What is the WindTree® Turbine?

1. One of the primary complaints about WindTree® advertising claims from wind power experts has been 'potential' power output claims that defy the laws of Physics. We have noticed that during the summer of 2003, these controversial power vs. size numbers have disappeared from Ecoquest's websites. They are still in place in many dealer's websites, though. And the handout we received from a local dealer at the 2003 Fort Collins Sustainable Living Fair still contained these 'potential' power output figures.--Source -- handout from local N Front Range, Colo. dealer. We have the handout on file if you want a copy, please Email Us.
   CLICK HERE for picture of 30-foot tall Vertical Axis, Ducted Savonious Wind Turbine in handout we received--
   

   "This large-scale production model harnesses the power of wind to provide vast amounts of energy. A unit roughly one-third this size (The unit potentially weighs less than two hundred pounds, and should be less than 6 feet) is being developed for personal home use to provide enough energy for the entire home with 3kw at 12 to 14mile per hour winds."

   
   
2. EcoQuest's WindTree® - The answer to the world's energy crisis coming in 2004!--from a local dealer's handout and EcoQuest's webpage: Source: http://www.ecoquestintl.com/eqwindtreepop.htm --

   "Sounds like a pipe dream; Free, pollution-free energy, renewable and abundant. With Alpine Technologies new WindTree rooftop energy system, it may soon be a reality. WindTree, a product under development by Alpine Technologies?, harnesses the power of very small to large amounts of wind into usable energy for the consumer. Small in size, the WindTree is a practical solution to rising energy costs and environmental concerns. WindTree is in the development stages, which doesn't allow room for specific details, but needless to say this is a multi-billion dollar opportunity. However we are not ready for WindTree even if Alpine Technologies finalizes the project early. We need more leaders at the Distributor, Manager, and upper levels of Leadership. We will continue to lay the foundation for this dramatic rollout. WindTree requires many more trainers, recruiters, and problemsolvers. These leaders will have the most rewarding opportunity of our times, but the next year will be crucial."

   
   
3. "I can tell you from first hand experience, that EcoQuest allows you to advance faster and make more money, more quickly, than any of the many network marketing opportunities I've been involved with over the years."--from this EcoQuest dealer's webpage--http://www.ecoquestintl.com/cnsmrProducts_Opportunities-Template3.asp?Usr=3circlescommunity
   

   "Since you are here because you are interested in a business opportunity that works, that helps provide a great income and more time, I have one question to ask: *If you were presented with a ground floor opportunity to get in on a new technology today, one that was as revolutionary and enriching as the telephone and the computer, would you be interested in hearing more? * I can bet that 99% of you said, "YES". Well, I'm here to tell you that such a technology has been developed and is in the testing phase right now. It's called "WindTree" and EcoQuest International holds exclusive world wide rights on this roof-top energy generation system that uses the FREE power of the wind to provide enough electricity to run your home. That is why I'm in this business, to have a network of people in place when "WindTree" is released to the public. Because when it is, there are going to be a lot more millionaires... do you want to be one of them?"

   
   

Information and Rebuttals regarding the above advertising claims

1. Regarding the WindTree's Power Output vs. Size Claims. As we noted previously, these claims are rapidly disappearing from the internet, but were present in the handout we received locally.
   • WindTree® power output claims in advertisements defy the laws of physics. The wind has been harnessed for energy for 3000 years. It is not in any way a mystery, and the physics and math involved have been well understood, quantified and tested for over 100 years.
     • At sea level, a cubic meter of air weighs about 1.2 kilograms. A variety of solar and atmospheric factors cause the air to move, which is the phenomenon we call Wind.
     • Energy can be extracted from this movement of air, very much like it's done with the movement of water, which also weighs a certain amount per cubic meter and travels at a measurable speed. The energy is extracted by slowing down the air or water with a turbine.
     • The amount of energy in the wind is completely quantifiable, since air weighs a certain amount and moves at a measurable speed. The power available in the wind increases with the cube of wind velocity, so as the wind speed increases, available power increases by 8 times. The other important factor is swept area -- this is how much wind the turbine sees, and is simply the area of the circle or square that the rotor harvests energy from. Increasing the swept area increases available power by a factor of 4.
     • The flyer we received from a local EcoQuest dealer claims the WindTree® can produce 3000 watts in a 12-14mph wind, with a swept area of 6 feet x 6 feet. That translates (in metric) to a swept area of 6 ft. x 6 ft = 1.83m x 1.83m = 3.35 m^2 (square meters) of rotor area. We'll use a middle windspeed figure from EcoQuest, 13 mph = 5.81 m/s (meters per second).
     • The formula for maximum kinetic energy available in the wind is expressed as: in the 6' x 6' area = 1/2 x 1.225 kg/m3 x (5.81 m/s)^3 x 3.35 m^2 = 402 Watts (Source--VanNostrand's Scientific Encyclopedia--calculated for sea level), vs. EcoQuest's claim of 3000 watts in a 13 mph wind with a 6 ft. by 6ft. swept area. Therefore EcoQuest is claiming that their turbine produces 7.5 times the energy than is even available for that size rotor and wind speed.
     • A gentleman named Betz discovered around 1926 that there is a limit to how much power can extracted from the wind by slowing it down. This limit is 59.3% of the total available energy. If you try to extract more power than that, air piles up in front of the turbine and prevents more air from reaching it. After hundreds of years of research and testing, no wind turbine has ever beaten the Betz coefficient. Applying Betz to the WindTree (402 Watts x 0.593) = 238 Watts. EcoQuest is claiming that their turbine produces 12.6 times more power at the rotor than the Betz condition allows for.
     • There are other losses in power generation systems as well. Even the best generators and alternators can rarely achieve 85% efficiency, the best-designed blades and rotors achieve only 30% efficiency, and power conversion saps another 10%. This gives a probable WindTree® output figure of about 55 watts in a 13mph wind with a 6ft x 6ft rotor. EcuQuest is claiming their unit can produce 54 times more electricity than any modern wind turbine can produce.
   • There are other issues involved, such as the efficiency disadvantages and reliability problems inherent in the sort of turbine pictured in EcoQuest's advertising. It's called a Ducted Savonious Turbine, a variety of Vertical Axis Wind Turbine (VAWT), and has been around for over 100 years. For the purposes of simplifying this discussion, we will not treat VAWTS differently than HAWTs (Horizontal Axis Wind Turbines), which are the current state of the art in both small-scale and utility-scale wind power installations -- even though the disadvantages of VAWTs are well-known in the industry.
     
   • The math formulas presented above were taken from Van Nostrand's Scientific Encyclopedia, checked against Mike Klemen's posting on the American Wind Energy Association's (AWEA) email list, and re-calculated by us to the increased windspeed figures (3kW at 13 mph) that we received in a local EcoQuest dealer's handout. Mr. Klemen is a recognized expert on wind turbines, and flys a large variety of them for testing and data acquisition purposes. You can click to visit his website (http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/klemen/index.htm) HERE.
   • Here are some more comments about EcoQuest's claimed output figures from leading industry wind experts:
   • More from Mike Kleman.
   • From Paul Gipe, leading wind power industry expert and author.
   • From Andy Kruse, an official at Southwest Windpower, a respectable wind turbine manufacturer with tens of thousands of wind turbines sold and in service.
   • The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) was forced to serve EqoQuest Intl. with a cease-and-desist order for false and misleading advertising which claimed that the AWEA endorsed the WindTree®. You can see the AWEA's official statement on their webpage HERE, and a copy of the cease-and-desist letter HERE.
   
   
2. 'WindTree® is in the development stages...' So, here they are telling you that there actually is NO product yet for anyone to see, evaluate, or test. The only test model is a 30-foot tall version shown in a picture HERE.
   • If you pay your money, you don't get a wind turbine, you get a 'dealership' for a product that does not exist yet. Many experts with wind turbine test sites have requested a product to test, but no product has appeared yet. Originally, dealers were told the WindTree® would be available for delivery during the summer of 2002. None have been delivered yet.
   • You'll also note that none of EcoQuest's literature talks about exactly how this turbine connects to the electrical feed for a house. It does imply that the unit is grid-tied. But do you just plug it into your dryer outlet or what? Grid-tied renewable energy systems are quite complicated. They must have safety systems to ensure a power company lineman won't be electrocuted while working on a supposedly 'dead' line, metering systems so your power production and use can be accurately calculated, and permits from both the building inspector and the power company must be obtained and paid for.
   • There's much more missing information, too. Wind speed and available power are affected greatly by nearby obstacles and the air turbulance that they cause. And, turbulance is the leading cause of failure and mechanical breakage in all varieties of wind turbine. The recommended height for mounting ANY wind turbine is to place it at least 30 feet above any obstacle within 300 feet in any direction.How many residential rooftops are 30 feet above anything within 300 feet? Very, very few! And almost all local government regulations limit tower height without a special-use permit. And almost all regulations require that if the tower falls, all of it must land on your own property. That's a big limitation on building a tower on a tiny residential lot in the city.
3. Number 3 here is typical multi-level marketing hype. You MUST get in on the ground floor or else you won't make any money. Etc. So far, we have not talked or emailed with a single EcoQuest dealer who knew anything about wind power at all. We have not met or heard from ANY WindTree® dealer who has even flown a wind turbine of any kind!
4. A Federal Judge ordered Alipine Industries, the Research and Development division of EqoQuest Intl., to stop making claims that their air purifiers and ozone generators can help cure a wide variety of health ailments, and that their products are proven to remove a variety of contaminants from the air, stating that the company failed to provide 'competent and reliable scientific evidence' that the product worked as claimed. You can see a copy of the Federal Trade Commission ruling HERE. More details about Alpine and EquQuest's legal troubles are available on the MLMwatch website HERE. Alpine was assessed a $1.49 million fine for these infractions.

Our point here is that WindTree® dealers are not necessarily con men -- the dealers are just trying to make a living selling EcoQuest's products, and really don't understand the laws of physics.

We send out our sincere sympathy to any EcoQuest dealer who has invested money into the WindTree® scam. Please consider doing some serious wind turbine research right away! In the future you could be subject to massive lawsuits from irate consumers and dealers. Read as many books as you can find about wind power and wind turbines, and do some research online. You will quickly see that EcoQuest's power output and turbine size claims violate the laws of physics.

Our recommendations in short:

Do your homework before spending your money! Learn all you can about wind energy.
TANSTAAFL! -- There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.
If it sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.
Keep your hands firmly gaurding your wallet.

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