Freight truck vehicle miles traveled and energy consumption are projected to grow faster than any other mode
A high weight, heavy-duty truck may have nearly 25 times more kinetic energy than a typical car traveling at the same speed. The translational kinetic energy of a moving vehicle is proportional to its mass and to the square of its speed.
New Energy’s MotionPower™ – Heavy technology is designed to capture kinetic energy from long-haul trucks, buses, and heavy vehicles during vehicle deceleration and convert this mechanical energy to valuable electrical energy.
MotionPower™-Heavy systems may be installed in high-traffic areas that require vehicle deceleration, such as:
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MotionPower™-Heavy: Commercial Deployment
New Energy’s MotionPower™-Heavy is a “peristaltic” energy harvester system. The basic premise of the peristaltic harvester is to have passing vehicles drive along a contiguous deformable roadway surface. The surface compresses a fluidizing system that interacts with mechanical fixtures to product electrical energy.
Features of the MotionPower™-Heavy system:
- Produces high mechanical to electrical energy transfer from heavy vehicles;
- Addresses operator and vehicle safety, comfort, and cargo stability;
- Optimized performance for a range of heavy, large, vehicles traveling at variable speeds;
- Flexibility of installation for both above- and at-grade (i.e., installation level with the surface) road applications;
- Scalable devices that can be lengthened or shortened to meet application specific operating requirements;
- Provides an extended interaction between device and vehicle that is more uniform. Its form also presents a continuous, inlaid road surface in contrast to the bumps, plates, or gaps of discrete harvesters;
- Features a contiguous surface; and
- Unobtrusive visual impact.
New Energy’s commercial-scale MotionPower™ – Heavy prototype improves driver perception of the device. The at-grade road profile serves to reduce the need for entry and exit transition ramps. The contiguous driving surface, discussed above, makes the harvester less visually obtrusive to drivers and passersby, and could improve robustness against road debris and road maintenance operations The MotionPower™ – Heavy system has a tamper-resistant design, accompanied by a suite of sensors, that allows the system to operate and be tracked for extended periods of time without supervision, essential to conducting meaningful tests at field-installation sites.
Potential Electrical Energy Production
MotionPower™ – Heavy
Designed for big rigs (i.e. tractor trailers), buses, and large commercial vehicles, A fluid-driven system with limited moving mechanical components. For installation at sites where these commercial vehicles are traveling at below 15mph and are slowing down before coming to a stop. For example, the potential electrical energy production is:
Loaded Class 8 Truck(4)
- Undergoing the same slowing conditions (see above) to a stop, dissipates approximately 889,000 J(1).
- Assuming 10 seconds(2)
- Approximately 88,900 Watts of power (from operating to a complete stop)
POTENTIAL: 300 Class 8 Trucks traveling a approx 15 MPH comes to a stop, enough kinetic energy is dissipated to generate electricity to light up 2.4 homes(3).
(1) Brian Hendrickson, Glenn Bergevin, Veryst Engineering, LLC.; ―Design and Analysis of a Vehicle Energy Harvester with an Historical Perspective (DRAFT), Proceedings of the ASME 2010 International Mechanical Engineering Congress & Exposition IMECE2010‖; November 12-18, 2010, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Draft Publication: June 2010.
(2) Vehicle Stopping Distance And Time, Computer Support Group and Our Online Division, CSGNETWORK.COM., www.csgnetwork.com/stopdistinfo.html (July 15, 2010).
(3) Average household lighting con-sumes 940kWh per year divided by 365 = 2.57kWh/day, www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/recs/recs2001/enduse2001/enduse2001.html
(4) Class 8 truck gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) is any vehicle above 33000 pounds.
