flintlok wrote:Shootist wrote:Interesting, but the word 'why' keeps coming to mind. It's ok for setting fire to small things that are out of the way, but what else? Perhaps a Green Party approved cremation device for deceased hamsters?
No, imagine a small kettle of water of other low heat volatizing liquid producing steam that could be used to power various devices. Could be a serious toy that could produce free work with bit of up scaling.
http://greensteamengine.com/
That's the idea. The parabolic mirror was just made up to test the system really and to demonstrate how quickly and exactly it would align. Instead of a mirror you could easily mount a standard solar panel, photovoltaic or water heater on the tracker. Having the panel track the sun, even a simple single axis tracker will increase the efficiency of the panel by 36%.
With a parabolic mirror you can create flash steam in seconds or drive a sterling engine directly to generate electricity.
Another idea I have been thinking about is using it to purify water - ditch water in/drinking water out. I have a continuous flow system sorted out but snowed under with other commitments so this project is on the back burner at the moment.