Abstract:
A method of converting atmospheric electrical discharge to a useable form of energy by arresting, storage and retransmission of lightning induced electrical discharge is disclosed. The invention discloses methods of deploying this technology even in isolated locations where no electricity infrastructure exists. Additionally, the potential for achieving in excess of 1 GWe of electrical power supply at costs orders of magnitude lower than fossil fuel or solar is also disclosed. Isolated collection units are disclosed. A method of deployment of these devices on individual cars and recharge stations is disclosed which in effect unplugs these automotive and recharge stations from the grid. This capability significantly decreases their dependence on the electricity grid infrastructure, enabling a much more enhanced rollout capability for the industry. The concept of Energy Dams is disclosed. These are facilities with substantial electrical energy storage capacities with the capability of receiving energy feeds from various generation sources.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    This invention relates to the field of electrical energy generation and storage in general and the conversion of atmospheric electrical discharge to a useable form of energy by arresting, storage and retransmission of lightning induced electrical discharge in particular. 
       BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
       [0002]    Lightning has always been a destructive force of nature. Causing death by electrocution and starting fires both in residential areas and in forests. In either case the loss of life and property is substantial. Lightning strikes have affected communication systems, and by uncontrolled arcing, electricity grids leading to loss of power with substantial economic loss 
         [0003]    Lightning is the number one cause of forest and farm fires just in the United States and causes over 80 percent of all livestock losses due to accidents. Property losses run into billions of dollars annually and thousands of deaths and injury are reported yearly. Business losses from power and communications failure run into billions of dollars annually. Up to now, lightning strike damage has generally been controlled primarily by grounding. 
         [0004]    A lightning discharge can have voltage of 10 MV to 100 MV and current of 1 kA to 300 kA. It packs so much voltage that it can leap a mile through the air and strike another object. Lightning can strike a building directly or leaping to it after striking a tree or other nearby object or by following a power line. It can strike any object that provides an easier path to the ground for it than the air. Because of the large network of lines, lightning can strike a utility pole at one point and be transmitted to any location in the network. Because of this, utility companies use multiple grounding and other protective devices per mile to ameliorate the lightning effects. 
         [0005]    There has been a lot of activity in the alleviation of lightning damage but none in utilizing its energy potential. 
         [0006]    U.S. Pat. No. 7,495,168 discloses a dipole lightning conductor which can gather electrical charges from the atmosphere during a thunderstorm, opposite to the polarity of the adjacent cloud on one side and induce a different polarity on the other end contacting the ground. When a sufficient potential difference is reached between the dipole and the earth, a dielectric breakdown occurs sending a large amount of earth charge to the thundercloud, inducing a thunderbolt. 
         [0007]    In U.S. Pat. No. 6,012,330, Palmer discloses a method of inducing lightning strikes by shooting a stream of ionized water into a thundercloud and triggering electrical conduction through the ionized water column to the ground. In this invention, while ionized water is used, advantage is taken also of capillary wetting of conducting mesh cable at the tip of which is tethered a balloon of conductor coated Mylar. It is easier to float a balloon than to pump a column of water to any significant height. 
         [0008]    In U.S. Pat. No. 6,320,119 Gumley discloses a capacitively coupled composite air terminal with sharp and rounded end components for voltage manipulation to minimize electric field ahead of streamers to minimize corona discharge. 
         [0009]    Kato, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,335, discloses a compound lightning low voltage arrester with high energy tolerance for power and telephone lines comprising a spark gap is connected to a serial combination of Zinc Oxide arrestor and a non-inductive resistor. By cooperative execution between the spark gap and the Zinc Oxide arrester, the Zinc Oxide is chosen to be of a rating such that thermal breakdown does not occur before the spark gap ignition voltage is reached. The arrangement ensures reliable and predictable discharge and arrester survival even under multiple lightning strikes of close proximity. 
         [0010]    Subbarao in U.S. Pat. No. 4,338,648, discloses a discharge counter and arrester current meter to determine arrester steady state current and the number of discharge events occurring during a thunder storm lightning arrester event. 
         [0011]    Greenwald and Moses in U.S. Pat. No. 5,610,813 disclose a thunderstorm cell detection and mapping system for acquiring localized lightning strike information and identifying and locating active thunderstorm cells. 
         [0012]    In U.S. Pat. No. 4,272,720, a method of differentiating between cloud-cloud and cloud-ground discharges is disclosed. Indicating discharge events with no accompanying lightning ground strike. This indicates that even in the absence of streamers, there is significant electrical discharge that can be converted and stored. 
         [0013]    Weir and Nelson disclose in U.S. Pat. No. 7,033,406, a high energy density ceramic capacitor with energy capacity of 52 kW.h in 2005 cu.in, the equivalent of 1600 kW.h/m 3 . Hansen in U.S. Pat. No. 6,078,494 discloses multilayer ceramic capacitors comprising doped barium-calcium-zirconium-titanate dielectric, the materials basis for U.S. Pat. No. 7,033,406. It is claimed to be characterized by high dielectric constant, high stability of capacitance value, long service life, low loss factor, high insulation resistance capacitance, low voltage dependence, and wide temperature range stability. Electrodes of base metal alloys from the group of Ni, Fe, Co or their alloys are claimed to be perhaps just as effective as noble metals containing gold, silver, platinum and palladium and may also contain Cr, Ti, Zr, V, Al, Zn, Cu, Sn, Pb, Mn, Mo and W. 
         [0014]    Although the energy density capacity is not disclosed, it may be in the same range as U.S. Pat. No. 7,033,406 showing a path for storing the energy that can be extracted from lightning discharge. 
         [0015]    U.S. Pat. No. 5,361,187, claims dielectric constant (k) of up to 19000 using similar group of dielectrics and processes. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,604,167 dielectric constant values of between 11,000 and 14,000 are disclosed by the same inventor with equivalent materials and processes. 
         [0016]    Since these capacitors use standard powder processing technique, it can reasonably be expected that equivalent characteristics may be observed with naturally occurring doped silicates such as phyllosilicates for example, montmorillonite: (Na,Ca) 0.33 (Al,Mg) 2 (Si 4 O 10 )(OH) 2 .nH 2 O, or cyclosilicates such as Benitoite —BaTi(Si 3 O 9 ) as base materials appropriately calcined and doped. 
         [0017]    In U.S. Pat. No. 6,078,494 multilayer ceramic capacitors comprising doped barium-calcium-zirconium-titanate dielectric is disclosed. It is claimed to be characterized by high dielectric constant, high stability of capacitance value, long service life, low loss factor, high insulation resistance and low voltage dependence, and wide temperature range stability. Electrodes of base metal alloys from the group of Ni, Fe, Co or their alloys are claimed to be perhaps just as effective as noble metals containing gold, silver, platinum and palladium and may also contain Cr, Ti, Zr, V, Al, Zn, Cu, Sn, Pb, Mn, Mo and W. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,361,187, the inventors claim dielectric constants of up to 19000 using similar group of dielectrics and processes. In U.S. Pat. No. 5,604,167 dielectric constant values of between 11,000 and 14,000 is disclosed by the same inventors with equivalent materials and processes. Since these capacitors use standard powder processing technique, it can reasonably be expected that equivalent characteristics may be observed with naturally occurring doped silicates such as phyllosilicates for example, various grades of montmorillonite: (Na,Ca) 0.33 (Al,Mg) 2 (Si 4 O 10 )(OH) 2 .nH 2 O, or cyclosilicates such as Benitoite—BaTi(Si 3 O 9 ) as base materials appropriately calcined and doped. 
         [0018]    Although the technology to arrest lightning strikes has been around for at least a hundred years, this invention to harness and store that power has only become viable due to recent advances in super-capacitor technology which has made possible the fabrication of ultrahigh capacitance capacitors with very long lifetimes, high power, high energy densities and very fast charge and discharge rates. 
         [0019]    Just as flood water, another destructive force of nature in times past was controlled by building dams, and from the dams eventually came hydroelectric power; and wind including thunderstorms has now been harnessed to generate electricity, this invention describes the technology to harness the power of atmospheric discharges including lightening storms to generate useable electrical energy. 
         [0020]    This disclosure also introduces the concept of an Energy Dam. Facilities of substantial energy storage capacity capable of receiving energy feeds from various energy sources such as Solar, Wind, Thermal Power plants and Lightning. For example, during a thunderstorm, electricity generated by wind and lightning is collected and stored. 
         [0021]    Lightning strikes every part of the globe but not uniformly. The regions with the highest historical concentration of lightning strikes are shown in  FIG. 1   c.  These include Florida and the Gulf Coast in the Americas, the Equatorial Highlands of DRC, Rwanda and Burundi in Central Africa and the Monsoon Belt in Asia. 
         [0022]    Except for the Americas, typically, these regions have very little electricity infrastructure. With the capability disclosed here, substantial reserves of electricity can be generated, stored and possibly traded. 
         [0023]    In regions of epileptic electricity supply, disruptions in power do not necessarily translate into disruption in service. Since when power is generated, it is fed into these energy dams or local storage units for eventual use. Just as in water supply, the customer is not necessarily conscious of when the local water company is pumping water into storage tanks or local dams, in energy dams, the customer need not be conscious of whether or when electricity is being generated by the utility company because the power to his home is drawn not necessarily live from the grid but from the local energy storage units or energy dams. 
       BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0024]    A method of harnessing atmospheric discharge and storing said energy in a useful form for subsequent use is presented. 
         [0025]    Since the voltage of a lighting bolt can be as high as 100 MV, a methodology for safely channeling this discharge for storage is disclosed. 
         [0026]    It is the also the object of this invention to present a storage medium in which an energy capacity of 1 MW.h in a volume of under 1 m 3  can be achieved. 
         [0027]    It is also a further objective of this invention to show how lightening strikes on tall buildings can be harnessed to provide energy for the building either directly or fed into the grid. 
         [0028]    It is also an objective of this invention to present a methodology for harnessing lightening, heretofore a source of power disruptions for electricity grids and converting it into a useable form of energy and feeding it back into the grid. 
         [0029]    Since each electricity grid has a lightning suppression unit, a methodology for harnessing the impulse from these units from lightening strikes and feeding it back into the grid is disclosed. 
         [0030]    a method of deploying a network of said storage units along a utility grid is also disclosed. 
         [0031]    It is also the objective of this invention to disclose a method of modifying the storage units for single building deployment. 
         [0032]    A method of deploying said storage units as vehicular charging centers even in locations not readily served by a utility grid is also disclosed. 
         [0033]    A method of manipulating the direction and movement of the lightening bolt in open air locations and redirecting them to predetermined collection points is disclosed. 
         [0034]    Lightning storms are some of the major causes of wild fires in the world. A method of redirecting the electrical discharges in any given space via a network of polarized and non-polarized collectors is presented. The discharges can be stored, fed into the grid or grounded. 
         [0035]    A method for non-spontaneous discharge generation and storage is disclosed. And a method for adapting the methodology for electric automotive deployment is also disclosed. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0036]    For understanding of the present invention reference is made of the accompanying drawings in the following DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION. In the drawings: 
           [0037]      FIG. 1   a.  Picture of lightning strike over a city. 
           [0038]      FIG. 1   b.  Picture of lightning strike over open plain. 
           [0039]      FIG. 1   c:  Global Distribution of Lightning Strikes: April 1995-February, 2003. (Source: NASA). 
           [0040]      FIG. 2  shows a schematic of discharge collection and storage system. 
           [0041]      FIG. 3  shows a schematic of collection unit showing metallic composition variation. 
           [0042]      FIG. 4  Shows a Schematic of composite collector showing polarized ends. 
           [0043]      FIG. 5  Schematic of collector network configuration with negatively polarized ends to manipulate and redirect lightning electrical discharge away from the earth for eventual collection at a predetermined location. 
           [0044]      FIG. 6  Plan view of polarized collection network as shown in  FIG. 5  acting to concentrate and modulate the electrical discharge and redirect such for collection at predetermined location. 
           [0045]      FIG. 7   a.  Schematic showing a representation of a network of varistors arranged in rows and columns with the net effect of applying resistive arrestors in parallel and in series to effect voltage mitigation of atmospheric discharges prior to collection and storage. 
           [0046]      FIG. 7   b:  Schematic of varistor of power mitigation unit showing cascade of ZnO arrestor in series with non-inductive resistor in parallel with spark gap. 
           [0047]      FIG. 7   c:  Multilayer varistor with ZnO, ZnS and WO 3 /WSi 2    
           [0048]      FIG. 8   a.  Schematic showing cross section of a collection unit. 
           [0049]      FIG. 8   b.  Schematic showing cross-section of multilayer ceramic capacitor of  8   a.    
           [0050]      FIG. 9  Schematic of collection unit network mesh in forested area with air frames deployed on each tree as collection of trees linked in a mesh network. 
           [0051]      FIG. 10  Plan-view schematic of collection unit network mesh of  FIG. 9   
           [0052]      FIG. 11  Schematic showing collection unit deployment on electricity transmission poles linked in a network and fed into the electricity grid. 
           [0053]      FIG. 12  Schematic showing collection unit deployment on light poles or wireless towers. 
           [0054]      FIG. 13  Schematic showing network of linked collection units and storage units on transmission lines, light poles or wireless towers fed into the grid. 
           [0055]      FIG. 14 . Schematic of a system for non-spontaneous atmospheric discharge generation and storage. 
           [0056]      FIG. 15  Schematic of atmospheric discharge collection and storage unit deployable on automotive units. 
           [0057]      FIG. 16  Schematic of balloon-assisted discharge collection and storage unit. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0058]    This invention describes a method of harnessing the electrical energy in atmospheric discharges, including, but not limited to lightning, storing said electrical energy and transmitting said energy for use. To this end, as an illustration, the preferred embodiments are represented in the drawings shown in  FIGS. 2 to 15 . 
         [0059]    Since lightning discharge voltages range from 10 MV to 100 MV with current of 10 kA to 100 kA, the technology challenge will be in mitigating the ultrahigh power which range from 100 GW to in excess of 10,000 GW. Although individual strikes last less than 100 μsec, thunderstorms usually last longer than 30 min. in any cloud formation and location. Indicating that the energy that can be mined from any location in a thunderstorm can run in excess of 50 GW.H. Enough energy for 500,000 homes consuming 1000 kW.h per month. At $100 per 1000 kWh, the revenue equivalent is $5 million per thunderstorm per location. 
         [0060]    In solar energy generation, the cost of a 1 MWe rating PV panel is about $1 million. To achieve 1 GWe, the cost implications will be about $1 billion. In fossil fuel plants, the construction cost is approximately $1.3 million per MWe, putting the cost for a 1 GWe at ˜$1.3 billion excluding fuel, carbon footprint, and other operating cost. Though thunderstorms are not continuous, with storage capability, the cost basis for an atmospheric discharge energy source will be several orders of magnitude lower than fossil fuel or solar of any architecture. 
         [0061]    One embodiment of this invention is depicted in  FIG. 2 . Lightning is collected at the air terminals  10 ,  20  and transmitted through the conductor  30  to an arrestor  40  and on to the capacitor  50  where the electricity is stored. From which it can be extracted  60  at point of use or transmitted into the grid. 
         [0062]    The degree of atmospheric discharge charge collection can be influenced by the metallurgical composition of the collectors.  FIG. 3  illustrates the fabrication of the collector with different metals of varying conductivities and atmospheric and electrical stability. In this embodiment, metallurgical compositions for the various segments comprise Ti, Cu, Al. Other metals or their alloys can be used depending on the required properties and the locations of deployment. 
         [0063]    In yet another embodiment of the invention as shown in  FIG. 4 , a composite collector with opposite polarity air terminals  100 ,  110  is used. The air terminals are isolated from each other by an insulator  120 . The negative polarity terminal serves to deflect and manipulate the charge to the positive terminal from which it is conducted to the storage unit  130 . 
         [0064]    Another embodiment of the invention is illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . In this representation, negative polarity collectors,  160  deflect the atmospheric discharge so that they do not reach the ground but are deflected for collection at a predetermined terminal  180  of positive polarity and thereafter storage  200 . A plan view representation of this embodiment is shown in  FIG. 6 . 
         [0065]    It is essential to mitigate the power of the lightning before storage. In one embodiment of this invention, a collection of varistors of various power capacities, linked in series  270 , 280  and  290  are connected in parallel in lines  1  to n, to achieve a desired capability as shown in  FIG. 7   a.  The resultant power is stored in the capacitor  300 . An insulator or fuse  305  is placed at the end of the varistor chain to protect the capacitor  300  against over-current. In the event of overstressing, the dielectric or varistor is deformed and the excess current is grounded. 
         [0066]    Each component of the power mitigation unit is any of the following configurations as shown in  FIG. 7   b:  A ZnO varistor  312  connected in series with a non-inductive resistor  313  and in parallel with a spark gap  311 . The resultant current is further modulated through another ZnO unit  314  and resistor  315 . A cascade of this configuration could be adopted to achieve the desired properties. 
         [0067]    Zinc Oxide has a relatively large band gap of ˜3.3 eV at room temperature. The consequence of this large band gap includes, higher breakdown voltages, ability to sustain large electric field and high power and temperature operation. Because of this, ZnO is the primary component in varistors and in voltage suppression devices. Zinc Sulfide has a band gap of 3.5 eV for the cubic form and as high as 3.91 eV for the hexagonal form at 300K. While ZnO band gap can be tuned from between 3-4 eV by alloying with magnesium oxide or cadmium oxide, the co-processing of ZnO with ZnS of the hexagonal wurtzite form should provide electrical field and other operational advantages over ZnO alone. 
         [0068]    Multilayers of ZnO and ZnS or as sandwich layers with each other with ZnO achieving 50-99.9 mol. % of each layer can be adopted to improve on the suppression properties of the single layer ZnO varistor as is shown in  FIG. 7   c.  Said varistor comprising a ceramic base body  318  of multiple layers, terminal electrodes  316 ,  317  and internal electrodes  319 . 
         [0069]    Alloying of ZnO with metal oxides and nitrides of transition elements including W, Zr, Mo, Mg, Cr, and Ti may improve its band gap characteristics and improve its voltage response non-linearity. Tungsten, in the form of tungsten silicide has very unique crystallization characteristics, particularly in the presence of dopants such as phosphorus or arsenic. Upon post deposition anneal, the Si in the non-stoichiometric tungsten silicide (WSix) segregates to the grain boundaries and the film interfaces. The dopant atoms diffuse preferentially along the grain boundaries. When oxidized, it is the segregated silicon that is oxidized selectively. If the W is exposed to the oxidizing ambient of O 2 /Ar or O 2 /N 2  at temperatures in excess of 700° C., tungsten oxide WOx (x=3, or 1.5) is formed. It has no corresponding crystallographic orientation to the underlying tungsten silicide or metal, being in the form of an amorphous powder. The fabrication of multilayer varistors with ZnO and WSi 2 /WO 3 , SiO 2  should provide the flexibility of modulation of the effective grain sizes of the host material to within 0.5-10μ as the case may be. This precise grain size control provides corresponding modulation of the electrical properties including overvoltage suppression. 
         [0070]    A schematic of the storage unit  320  is shown in  FIG. 8   a.  A collection of capacitors  330  are connected in parallel to achieve a desired capacitance. A schematic of the cross-section of each capacitor unit is shown in  FIG. 8   b.  The unit  331  with dielectric layers  332  is a multilayer capacitor comprising alternately stacked internal electrodes  335 ,  336  connected to external electrodes  333 ,  334 . The dielectric layers may be of uniform composition, or layers of different compositions optimized for flexibility in the modulation of desired electrical, physical and reliability properties. 
         [0071]    Capacitance in excess of 1 kF/m 3  with energy storage capacity of 1.5 MW.h is reported as being possible by existing art. With compositional and manufacturing improvements disclosed here these benchmarks are expected to be surpassed making possible energy storage capacities of up to 1 GW.h. Sufficient energy for 1000 households consuming 1000 kW.h of electricity per month for one month. 
         [0072]    Lightning storms are a major cause of wildfire. To address this, in yet another embodiment of this invention as represented in  FIG. 9 , air terminals  360  are set up on a selection of trees and connected by a conductor  370  in a mesh array as shown in  FIG. 10 . The impinging charge is transmitted through a conductor  380 , through a suppressor unit  390  and on to the storage unit  400 . 
         [0073]    Utility transmission lines usually have lightning collectors along the length of the network. In this invention as demonstrated in  FIG. 11  air terminals  440  deployed transmission poles  450  are linked by a polarized conductor  460 . At predetermined locations the impinging charge is conducted through a suppression unit  490  and thereafter into the storage unit  500 . The stored energy is periodically released into the grid. 
         [0074]    In yet another embodiment of the invention, air terminals  510  are deployed on light poles  520 . The collected charged are modified and stored in a storage unit  540 . 
         [0075]    In another embodiment, the air terminal/collection units are deployed on radio transmission towers. The charge could be stored individually at each tower location or linked in a network as shown in  FIG. 13 . In either case, the stored energy be used at each individual location or fed into the grid  570 . 
         [0076]    In the absence of a thundercloud, lightening flash can be generated by the modification of the natural bias between the cloud and ground. This is demonstrated in  FIG. 14 , where a positively biased conductor  580  of height greater than nearest ground elevation or nearest structure. The increased elevation and bias facilitates cloud to ground discharge even when there is no active lightning storm. The incoming charge is isolated by an insulator  600  and stored in the storage unit  610 . 
         [0077]    In yet another embodiment of this invention, a balloon of conductive material is tethered to a terminal via a mesh line of conducting material. The balloon captures cloud to cloud discharges which are transmitted down to storage. In yet another embodiment this tether line may be wetted by a conductive solution such as but not limited to salt solution to facilitate the discharge conduction. 
         [0078]    Another embodiment of this invention is shown in  FIG. 15 . In an isolated collection system as shown here, the air terminal  620  which may be biased or unbiased is connected to a collection/storage unit  650 ,  660  respectively by conductor  640  and isolated by a dielectric or insulator  670 . Should the discharge exceed the capacity of the isolation, the isolation is bridged and the charge grounded. This isolated collection system is particularly useful where there is no utility grid, particularly in very remote and isolated locations. 
         [0079]    This isolated collection capability enables deployment on individual houses and isolated farms. In electric automotive recharge stations, this capability enables the location of these facilities in any location even those not served by regular electricity utilities lines. 
         [0080]    In isolated rural areas, the deployment of these isolated collection units enables the provision of electricity where electricity grid infrastructure is not available or practical. The storage units can be deployed in banks as the estimated anticipated usage dictates. 
         [0081]    In another embodiment of this invention, the isolated collection unit is modified to be portable for deployment on automobiles. The charge in the storage unit is linked with the automobile&#39;s electrical power or storage unit. Alternatively, it can replace the power storage unit of the automobile for pure EV or hybrid cars. Additionally, it can unplug these cars from the grid. With the ambitious industry plans for electric or hybrid cars the infrastructure for charging these cars either in garages or charging stations is somewhat limited. The capability to both ‘charge as you go’ and unplug from the grid would expand the infrastructure significantly. 
         [0082]    In yet another embodiment of this invention, the isolated collection unit is deployed on trains. This could be in commuter trains that directly fed from the grid, or long-haul trains to augment or replace the fossil fuel used. 
         [0083]    It is understood that the presentation of these steps in this disclosure is not exhaustive. Only the preferred embodiments of the invention and but a few of the examples of its versatility are shown and described in the present disclosure. It should be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that the invention is capable of use in various other combinations, environments and applications and is capable of changes or modifications within the scope of the inventive concept as expressed herein. These changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. 
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