Drinking bird upsized, anchored barge.

  • Thread starter Regularguy
  • Start date
  • Tags
    Bird
In summary, the conversation discusses the potential of using a scaled-up version of the "drinking bird" toy to generate power by placing it on a barge in the middle of a lake. However, it is noted that the efficiency of the device is very low and not practical for producing significant power. The conversation also touches on the history of the invention and its patent status.
  • #1
Regularguy
2
0
Hi, first time poster here- not college educated, as my handle suggest ... Just a regular guy :) I was reading "The physics book" today (Clifford A. Pickover) and came across the classic "drinking bird" where the body is filled with methylene chloride, the head covered in a felt material - basically a heat engine. Obviously in stable conditions like a room where there is no wind or possibility of disruption the only thing keeping this device from running for a reeeeally long time (please note I didn't say PMM) would be the water supply. Water in a bowl would evaporate relatively fast ... But what if we scaled the bird up and engineered it with safeguards (especially concerning the Methylene chloride) mounted it to a barge floating in the middle of lake Meade (yes, I live in Vegas) and then anchored the barge to the lake bed and we let the bird drink (so to speak)

Could this produce measurable power? How about in a large pond on an Ohio farm? Math, engineering & physics are not my strong suits so I leave this up to you - the true scientists to answer this question... Please be gentle- Thank you.
 
Engineering news on Phys.org
  • #2
According to wikipedia:
An analysis showed that the evaporative heat flux driving a small bird was about 1⁄2 W, whereas the mechanical power expressed in bird's motion was about 1⁄20,000 W. The system efficiency is about 0.01%. More practically, about 1⁄1,000,000 W can be extracted from the bird, either with a coil/magnet or a ratchet used to winch paperclips.

1 hp = 746 W, so just do the math to size your bird accordingly!
 
  • #3
jack action said:
According to wikipedia:


1 hp = 746 W, so just do the math to size your bird accordingly!

Oh man I am totally doing this! Nobel Prize here I come!
 
  • #4
No nobels for you, A) it's worthless (but thanks for taking time to humor us with your wit) B) if it wasn't worthless it would belong to the original inventor (which it actually does - patented in 1946)
 
  • #5
I had one of the "drinking birds" and it was NOT useless! It gave me and my friends hours of amusement. But certainly useless for generating electrical power!

By the way, if the inventor received a patent for it in 1946, that patent expired twenty years later, in 1966 (unless he went through the patent renewal process).
 

1. How does the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge work?

The drinking bird upsized, anchored barge is a simple heat engine that uses the principles of thermodynamics to continuously move and "drink" water. The barge is filled with water and anchored in place, while the bird's head is made of a porous material that absorbs water. As the water evaporates from the head, it cools down and creates a difference in temperature between the head and the base. This temperature difference causes the vapor pressure to change, moving the fluid from the head to the base, making the bird "drink". This process repeats as long as there is a difference in temperature between the head and the base.

2. What is the purpose of the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge?

The drinking bird upsized, anchored barge is primarily used as a demonstration of thermodynamics and the principles of heat engines. It can also be used as a fun and educational toy for children to learn about science and physics. In some cases, it can also be used as an instrument for measuring humidity or as a novelty item.

3. How is the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge different from the traditional drinking bird toy?

The drinking bird upsized, anchored barge is an enlarged version of the traditional drinking bird toy. It is typically larger in size and can hold more water. Additionally, the barge is anchored in place, making it a more stable and long-lasting demonstration of the heat engine principle.

4. Can the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge be used as a source of energy?

No, the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge is not a source of energy. It simply converts thermal energy into mechanical energy, but does not produce any new energy. It is often used as an example of how energy can be transferred and converted from one form to another.

5. Can the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge be modified to work with other liquids?

While the traditional drinking bird toy is designed to work with only water, the drinking bird upsized, anchored barge can be modified to work with other liquids. However, the liquid used must have a similar vapor pressure and specific heat capacity as water in order for the barge to function properly. Some modifications may also be required for the materials used in the head and base of the bird.

Hot Threads

Recent Insights

Back
Top