Aerotecture's Bil Becker Gives Presentation on Urban Wind Power

One of Aerotecture's turbines atop a roof in the Pilsen neighborhood of Chicago. See the video on at Aerotecture's website.

On Thursday, October 12, Bil Becker, CEO of Aerotecture International Inc., gave a presentation at the monthly board meeting of the Chicago Audubon Society.

Becker's company, among other things, makes innovative wind turbines that can generate electricity. The turbines are unique in that they are not propeller-type wind turbines, but instead, are helical, either upright or horizontal wind turbines. Their overall shape is tubular, and they can be installed upright or lying horizontally.

The advantages of these kinds of turbines are numerous. They are much more bird-friendly than typical bladed wind turbines. The bladed turbines become "invisible" to birds once they reach speeds of about 400 RPMs. At these speeds, the blades blur, and birds cannot see them. Becker's Aerotecture turbines are always visible, even at their highest speeds, which literally cannot exceed about 250 RPMs.

The helical Aerotecture turbines are also building-code friendly, and can be placed on existing buildings or built into new buildings without breaking building codes in Chicago (which is among the strictest cities in the nation in terms of building codes). The Aerotecture turbines, which are roughly 5 feet by 10 feet, will likely soon be placed on top of the Daley Center in downtown Chicago, as part of the Mayor's initiative to make Chicago one of the greenest cities in the world. The four turbines expected to go up will be largely experimental, and will help demonstrate that harnessing wind power in an urban environment is possible, and safe for both humans and birds.

Becker, originally a designer for a major car manufacturer, names Buckminster Fuller as one of his major influences as a designer and engineer. Fuller, an environmental advocate throughout his life, taught that engineering should work with nature, not against it. Becker is definitely interested in how design and engineering impact the environment. He believes that both must be responsible. He states that design should not be undertaken without considering the environmental impact, both of the design itself, and the manufacturing process that will be necessary to produce the design. Becker's turbines are made from largely recycled materials- steel and plastics. While currently the turbines are not mass produced, as the company starts to grow, Becker wants to help bring manufacturing jobs back where workers can feel good about what they are doing in terms of reducing pollution.

While most people will think of the Great Plains as the best spots to set up "wind farms," data shows that adequate sustainable wind speeds can be found in urban areas, especially Chicago. Building additional wind farms in open or rural areas is not what Aerotecture is about. Becker wants to avoid building additional technology into rural environments, especially when his turbines are so easily adaptable to be placed in urban environments where their impact is minimized in that they become just another addition to the already-built world. Additionally, producing the electricity where it is needed (in urban, high-density population environments) reduces the need for even more built elements such as power lines, etc., to transport electricity generated on the Plains to the cities that need it.

Becker sees the urban environment as one full of potential for wind power. Again, propeller wind turbines pose a problem when mounted on buildings. They are very noisy and require a lot of anti-vibration and structural support. Becker's turbines are quiet. The Aerotecture turbines also cannot "overspin." When propeller turbines overspin, the propellers can fly off large distances, making them potential lethal projectiles. The Aerotecture design literally cannot overspin. It can reach only 250 RPMs, and after that, it self-regulates to stay at or under that speed.

Aerotecture also integrates the latest in solar power technology into their plans for buildings, letting some approach zero energy buildings – those that generate all the electricity they need. Becker hopes that architects in the future will incorporate energy-generating technology right into their plans.

:: Aerotecture's website - http://www.aerotecture.com