ELECTRICITY

Producing Electricity from the Waste Heat of Underground Trains

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: Introduction3

Background of the study3

Problem Statement4

Purpose of the study5

Rationale of the study5

Significance of the study5

Chapter 2: Literature Review7

Research Design11

Literature Search11

Reliability and Validity12

Ethical concerns13

Proposed Time Line14

Proposed Budget15

References16

Chapter 1: Introduction

Background of the study

The most energy-efficient motorized land transportation system known to man is the operation of trains on a railroad. While trains are less significant today than in the past, in the UK they still haul more ton-miles of freight than trucks do and hold great potential for the future. (Brown, 2010: 75-84) A train consists of a series of railroad cars with steel wheels running along the steel rails of a railroad track. The power to move a train usually comes from one or more locomotives at the head of the train pulling the cars behind it. Locomotives in the UK are usually powered by diesel engines but elsewhere (especially in Europe) many locomotives are electric and obtain electric power from an overhead wire strung above the track. (Martini, 2009: 154-159) The railroad was invented because it could save energy at a time when energy costs were high. Before the invention of the steam railroad, animal power was used to pull carts along dirt roads and this animal power was quite expensive. Long ago it was found that much less energy (and fewer animals) were required to pull a cart if the wheels of the cart were run along wood boards instead of on a dirt (or rough rock) surface. It takes energy to move a train and this energy is supplied by motors. The motors that directly drive the wheels of any locomotive are almost always electric traction motors. In some passenger trains, the electric motors are underneath the cars in which passengers ride. For an electric train, the electricity comes from an overhead wire above the track or from a third rail which conducts electricity. (Da Rosa, 2011: 131-137)

Problem Statement

Vehicles without regenerative braking are throwing away a lot of energy every time they brake (movement is converted into heat via friction on the brake pads). Hybrid and electric car address that problem by capturing as much of that energy as possible and converting it into electricity, and the same might be about to happen to subway trains with the added twist that it would be tied to the (smart) power grid. The beauty of regen braking with trains is that you don't necessarily have to store the power onboard, which means that one donot have to carry the weight of a battery pack around: A massive battery installed at one of the authority's substations will store electricity generated by the braking systems on trains (as the trains slow down the wheels drive generators). The battery will help trains accelerate, cutting power consumption, and will also provide extra power that can be sold back to the regional power grid. The pilot project, which involves one of 38 substations in the transit system, is expected to bring in £322, 496 a ...