THE SALTER RD-7000 WIND TURBINE
"We've eliminated the weather vane tail, expensive
gearboxes and complicated feathering mechanisms needed by
most windplants," says Edmund I. Salter. "That makes our
unit simpler, quieter, and less expensive than other
wind-driven generators."
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Mr. Salter-a mechanical engineer and President of San
Diego-based Wind Power Systems, Inc-.is talking about his
firm's new development, the RD-7000 Wind Turbine. And, as
his remarks indicate, the working prototype of the turbine
is radically different from most wind-driven generators of
the past and present.
The basic Salter unit (without tower) is 20 feet tall and
consists of a central alternator driven by three three
bladed propellers. The rotor blades are constructed of poly
urethane foam over alloy steel spar tubes and weigh less
than two pounds apiece. A circular steel rim around each
tri-fanned rotor, it is claimed, "Improves efficiency as
much as 20% by preventing air spillage at the blades' tips,
adds strength and rigidity to the propeller, and-by
pressing against a motorcycle wheel attached to the
alternator's drive shaft automatically spins the generator
five times as fast as the rotor turns."
The RD-7000 can produce 7,000 watts of 120-volt direct
current in a 25 to 28 mph wind and a maximum of 10,000
watts when driven by an air mass moving 32 mph. Salter
figures that one of the units, mounted on a tower at least
40 feet tall, will supply enough electricity to run a
single family home in any location with a minimum average
yearly wind velocity of eight miles per hour. Several of
the generating units can be grouped on one or more larger
towers to produce power for factories, subdivisions, and
small towns.
