New aerogenerator design

It looks interesting but doesn't look stable (especially offshore).

From the website.....

Unlike conventional turbines his company's design doesn't need to be shut down when wind speeds exceed 64mph, he claims, and even then the structure can withstand speeds of up to 110mph.

So it's rotational speed is limited somehow.

I wonder if materials science has reached the point where a structure like this is strong enough to survive as a real world application. I will add it to the list of technologies I am keeping an eye on.

I would be curious/ cautious of the anchoring system, I am sure the designers have put in the "iceberg" logic of only 10% being above water. And then on my understanding of motors and rotation, what about shear force load on the friction points of this beast. Salt/sand/water even with the best seals, bearing replacement will take quite a bit of downtime. But to give good credit...if the "fan curve efficiency" on this thing is better that a standard 3-4 blade generator, I'll take a 3KW model and mount it up today!

"It will withstand windspeeds up to 110..." . I definitely WANT to see the video, what happens, when the winds go up to hurricane forces!!! Sure, to be educational.

It is fun to observe, how many different ways prototypes do fail, at times spectacularly. Just saw the video of the Tacoma Narrows bridge recently (CR4 discussion), fascinating.

I think this is just a cheap trick to provoke engineers to point out flaws in design and perhaps suggest something better :-(( Just fishing for FREE ideas!

It should be obwious to anybody with half brain that unless they have 2-3 times longer base underwater AND at least as wide to be stable, and it cannot be stable if there is big wawes and strong wind, specially if it is wariable in strenght as is often on the sea! From picture, that cannot be seen at all, so it must be a hoax!

As allready mentioned, such structure should be exceptionaly strong even to stand under gravity and its own weight, and then it would have mass that would have also big inertia, so it may not even work unless wind is strong........

I know severall ways to make better verticaly rotating windpower station, and I see not a single reason why it ought to be on the sea instead on the ground.........

They could have made just big anemometer like is used on ships or meteorological stations, as this is proven design that is guaranteed to work :-))