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The University of Maine, home to the Advanced Engineered Wood Composites center — UMaine’s leading energy research institute — was host to a smaller counterpart Friday.
David Labrecque, Chief Executive of the Flexor Energy Company, came to campus to show his own small innovation in wind power technology: the Aeroflexor. Designed like a hammock turned to a vertical position, the Aeroflexor is held taut at its two ends. When wind blows over its surface, it spins, expands and contracts, pulling and releasing a cord at its base that powers a generator. Labrecque presented the technology to a small audience at Barrows Hall, where he said it is designed to be an efficient and durable alternative to wind turbines and requires less material to build.
“You can imagine this as a hammock, so you’re winding the hammock, and you can imagine the forces on the end. The forces are actually quite large; so we’ll get a lot of force out of this thing,” Labrecque said.
Labrecque said that because the Aeroflexor can be flexible, it doesn’t have to bear as much stress as more conventional technologies, like wind turbines. He said it can also cover greater areas than typical wind energy devices and therefore capture more wind.
Labrecque has received $25,000 in grants from the Maine Technology Institute to fund the research into Aeroflexors. He first thought of the idea for the technology in 2006, when he began to think about what energy sources Maine has in abundance — wind and water. The Aeroflexor works in both.
Matt Burns, a fourth-year civil engineering student who attended the lecture, said he liked the presentation but there were “probably still a few questions that need to be answered” because Flexor is such a small operation.
Bruce Segee, an electrical and computer engineering professor at UMaine, asked what Labrecque suggested for the water-power version and the power it produces, specifically how to use it.
“What do you do with the energy after you store it?” he asked.
Labrecque suggested the energy be stored underwater and run a single generator through compressed air, rather than one generator for each Hydroflexor — as he calls the water version.
Labrecque said one benefit of the Aeroflexor is its ability to start itself. He demonstrated with a small office fan and a miniature Aeroflexor, which spun lightly and powered a blinking light every time it pulled on its cord.
Labrecque’s inspiration for the Aeroflexor came partially from skybows, which are long ribbons that can be erected to spin in the wind and generate electricity. He liked the idea but felt he could expand it to cover a greater area. Later, while driving through Orono, he said he noticed banners attached to power lines blowing in the wind, which struck him with the inspiration to design the Aeroflexor.
Currently, there is a small Aeroflexor model in an office of Aubert Hall. Labrecque said he hopes to put another, larger version on the top of Aubert Hall to power a Christmas tree. He also hopes to get further grant money to expand the venture.
