Energy From Train Vibrations Could Power Track-side Electronic Equipment
Engineers from Stony Brook University in New York have invented a technology for harvesting energy from the vibration of railroads that can be used to help railroad companies save millions in energy costs. The Stony Brook team, led by Professor Lei Zuo and two graduate students Teng Lin and John Wang from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and Advanced Energy Research and Technology Center, developed an energy harvester that converts the irregular, oscillatory motion of train-induced rail track vibrations into regular, unidirectional motion, in the same way that an electric voltage rectifier converts AC voltage into DC.
Zuo estimates that the invention – the Mechanical Motion Rectifier (MMR) based Railroad Energy Harvester – could save more than $10 million in trackside power supply costs for railroads in New York State alone, along with a reduction of 3,000 tons per year of CO2 and a half million dollars of electricity savings.
The US has the longest rail tracks in the world, about 140,700 miles – often in remote areas. It is costly to power the track-side electrical infrastructure, such as the signal lights, cross gates, track switches and monitoring sensors. The MMR based Railroad Energy Harvester can harness 200 watts of electric energy from train-induced track deflections to power the track-side electrical devices.
The technology of the MMR based Railroad Energy Harvester has been licensed to Electric Truck/Harvest NRG.
The Stony Brook engineers were awarded “Best Application of Energy Harvesting” at the Energy Harvesting and Storage USA 2012 conference in Washington, DC, Nov. 7-8.
Related items
2 comments on “Energy From Train Vibrations Could Power Track-side Electronic Equipment”
- The Logistics, Carbon, and Business Data Book: Fall 2012 Sustainability Trends
- Guide to Energy, Carbon and Environmental Software
- Environmental Leader Technology Reviews
- ISO 50001: Frequently Asked Questions
- EL Insights: Green Plastics
- Facilities & Maintenance Management Best Practices
- Best Practice Guide to Maximize ROI of Energy Management Systems
- Be Prepared to Defend Recyclability Claims!
- The Business Case for Corporate Sustainability Tools - January 2013
- Demystifying Carbon Offsets
I guess a spring type charging system could easily charge a spring load and when stored enough energy could released the energy run a generator to produce electrical power.
The other way is to install small wind generators on each each electric traction structure to harness the wind created by the movement of the train.
Thanks,
Dhananjay Kaveeshwar.
These are all innovations in the category,PEENY WISE POUND FOOLISH! More time and Energy Spent to get less work !
Dr.A.Jagadeesh NEllore(AP),India
E-mail: anumakonda.jagadeesh@gmail.com