Download - Maglev: Can trains defy physics?
CAN TRAINS
DEFY PHYSICS?
CAN TRAINS
DEFY PHYSICS?
Can a train stick to a track yet, somehow, fly above it? Can a train go slower
than an aircraft yet, somehow, get you to your destination faster? Are the
laws of physics really just general guidelines? And can we beat them? Let’s
start by answering a question…
ARE PLANES FASTER
FOR LONG DISTANCE?
say, Mumbai-Jaipur (1,182km) or Mumbai-Delhi (1,449km)
ARE PLANES FASTER
FOR LONG DISTANCE?
say, Mumbai-Jaipur (1,182km) or Mumbai-Delhi (1,449km)
A Mumbai-Delhi train generally takes 2 hours in flight. Add to that the 1-hr
early reporting time and time spent in related activities. It works out to more
than three hours. How about a train that can get you there in lesser time?
What would such a train look like? Here’s a hint…
NO
We have dreamed of technology like a hoverboard. But we don’t have it so far.
Image (Hoverboard): http://www.wired.com/images_blogs/gadgetlab/Hoverboard%201.png
NONO
Nor do we have the flying car, oft cited in science fiction books and movies.
Image (hover car): http://somekillerstories.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/audi-calamaro-concept-flying-car-2.jpg?9d7bd4
Forget boards and cars… let’s make trains fly.
- Prof. Eric LaithwaiteLate 1940s(Not a real quotation)
Yet one morning a person woke up, and probably said:
NONO YES!
And today, we already have such trains. Hover trains? A cross between a train and a plane!
Image (flying train): http://blog.gamesdaypodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/ss_1ea1e08f369544ea58c763d4f3d0a0485037ee8c.jpg
SO HOW DOES A
TRAIN DEFY PHYSICS?
STEP 1
DUMP CONVENTIONAL
WISDOM
Forget everything you
know about a train. How it
works, what components it
is supposed to have,
everything.
Image: http://i.bnet.com/blogs/central-japan-railway-yamanashi-maglev-test-track.jpg
STEP 2
DUMP THE WHEELS
STEP 2
DUMP THE WHEELS
In the place of wheels we
use powerful electro-
magnets that can make the
train literally float in thin
air. They can do this in
three ways. Of these, the
second in the picture is the
most common.
Image: http://ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu/211_fall2002.web.dir/Adam_Caswell/mag%20lev%20diagram.gif
STEP 3
DUMP THE ENGINE
STEP 3
DUMP THE ENGINE
Such a train doesn’t need a
conventional engine. The
propulsion system is in the
tracks. The tracks feature a
series of magnets whose
polarity changes rapidly.
Some magnets on the train
repel those on the track
while some attract, pulling
the train forward.
Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Maglev_Propulsion.svg
SUCH A TRAIN IS CALLED
MAGLEV.
SO DOES A PHYSICS DEFYING
TRAIN HAVE ADVANTAGES?
SO DOES A PHYSICS DEFYING
TRAIN HAVE ADVANTAGES?
answer: it does.
1. SPEED
Fastest car: 429 km/h (Bugatti Veyron Super Sport)Fastest wheeled train: 574 km/h (V150, France)Maglev: 581 km/h (MLX01, Japan)Boeing 787: 950 km/h
But the real kicker is – while the V150 required a total track length of 149.7 km to complete its record setting run, the Maglev train did it in 18.4 km.
2. EFFICIENCY
Cost of running a:Car: 59.6 cents/miAirplane: 13 cents/miMaglev: 4 cents/mi
Maglev is 200% more efficient than airplanes!
Sources: http://newsroom.aaa.com/2012/04/cost-of-owning-and-operating-vehicle-in-u-s-increased-1-9-percent-according-to-aaa%E2%80%99s-2012-%E2%80%98your-driving-costs%E2%80%99-study/http://www.maglev2000.com/works/how-08.html#Question1
3. NOISE
23% less noise than HSR at the same speed!
Source: http://www.seas.upenn.edu/~vuchic/maglev-debate.pdf
4. LOW MAINTENANCE
5. MORE COMFORTABLE
6. ALL WEATHER
7. STEEPER CLIMBS
BUT THERE ARE, OF
COURSE, DOWNSIDES
1. COST OF
CONSTRUCTION
Airplane: $0/kmHSR: $12.9mn/kmMaglev: $43.6mn/km
Maglev costs 3.38x HSR cost
2. PSYCHOACOUSTIC
NATURE OF NOISE
3. LACK OF BACKWARD
COMPATIBILITY
4. FEAR OF RADIATION
IMPLEMENTATIONS
OF MAGLEV
MAGLEV
currently runs in
• Japan
• China
• South Korea
is being considered in
• USA• Australia• Malaysia• UK• Iran• Venezuela• India
MAYBE SOMEDAY INDIA
WILL DEFY PHYSICS
