an imperceptible 0.000005″. By comparison a sheet of paper is about 0.004″ thick.
Eight centrifugally controlled slides inside the PC cover the expulsion slit until a velocity of 1800 RPM is reached. These slides extend around the entire perimeter and measure just over 9″×¼″×⅛″. The ends are beveled to mesh with the beveled section of the impellers. Bottom center there is a projection ⅜″×¼″×¼″. This projection fits into a notch in the PC's outer wall and is attached to the lower control cable.
Once the PC's 19 gallon capacity is filled and sufficient velocity attained the slides retract into their grooves in the PC outer wall and self-sustaining operation commences.
It would be virtually impossible to fine tune gear ratios to ensure a steady and exact operating velocity. If the ratio were to unintentionally allow even a slight slow-down, the SPGS would eventually stop even though producing power as designed. So the system is designed to produce a very gradual increase in operating velocity. A second set of centrifugally controlled slides is necessary to act as velocity governors when RPM exceeds 2400, periodically covering the expulsion slit just long enough to return operating velocity to normal. These slides measure 9″×¼″×⅛″. When engaged they extend almost all the way around the entire perimeter, thus covering all but 3.4″ of the expulsion slit; leaving only eight spaces a little wider than the impellers. They each have a 1½″×¼″×⅛″ center tongue extending to the rear which slides in a bracket groove. This tongue is attached to the upper control cable.
The turbine is fitted to the central shaft with a bearing allowing it to move independently. A small shaft with gears at both ends is attached to the lid of the outer containment cylinder and is part of the stationary frame of reference. The gear atop the turbine hub meshes with the lower of these gears and transfers the force and velocity from the rotating frame to the stationary frame. The upper gear turns a gear attached to the central shaft keeping the RP and PC rotating at approx. 2400 RPM, re-circulating, re-accelerating and re-pressurizing the volumes of fluid necessary to sustain the SPGS.
Mechanical Advantage would be determined by turbine blade pitch. For example blades set ⅜″ apart and at a pitch of approx. 168° would result-in a blade section depth of 1⅞″. Pressurized fluid traveling vertically upward 1⅞″ through the blade section would rotate the blades only ⅜″ in the horizontal plane; a 5 to 1 mechanical advantage. This would have the effect of increasing the force applied to the turbine by a factor of five; the rotational velocity provided to the turbine by the vertical velocity of the escaping fluid would be, of course, correspondingly reduced i.e. it would only be ⅕th as great.
Measured in the stationary frame of reference where it is actually used, most of the turbine's total velocity is supplied by the velocity of the rotating frame. Using a mechanical advantage of 5 to 1 the total pressure on the turbine is 1463 lbs. At a total velocity of 292.9 FPS (251 plus ⅕ of the 207 pressurized fluid's expulsion velocity) about 778 HP is produced. It takes only about 172 HP to recirculate, re-accelerate and re-pressurize the 90.1 lbs. (about 11 gallons) of water per second required to keep the model operating.
Wholly within the rotating frame of reference traveling at 251 FPS, the transformation of the potential energy of pressurized fluid into turbine power does not create any extra power. The pressure of 292.75 PSI multiplied by a MA of 5 to 1 translates into a turbine force of 1463.75 pounds while expulsion velocity of 207.9 FPS divided by 5 (the offset to the MA force increase) translates into turbine velocity of only 41.58 FPS i.e. no energy or power gain or loss.
(292.75×207.9=60862.7
1463.75×41.58=60862.7)
But measured in the stationary frame of reference where the turbine power is actually applied a huge 668 HP gain is realized i.e. the turbine force of 1463.75 PSI multiplied by 251 FPS, the portion of the total 292.58 FPS turbine velocity provided by the rotating frame. (1463.75 PSI×251 FPS=367,213 Ft. lbs./Sec.÷550 ft. lbs./Sec.=668 HP).
Without this huge gain the system's power output would only be 110 HP, not nearly enough to cover the 172 HP needed to sustain itself. The SPGS merges the rotating frame velocity into its turbine velocity magnifying power output, utilizing mechanical advantage to multiply the effect. It also takes advantage of Pascal's equal fluid pressure principle which allows the merger to occur without any additional energy input being required. Voila, a system for producing huge amounts of surplus energy/power long considered impossible.
Before the SPGS is started the outer containment cylinder has to be filled to a level just below the PC, approx. 70 gallons. Of course in order to initiate self-sustaining operations, a starter motor providing about 50,000 ft. lbs. of outside energy is needed; less than the surplus energy generated by the SPGS in one second. For example, a 25 HP starter motor applied for 4 seconds supplies 55,000 ft. lbs. of energy.
Actual Systems could range from very small, perhaps 6″ D or less, to very large, 10′ D or larger. And theoretical net power output could range from less than 1 HP to an incredible 100,000 HP or more! Model configurations could also vary. For example, the IC could rest atop the PC with the turbine and gears below. Horizontal models could also be developed.

Claims

1). A machine, benefitting from the equal pressure property of fluid described in Pascal's Law, capable of continuously recirculating fluid and producing turbine power output many times its own power input requirements which 1) operates in two frames of reference simultaneously, one stationary and one rapidly rotating 2) uses impellers inside a rotating cylinder to pressurize fluid by centrifugal force 3) employs an axial flow turbine having a narrow peripheral blade section with blades set at pitches that utilize mechanical advantage and 4) converts the energy of pressurized fluid into turbine force and velocity by releasing it in the rotating frame, thereby boosting turbine power output in the stationary frame to which it is transferred for use and where turbine velocity includes the velocity of the rotating frame.

2). An axial flow fluid turbine designed principally for use with a Self-sustaining Power Generation System or similar machine having a hub fit with a bearing designed to allow free movement on the shaft to which it is mounted, having a very narrow blade section at its perimeter and having an enclosing band with a width which exactly covers the entire depth of the blade section.