Rooftop turbines power college

PORTLAND, Ore., April 30 Concerns over possible disruptions were trumped by the benefits of clean energy at Portland State University in Oregon.

The college is installing four fiberglass turbines on the roofs of several campus buildings later this week, the Oregonian reported. Standing just 40 inches tall, the turbines will be barely visible from the street as students and faculty measure the output. Portland is the only city on the West Coast looking at rooftop turbines, said Ron Stimmel, small-wind advocate with the American Wind Energy Association.

Toby Kinkaid, designer of the urban turbines, said they are silent, affordable and efficient. The vertical axis blades capture low-speed wind from all directions. By his estimates, the cost of the turbines if they were to be mass-produced is about $60 per unit at $1.50 per kilowatt hour and would pay for itself in about two years with decent average wind speeds.

Several other building developments in the Portland area have contacted Kinkaid, expressing interest in the micro turbines. Over the past 15 years more than 43,800 small wind turbines have been installed in the United States by farmers, small business and homeowners.

"We don't see those kinds of improvements in bearings and aerodynamics and lightweight materials," said Mark Kendal, senior policy analyst for renewable resources with the Oregon Department of Energy. "But electricity prices are on the rise, making any alternative energy source more attractive."

Copyright 2007 by UPI

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