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What would you say if you were asked when the first wind turbine was built in the United States to generate electricity? 1940s or 50s? The first one was built long before that.
In 1888, Ohio engineer Charles Brush built a 60-foot-tall tower with a 56-foot-long rotor that could generate up to 12 kilowatts of electricity. He used to be in the electrical business, but sold the Thomas-Houston company, which later became General Electric. By that time, he had over 50 patents in his name and had saved up enough money not to work full time. (He is credited with inventing street lighting.)
He built 80,000-pound wind turbines for his mansion on Euclid Avenue in Cleveland. The turbine impeller has 144 blades and a surface area of ​​approximately 1,800 square feet. There are twelve batteries in his house, and he was the first in the city to get to work. Incredibly, the wind turbine has been running successfully for two decades, providing a steady stream of electricity to Bush’s house.
Scientific American wrote a long article about visiting the Brush home in 1890. 12 cells are charged and discharged in parallel, each cell has a capacity of 100 Ah. The jars containing the battery cells are glass, and each battery’s liquid is coated with a quarter-inch thick layer of “mineral seal” that completely prevents evaporation and splashing, and also traps all odors. ”
And so, more than 130 years ago, Brush provided a practical source of clean energy and storage for his home and private laboratory, where he made and continued to create devices.
Interest in him reportedly began when he was a boy on his parents’ farm. At 12, he built an electrostatic machine out of mirrors, leather, and bottle amalgam. By the age of 15, he had built microscopes and telescopes for school friends.
After graduating from high school with honors, he entered the University of Michigan, from which he graduated. (He had to take tuition fees from his uncle because his parents couldn’t afford it.)
Brush lived in his non-volatile mansion until 1929, when he died of pneumonia. Henry Ford tried to buy the Brush turbine in 1930 to keep it, but it was torn down to make way for road construction (ironically).
Even in 2014, there was resistance to renewables. If the federal government had encouraged the development of wind power since 1888, even if only minimally, things might be very different today.
Hi, I’ve been writing online for a while now and love spending time outdoors. If you like it, you can follow me on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JakeRsol
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