INFINITELY LARGE SOLAR FURNACE

These diagrams show a tiny 6 X 6 mirror-array as an example. Also I used the silicone-glue "hinges" so my array could be reprogrammable. If you only want a fixed-focus furnace, you can use screws to adjust the mirror chips, then glue them permanently into position. Obviously you can increase the size of the array as to large as you wish. My dream is to build an array the size of a 4ft X 8ft sheet of plywood. With 1 inch mirror chips, it should create a focused spot which is 4000 times brighter than normal sunlight.

The trick is simple: Make or buy a large number of mirror chips of glass or plastic, each one about 2cm or 3cm in size. 12in glass mirror tiles can be had from the larger hardware stores, and these can be scored and broken into 2cm chips with a glass cutting tool. Or, plexiglas mirror-plastic can be cut up with a power saw. The smaller your mirrors, the hotter the focus.

Obtain a sheet of plywood and a big bag of screws which are about 1/4in longer than the thickness of the wood (if the wood is 1/2in thick, buy screws that are 3/4in. or slightly longer.) I used 6-32 machine screws, but most any screw will probably work. If your mirrors are larger than 1 in., use longer screws. If your furnace is going to be large, use thicker plywood to prevent warping. Lay out and drill the holes as shown, choosing a drill bit which is only slightly smaller than the screw diameter. The screws should turn easily with a screw driver. If your furnace is going to be large, consider making four separate regions where the mirrors in each region tilt towards the center. If not done this way, then the toothpick spacer mentioned below might not make the glue-globule tall enough, and the aim of some mirrors might be unable to hit the focus. (Or, just start aligning your array using a focus that is appropriately off-center!)

To make "hinges", cut a number of round wooden toothpicks into 1/8in segments, place a small dollop of silicone sealant at the corner position of a mirror, lay the toothpick in the silicone as a spacer, then lay down the mirror on the correct spot on the wood. The silicone lightly attaches the mirror to the wood, while the toothpick tilts the mirror and gives it a greater adjustment range. The spacer also keeps the mirror from smashing the silicone into a too-thin layer. Carefully perform this operation for all your mirrors. The toothpick tilts the mirror one way, and when you later add the screws, the screws will lift the mirror as desired.

Let the mirrors harden for 24hrs. When the silicone has cured, screw all your screws into their holes just enough to let them touch the mirrors.

Programming the array as a solar furnace

First use your screwdriver to adjust the single bare mirror ship so it is no longer tilted by the silicone glob. Bounce some sunlight from this small mirror towards your target, and move the whole device so the spot of light hits the target. Now remove the Post-it(tm) note from one other mirror chip, and use the screwdriver to adjust this other mirror so the spots of sunlight from the two mirrors combine together. Cover this newly-adjusted mirror, and uncover the next one. Repeat the adjustment process, then cover it and go to the next. Do not of course change the setting of your central "reference" mirror. When each mirror has been adjusted to combine with the "reference" mirror, peel all the paper from the mirrors and see what you've accomplished. All the bright spots should now shine on the same place. Tweak any stragglers to put them in line. If you wish, go through and glue down each mirror permanently, then romove all the screws.

A 6X6 array is pretty safe for experimenting. It won't set anything on fire, but in the summer sun it will heat a black garbage bag almost to the melting point. Once you have the whole process learned, try making a 16 X 16 array (256 mirror chips), or even larger. The above process lets you slowly "coat" any flat wooden surface with solar-furnace arrays. With thoughtful planning you could even cover a non-flat surface with a solar furnace array. If you had enough time, you could build one of ANY size and temperature. ***WARNING*** if you build a big one, keep it covered when not in use. If you leave it around the house, the moving sun might unexpectedly illuminate it and start a fire!

WOODBURNER

MIRROR SIZE AND LONG FOCAL LENGTH

MIRROR CHIP	MAX F.L.	BRIGHTNESS
1 in.	9 ft.	576
2 in.	19 ft.	144
3 in.	28 ft.	64
4 in.	38 ft.	36

MIRROR ART

DeathMeK@aol.com says to use old CDROMS (or free ones from junkmail) as zero-cost mirrors. Unfortunately the silicone glue used as a "hinge" just makes the thin mirrors bend, so you'll have to attach them some other way.

LINKS

• Mirror-array Links Red Rock Energy
• Giant Fresnel Lens random destructive acts
• Curved-mirror sculpture could fry pigeons
• ALT.ENERGY.SOLAR
• ALT.SOLAR.THERMAL
• Heliostats

Date: Sat, 27 Nov 1999 12:31:50 -0700
From: rwduncan 
To: billb@eskimo.com
Subject: Solar Furnace

Hello Bill,

My name is Robert Duncan and I live in the Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan
area. While searching for solar energy-related subjects, I found your
website through Infoseek. After reading your 1996 article on the
Infinitely Large Solar Furnace, I became interested in your technique and
constructed my own. The finished product is a 48 inch by 48 inch solar
furnace with 1440 mirrors. While this is hardly infinite, I was able to
transform an aluminum beverage can into smoke. 

The materials and method of construction differed only slightly from the
information posted on your website. I used drywall screws instead of
machine screws because they were cheap. I pre-adjusted all the drywall
screws for a thirty inch focal length prior to gluing the mirrors in
place. I also omitted the toothpick spacers since my final adjusments
would be very small. The programming was done by placing an unfrosted
lightbulb at the focal point, allowing each mirror to reflect the light
onto a grid pattern drawn on a piece of plywood placed along the focal
plane. Each mirror was adjusted until its reflection was aligned with it's
corresponding grid sqaure on the focal plane. 

The result was approximately 1000 watts of solar influx concentrated on an
area the size of a silver dollar. Wood ignited with an audible "pop" the
instant it entered the focal point. Toast burns instantly. Aluminum melts
after 15 seconds. Half inch copper tubing deforms under it's own weight
after 20 seconds. Steel glows red in about the same time. The temptation
for onlookers to stick thier hand in front of the furnace is strong, so I
keep a cardboard box handy to demostrate what will happen to them if they
try. 

I appreciate the information and I wanted to pass along this success
story. All this was accomplished with less than a $100 investment in
materials. My next step is to build a heliostat and attenuator to create
an apparatus similar to the ones at the National Solar Thermal Test
facility in New Mexico. 

Thanks again,
Robert Duncan
rwduncan@gateway.net