Malini's Musings

In my previous post, I wrote about the solar cookers, around which most of my fascination was centered. In another exhibition hall,and around the campus, there were some more interesting things on display... And I'm going to write about them in this post... Solar LED Lanterns: The solar panels placed on the window harness the sun's energy and store it. When the lanterns are switched on, the stored energy powers the LEDs. Electric Bicycles and Tricycle: These were designed for use by people residing in rural areas, where heavy loads are carried on bicycles, which are to be riden on kaccha roads. It is envisaged that the vehicles can be charged electrically at home or at a charging station. Approx. cost of making the bike is around Rs. 12.9 k... cant remember exact figure. This is something that needs to be looked into... A Merry-Go-Round that actually generates energy: When you spin it, the kinetic energy powers a music system. If you spin it fast enough, music...

On 23rd November, 2009, our entire class of 7th semester BT students were taken for a visit to MGIRED (Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Rural Energy and Develpoment). The primary focus of this visit was biofuels. And most interactions revolved around how biofuels are made from non-edible oil (edible oil is not used for the sake of food security)... But what fascinated me the most were the solar cookers. I initially mistook them for a sattelite dish, much to the amusement of my friends, but then, I got very much involved with the solar cookers, and lost track of time there. This was the first one that I saw, which I mistook for a sattelite dish. And another one... Both of them belong to a class of solar cookers designated as "Curved Concentrator Cookers" or "parabolics". They cook fast at high temperatures but they also require frequent adjustment and supervision for safe operation. Then I saw these cookers... The "Box Cookers" or "Heat Trap Boxes"......