Evening Republican, Volume 17, Number 169, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 July 1913 — IS THE WINDMILL PERFECT? [ARTICLE]

IS THE WINDMILL PERFECT?

The Modern Design Compared with the Ancient. It hardly seems possible that the beet windmills today are not superior to those of olden times, but their 1 merits are compared by a writer for “Cassier’s Magaslne.” Tha points he raises are interesting and worth consideration, but his closing question indicates that he is not yat convinced that the old Is better than the new.. “Why,” he asks, “is tho full circle of a windmill of the modern type filled with blades? The only space not filled is ths oentral eye and such small space as is represented by the angularity of the blades. The consequence - of this may be that tha wind deflected from the moving blado Will be directed against tha next following blade, and will hinder the rotation of the mill. With fewer blades tbs wind would pass away more freely, and It is likely tkat there would be more power generated per blade if. Indeed, not actually more power from a mill of a given diameter. The efficiency of the surface would probably be better. An ordinary windmill is simply an Impulse turbine without guide blades. The wind advances in a parallel flowing stream and strikes upon the sloping surfaces of the sails or blades. These slip away under the lateral pressure of the air, and the air is deflected in the opposite direction, and can get away only between the blades. Such, at least, appears to he the trend of some recent thought on the question, and there is some reason In It The old Dutch mills had only four, five or six sails, as a rule. By no means was the full circle covered with sail area. .Indeed, a mere fraction was occupied, and much greater sail area could probably have been added. The modern windmill is quite different, and has its whole circle occupied. Are there any tests .on record to show what is the effect of this, and is it not quite likely that investigation would load to changes in design?”