The biggest ever wind turbine: The Reengineer Monitor #40

Insulation calamity, breathable clothing - and more!

Wind turbines keep getting bigger. Dongfang’s new 26 megawatt machine (not pictured) is the largest ever installed. Photo by Sam Forson.

Heating and cooling

The Guardian has a very moving story about heat deaths in Arizona, one of the hottest states in the US. Richard Chamblee, who lived in a mobile home with his family, died during a recent heatwave. He was bed-bound due to being clinically obese and when the family’s AC system broke down, they were unable to prevent him overheating during extremely hot weather. “Chamblee […] struggled to breathe. His core temperature measured 108F [42C] when he was rushed to the emergency room, but doctors were unable to cool him down.” He died hours later, aged 52.

Heat Pump Forum, a conference and awards event, will take place on 23 and 24 September Brussels, Belgium.

A new article from Science says we should be developing clothing textiles that are much better at releasing moisture and heat from our bodies. It could be a new form of climate chic. However, I have to say, my first thought was, “Is it going to be any better than cotton, really?” (Fans of Seinfeld may understand the significance of cotton fabric – especially for baseball sports kits.) Well, the authors have an answer to my query: “A nanoporous polyethylene textile that is transparent to mid-infrared radiation emitted by the human body effectively cools artificial skin by 2.0°C more as compared with cotton.”