- Title: Sun and wind powers mini 'Eiffel Tower' at Belgian music festival
- Date: 16th August 2019
- Summary: HASSELT, BELGIUM (AUGUST 16, 2019) (REUTERS) WIND AND SOLAR ENERGY GENERATOR STANDING IN MIDDLE OF MUSIC FESTIVAL CAMPSITE SUN SHINING THROUGH COLOURED SOLAR PANELS WIND TURBINE ROTATING SUN SHINING ON GENERATOR'S TOWER SUN SHINING THROUGH SOLAR PANELS 'GREEN ENERGY MILL' INVENTOR AND STRUCTURAL DESIGN PROFESSOR AT EINDHOVEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, FAAS MOONEN, SPEAKING (SOUNDBITE) (English) 'GREEN ENERGY MILL' INVENTOR AND STRUCTURAL DESIGN PROFESSOR AT EINDHOVEN UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY, FAAS MOONEN, SAYING: "The service is to provide power to the festivals in a sustainable way and we do that by integrating four different technologies based on wind, sun and battery technology. So one of the things is the wind. There is a huge windmill on top of this: four-meter-high windmill. And we have LSCs (Luminescent Solar Concentrator panels). They distribute the light to the sideways in a very special way but they also give a very colourful view. If you look at the tower, everybody thinks it's the tower is made for architectural, aesthetic reasons but in fact it's a technical issue."
- Embargoed: 30th August 2019 16:59
- Keywords: power generator Belgium Pukkelpop festival solar energy wind power renewable energy
- Location: HASSELT, BELGIUM
- City: HASSELT, BELGIUM
- Country: Belgium
- Topics: Environment
- Reuters ID: LVA001ASGXKYJ
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A 21-metre-high (69 ft.) power-generating 'Eiffel Tower' became an eye-catching feature at Belgium's Pukkelpop music festival, which opened on Thursday (August 15).
Erected to offer a sustainable alternative to polluting diesel generators so that concert goers can charge their electronic devices, the tower combines 20 square meters of coloured solar panels, a 700 kilogram wind turbine and a 90-kilowatt-hour battery
The project was developed by a professor at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), who spent five years working on the EU-sponsored project.
Dubbed the 'Green Energy Mill' by its creator Faas Moonen, the generator was designed to provide a full charge to 6,000 mobile phones and power to 100 tents at the festival, where the new structure was met with enthusiasm.
One festival-goer called the project an "amazing initiative", while another said he'd "never seen a solution before that combines wind and solar energy in such a creative way."
Pukkelpop spokesman Frederik Luyten said the tower was a great way to create awareness on renewable energies among festival-goers.
One of the best known music festivals in Belgium with a capacity of 66,000 visitors per day, the 34th edition of the sold-out festival is expected to attract mainly young people with 198 artists including Billie Eilish, The National, James Blake, Eels, Tame Impala and Franz Ferdinand.
(Production: Christian Levaux, Clement Rossignol) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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