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1、 Hyperloop:the fifth mode of transportation Faculty of Civil and Industrial Engineering Department of Civil,Construction and Environmental Engineering Masters Degree in Transport Systems Engineering Mirhabib Alizada Matricola 1848643 Supervisor Paola Di Mascio A.Y.2020-2021 2 Contents ABSTRACT.3 INT

2、RODUCTION.5 Introduction of Hyperloop and the review of current state of the project.5 Exploration of Hyperloop Companies:.18 Analysis of technological systems.20 a.Levitation.20 b.Propulsion.25 c.Braking.29 Technology generations.33 Technology Readiness Level.34 Hyperloop infrastructure.35 Designin

3、g the tube.40 Hyperloop Linear Infrastructure and Tunneling from Hyperloop TT.41 Tube to Station Vacuum Interface from Delft Hyperloop.45 Hyperloop Stations from Hyperloop TT.47 Infrastructural Challenges.50 Safety and Politics.53 Safety.53 Politics.59 Hyperloop Freight Market.61 Possible Freight Ta

4、rget Markets.61 SUMMARY.68 CONCLUSION.69 REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY.71 3 ABSTRACT In 2013,Elon Musk proposed an idea.He would propel passengers in a pod through an evacuated tube at nearly the speed of sound,hurtling them from Los Angeles to San Francisco in 30 minutes.Its a lot quicker than the 2 hour

5、s and 40 minutes of the rival technology,a proposed high-speed train.He called this scheme the Hyperloop and said it would cost US$6 billion to build versus$60 billion for the train.And because the Hyperloops friction-free movement would save energy,operating costs would be lower,too.Brussels,Februa

6、ry 11,2020,A new milestone in hyperloop transportation was reached when European countries banded together and agreed to create a joint technical committee(JTC)called JTC 20.As part of the European Committee for Standardization(CEN)and the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization(CENE

7、LEC),the goal of this technical committee is to define,establish,and standardize the methodology and framework to regulate hyperloop travel systems and ensure interoperability and high safety standards throughout Europe.The proposal for the creation of the technical committee was a joint effort by t

8、he national standardization organizations of Spain(UNE)and the Netherlands(NEN).JTC 20 will comprise working groups focusing on various components of hyperloop systems including vehicle systems,tube infrastructure and components,overall infrastructure,and communications protocols.The consortium of h

9、yperloop companies responsible for initiating the creation of JTC 20,along with members from various national standardization organizations and experts from a variety of industries,will participate in the working groups to lend technical and geo-specific expertise.In this thesis,a research was imple

10、mented on the possible technologies for the new mode of transport.First of all,the history of the new mode of the transport were studied for deeper diving into the system idea and previous experiments failures and learning pints.Also,the current situation with the international organization working

11、on research and development of the systems were analyzed.Further,my research was carried out on the available technologies for the system and pros and cons of 4 each of them.It was also proposed a concept for safety and security measurements and the public-private partnership for the sustainability

12、of the project.The Hyperloop will integrate engineering,operations and safety concepts from aviation and highway as well as from rail.Therefore,the Hyperloop has been called a“fifth mode”of transportation,since it doesnt fit neatly into any of the existing established models,but rather it integrates

13、 design and operational concepts from a number of different existing transportation modes.Many of Hyperloops concepts are not really new,but rather integrate already proven technologies in a new way.5 INTRODUCTION Introduction of Hyperloop and the review of current state of the project There is a co

14、ntinuous interest to reduce travel times between distant human settlements while improving the overall efficiency of the transportation system.Transportation for short distances can be particularly inefficient due to additional travel time at airports or train stations.In 2013,Elon Musk triggered th

15、e attention of the engineering society by proposing the Hyperloop concept as an alternative mode of transportation,with benefits in terms of performance and comfort for traveling distances below 1500 km.The concept consists of a levitating vehicle/pod traveling at high speeds(300 ms),inside a low-pr

16、essure tube(100 Pa)that minimizes aerodynamic drag.The levitation can be achieved through an air-bearings system that generates a smooth air cushion,although different methods such as magnetic levitation or rails can be explored,depending on the application and feasibility.In case of an air-bearing

17、system,the required high-pressure air can be delivered by a compressor placed in front of the pod.Additionally,with this system,part of the flow can be compressed and bypass the throat area,which helps to delay the flow choking.Present-day transportation can be grouped into 4 large categories:cars b

18、oats trains airplanes Lets first have a look at cars.We see that many people use the car because it is the most flexible mode of transportation.You get in right after you leave your house and you then travel by car all the way to your destination.The car expels a quite large amount of polluting gase

19、s,especially when not occupied to full capacity.6 We can also consider boats.These largely have two use cases.First,we have luxury transportation,such as yachts and cruise ships.These have quite high emissions and are of course mostly not made for speed,as people spend their time relaxing instead of

20、 only traveling to reach their destination.Secondly,cargo ships can be considered,which are of course polluting and very slow,but also carry a large number of products,thus somewhat compensating their high emissions for nowadays.Third,think of trains.These travel quite fast and relatively efficientl

21、y,also allowing for more sustainable energy sources,since they often use electricity nowadays.There are however also still quite some trains running on diesel,which are more polluting.Also,the infrastructure maintenance of this category cost quite much.Finally,well have a look at airplanes.These are

22、 the fastest mode of transportation available to us,but also one of the most polluting.This type of transportation especially,has very high emissions.When looking at our options for transportation,it is interesting to rank them according to a graph with speed on one axis and efficiency on the other.

23、Efficiency here means how much energy per passenger per km is required(kJ/passenger/km).Figure 1:Speed-Efficiency graph(own elaboration)7 As you can see,there is one quadrant where a transportation method is missing,and that is when something is both fast and efficient.Of course,companies are trying

24、 to make their planes more efficient or their trains faster,but still after years of development we have not found the solution for existing transportation.This is where the Hyperloop fits in according to project.The Hyperloop vehicle is a conceptual mode of transportation in which a pod travels at

25、high speed through a low-pressure tunnel to minimize the aerodynamic drag.Its believed that the concept first was introduced in August 2013,by SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk as a published a white paper.It was detailing a Hyperloop,a super-fast passenger train that would overcome the usual friction

26、by levitating above its track on air-bearings in an enclosed low-pressure tube.However,he is not the first person to think of this concept.George Medhurst was an inventor who had already proposed a method of goods-transportation through iron pipes using air pressure.He came up with the idea of trans

27、porting passengers through the tubes in 1812,more than 200 years ago!Figure 2:The Brunel Jolly-sailor railwor station and pumping station,1845(Wikipedia Commons)8 The development of the so called“atmospheric railways”began in the mid-1850s.Several pneumatic railways were built in Europe,one example

28、is The London Pneumatic Despatch system,which was opened by a festive ceremony in which the Duke of Buckingham traveled through the pneumatic system in 1865.Figure 3:Alfred Ely Beachs experimental pneumatic elevated subway on display in 1867(Wikipedia Commons)So how were these atmospheric railways d

29、esigned?It is quite simple.They made tubes(in which air was present)through which carriages could move on a track.To generate movement,the tubes were equipped with a large fan that propelled the carriage by blowing air into the tube.On the return trip the fan was reversed,resulting in movement in th

30、e other direction.An example is the idea of using low-pressure or vacuum tubes as part of a transport system has a long heritage too.For example,Crystal Palace Atmospheric Railway in South London,built in the mid-1860s.The Crystal Palace pneumatic railway used air pressure to push a wagon uphill(and

31、 a vacuum to drag it back down)way back in Victorian south London in 1864.Similar systems using pneumatic tubes to send mail and packages between buildings have been in use since the late nineteenth century and can still be seen in supermarkets and banks to move money around today.9 Figure 4:Crystal

32、 Palace pneumatic railway(Wikipedia Commons)In the United States,similar developments were going on;Alfred Ely Beach designed the Beach Pneumatic Transit,which operated in New York from 1870 to 1873.This system was inspired upon the already existing pneumatic mail delivery system.Beach was not suppo

33、rted by local politics for the project of building a Pneumatic Transit system for passengers.To get the support,he claimed that he was working on a pneumatic mail delivery system(while instead building a bigger system to transport human passengers).It became a public attraction,for 25 cents people c

34、ould ride the one-stop one-car shuttle.Unfortunately,his investors could no longer keep up the operation after the stock market crash in 1873.10 Figure 5:Wikipedia Beach Pneumatic Transit(Museum of the City of New York)In the early 1900s,the design shifted from a propulsion based on atmospheric pres

35、sure differences,as in the atmospheric railways,to vacuum-sealed tunnels.Robert Goddard,an American rocket engineer,designed a magnetically floating train inside a vacuum tube in 1910.The design looks a lot like the hyperloop concept that was shared by Elon Musk.Besides Goddards concept,an extensive

36、 study was performed by the US government into vactrain,the combination of magnetic levitation and near-vacuum tubes.The concept of magnetic levitation was very promising,however,this project was too expensive to continue.11 Figure 6:Robert Goddards vactrain concept(Wikipedia Commons)Magnetic Levita

37、tion,or Maglev,became a hot topic in the late 1900s.The Government Maglev System Assessment Team assessed the viability of several maglev system concepts with innovative outcomes in the fields of guideways,superconductivity and motors.Several maglev concepts have proved to be functioning,for instanc

38、e the Transrapid(Germany),M-Bahn(Germany),HSST(Japan)and SCMaglev(Japan).Moreover,China has unveiled a prototype maglev that is supposed to reach 600 km/h.12 Figure 7:The first maglev prototype rolled off the production lines(Getty Images)The Maglev business is not skyrocketing,there are only a few

39、operational Maglevs.One of the reasons might be that the investment costs are simply too high.Besides that,as is often the case with new modes of transportation,safety concerns were high,and some systems werent reliable enough.The crash of the Transrapid in Emsland,Germany in 2006 that resulted in 2

40、3 deceased probably also played its role in the popularity of Maglev.Also MIT researchers designed a vacuum-tube train system with a magnetic track for a 45-minute trip from New York City to Boston in the early 1990s that looked very similar to the hyperloop concept of today.13 Figure 8:Researchers

41、at MIT designed a vacuum-tube train system(MIT)Some startups began designing magnetically levitating carriages in pneumatic tubes,such as ET3(USA).In the early 2000s,transportation startup ET3 designed a pneumatic-and-maglev train.The design features car-sized pods that would travel in elevated tube

42、s.The ET3 Global Alliance(ET3)was founded by Daryl Oster in 1997 with the goal of establishing a global transportation system using passenger capsules in frictionless maglev full-vacuum tubes.14 Figure 9:Pneumatic-and-maglev train designed by ET3(ET3)Elon Musk first publicly mentioned the Hyperloop

43、in 2012.His initial concept incorporated reduced-pressure tubes in which pressurized capsules ride on air bearings driven by linear induction motors and axial compressors.From late 2012 until August 2013,a group of engineers from both Tesla and SpaceX worked on the conceptual modeling of Hyperloop.F

44、inally,in 2013,Elon Musk published his proposal for the Hyperloop Alpha concept.The envisioned preliminary design was published in a 57-page white paper.From that moment onwards,lots of companies have embraced the challenge of developing a hyperloop.For example,ET3 founder,Daryl Oster,and his team m

45、et with Elon Musk on 18 September 2013,to discuss the technology,resulting in Musk promising an investment in a 3-mile(5 km)prototype of ET3s proposed design(source).15 Figure 10:Hyperloop Alpha(Hyperloop Alpha White Paper)Back in August of 2013,Musk declined to start a Hyperloop company himself.Ins

46、tead,he made his work open to any startups that might want to tackle the challenge and started a contest series for engineering students to run their own test pods.Two startups have since dominated the scene:Virgin Hyperloop One(USA),which enjoyed a significant investment from Richard Bransons Virgi

47、n Group,and Hyperloop Transportation Technologies(HyperloopTT)(USA),which began as a collaboration among 800 engineers,designers,and other interested parties.Hyperloop is still in its beginning phase,but there is progress:technology is being developed,feasibility studies are being carried out and th

48、e whole world is ready to make the next step towards a future with sustainable high-speed transportation.In 2017,HyperloopTT opened the 3,000 square meter European Hyperloop Research and Development Center in Toulouse,France.In 2019,with tubes assembled and vacuum pumps installed,HyperloopTT complet

49、ed the worlds first full-scale system.HyperloopTT is currently running full-scale tests to establish safety and insurance certifications,as well as optimizing and fully integrating all of the technical 16 components of the system.The Toulouse R&D center also serves as HyperloopTTs staging ground for

50、 global commercial projects.HyperloopTT also has several agreements on the books for potential Hyperloops in the future.For example in February 2018,HyperloopTT signed an agreement with the Infrastructure Ministry of Ukraine to begin the process for a planned commercial Hyperloop system as an initia

51、tive aligned with the nations National Transport Strategy of Ukraine 2030.In July 2018,the company signed an agreement to develop a Hyperloop in Chinas Guizhou Province.In April 2018,the agreement was with the UAE for the worlds first commercial Hyperloop system of 10km in critical development area

52、between Abu Dhabi and Dubai,which will allow HyperloopTT to start construction of a Hyperloop system as well as HyperloopTTs XO Square Innovation Center,and a Hyperloop Visitor Center.In February 2018,HyperloopTT began a feasibility study for a Hyperloop between Cleveland and Chicago.Even though the

53、re are a lot of investments into the project and researches on the one are happening along with test failure and pessimistic forecasts,in this paper I am going to analyze mostly the engineering side of project alongside with infrastructure aspects and social-economical acceptance.Below there are two

54、 graphs that rank our current modes of transportation.The first one shows you the efficiency in terms of energy consumption per kilometer per passenger(Source:TU Delft).It can be seen that airplanes and cars are the most polluting.Maglev trains and conventional trains score quite good,and the Hyperl

55、oop will be in the same range.However,if we compare it to the speeds,as seen in the second graph(Source:TU Delft),the Hyperloop is by far the fastest mode.Especially the combination of low energy consumption and high speeds make the Hyperloop a good alternative to the existing modes!17 Figure 11:Ene

56、rgy Consumption of Modes(TU Delft)Figure 12:Speed(TU Delft)In both graphs Hyperloop data was assumed,but this assumption turned to the goal for the further development of the project.18 Exploration of Hyperloop Companies:Since the 2013 release of Elon Musks Alpha paper and the subsequent SpaceX-led

57、pod design competition,a number of private and public entities have been formed with the aim of establishing a commercially viable Hyperloop design by developing the tube,power supply,vacuum system and surrounding infrastructure required for the operation and testing of a pod/capsule within the tube

58、 environment Virgin Hyperloop One-This company was established in 2014 and is now one of the biggest companies working on Hyperloop.They are located in the United States.As the name already indicates,it is one of Richard Bransons Virgin companies.They have already created a Hyperloop pod and tested

59、this prototype at Devloop,their testing site in Neveda.The XP-1 already reached a top speed of about 310 km/h.As of today(begin 2020),Virgin Hyperloop One has performed many feasibility studies in which they investigated places that are suitable for a first connection.Some design parameters are the

60、investment cost,distance between the cities,travel time and environmental factors and challenges in between the cities(e.g.a large water in between cities results in a huge additional cost to build around,over or underneath the water).Hyperloop Transportation Technologies(HyperloopTT)-This hyperloop

61、 company originates from a crowdfunding project and is a crowd collaboration mix(team collaboration+crowdfunding).They are developing a full-scale test track in Toulouse,France where they will perform Research and Development.The initial length of the test track is 320 meter.The current states of th

62、is test facility is kept confidential yet.Hyperloop Transportation Technologies has performed several feasibility studies in the United States and China.The plan is to construct a 10 km track in Tongren,Guizhou,China.Hardt-This is a Dutch hyperloop company,located in Delft.Hardt is the first company

63、 that has developed electromagnetic switches and proved their concept on low speeds.In December 2019,they announced the development of the European Hyperloop Center,a test centre in Groningen,The Netherlands.The finish of the construction of the 3-kilometer test track is scheduled to be in 2022.19 T

64、ranspod-Transpod has their HQ located in Toronto,Canada.They have shared visions for routes in Canada.Besides that,they unveiled designs of the Transpod hyperloop station.A remarkable feature about the design featured in their videos is a compressor on the front of the pod.Besides those companies,th

65、ere are some smaller companies and student teams whore also working on the development of hyperloop.In overview,table below summarizes the leading Hyperloop developers.Hyperloop Developer HQ No.of employees Testing Facilities Equity Funding VHO USA 300 Completed:500m,USA Developing:12KM,India$500M H

66、TT USA 100 Developing:320m,France$100M TransPod Canada 50 Developing:3km*,France$100M Hardt Netherlands 50 Completed:30m,Netherlands Developing:3km,Netherlands$100M Zeleros Spain 50 Developing:2km*,Spain$10M Hyper Poland Poland 50 Completed:30m*,Poland Developing:500m*,Poland$10M KRRI South Korea 50

67、 Developing:7km*,South Korea N/A SwissPod Technologies Switzerland 10 Developing:40m*,Switzerland$1M*Scaled-down vehicle and tube/track Table 1:Summary of Leading Hyperloop Companies(Hyperloop feasibility prelim study)There is also Boring Company,which is not Hyperloop company,but directly affecting

68、 the technology maturing.The Boring Company is founded by Elon Musk himself.The main goal is to increase the speed of Tunnel Boring Machines.Since a significant part of the hyperloop infrastructure will be built underground,increasing the speed of these Tunnel Boring Machines is paramount.They also

69、help to organise the yearly SpaceX Hyperloop Pod Competition.20 Analysis of technological systems Hyperloop is a tube-based inter and intra-city transportation system that travels at airplane speeds safely,efficiently,and sustainably.Passengers and cargo capsules will levitate inside a tube.By creat

70、ing a low-pressure environment inside the tube using vacuum technology,aerodynamic drag is considerably reduced allowing for not only faster speeds,but a safer,cleaner and quieter form of energy-efficient transport.In this chapter the levitation,propulsion and braking technics considered by TU Delft

71、 for Hyerloop will be described as well as Technology Readiness Level(TRL)framework will be introduced.a.Levitation Lets have a quick look at wheels,for getting some background.As you know,wheels require bearings.These bearings need to be able to handle high rotational speeds,and the load forces of

72、carrying the pods.These bearings are also not frictionless,adding onto the rolling friction that the wheels already have.To reduce this rolling friction,wheels should generally be made of a very hard material.For example,steel train wheels are one of the best wheels in terms of low rolling friction.

73、Unlike levitation,wheels are limited in speed because of excessive heating and centrifugal force.The current record is 574.8km/h by the French TGV.However,such speeds required extremely accurate track alignment and modified wheels that cause huge wear and tear.Therefore,these speeds were never used

74、in regular train services.In many other vehicles,like the Bugatti Chiron,wheels turn out to be the limiting factor in terms of top speed.The Chirons top speed is electronically limited to 420 km/h(261 mph),or 375380 km/h(233236 mph)without the specific key,for safety reasons,mainly arising from the

75、tyres as the manufacturer concluded that no tyre currently manufactured would be able to handle the stress at the top speed the Chiron is capable of achieving.21 Levitation is an excellent alternate method of moving at high speeds.There are three big advantages compared to conventional wheel/rail-in

76、frastructure important for us to consider:Firstly,due to the vehicle not making physical contact with the infrastructure they run on,there is virtually no friction which causes wear and tear on the tracks.This reduces the maintenance costs by improving the longevity of the track.Secondly,maintaining

77、 ride comfort is much easier to do with levitation.This is because an air gap between vehicle and track is an excellent absorbing interface for small track imperfections,greatly reducing vibrations during travel,and decreasing infrastructure construction costs.Lastly,by using levitation,friction cau

78、sed by wheels is eliminated.This rolling friction is especially large at high speeds.Because of the reduced friction,levitation will allow for a reduction in energy needed to operate,making it an environmentally friendly option.The cost of the infrastructure for a levitation transport system has als

79、o been coming down over the past years due to technological improvements.One can now expect to pay a comparable price for high speed wheel/rail or levitation infrastructure.However,the fact that a levitation transport system cannot operate on already existing wheel/rail-infrastructure is a major set

80、back.The construction of a whole new infrastructure for only a levitation transport system is expensive and is not very promising yet,especially for countries that already have high speed wheel/rail-infrastructure.Lets have a look at different methods of levitation.Levitation always requires some fo

81、rce at a distance acting between vehicle and rail.Magnetic levitation is a well-established option and is already being commercially used at high speeds in China and Japan.Another option that has also been proposed by Elon Musk for the hyperloop is the use of air bearings.Lets first have a look at M

82、agnetic levitation.Magnetic levitation comes in two forms.The first being electrodynamic suspension,or EDS.EDS is a passively stable method that does not need active tweaking of the magnetic fields.This method relies on small electrical currents that are induced in a conducting material when a magne

83、tic 22 field is moving relatively to the conductor.These small electrical currents,known as eddy currents,produce a magnetic field that opposes the change in magnetic field caused by the moving magnets.Resulting from this is a magnetic levitation force.This levitation force is dependent on the relat

84、ive velocity between magnet and conductor.Increasing when the relative velocity increases and vice versa.This means that the force would be too weak for pods at low speeds and completely disappear for stationary pods.Thus,the pods require additional landing wheels comparable to those of an airplane.

85、When designing an EDS system,the magnets can be either attached to the track or to the pod,this does not matter for the effect to work.But when being mounted on the track,many more magnets are needed,since they need to be present along the full length of the track.Figure 13:ADS Magnetic Levitation d

86、rawing scheme(own elaboration)Additionally,the magnets can either be permanent magnets or electromagnets,the latter of course require an electrical power supply.The advantage of using electromagnets is that they can be cooled to very low temperatures to become superconducting.Superconductivity allow

87、s these electromagnets to create an exceptionally strong levitation force which could be a requirement with heavy pods that would be required for transporting a large amount of people.In addition to a repulsive force,a drag force opposing the direction of movement is also present.This means an EDS s

88、ystem will always have some magnetic drag.However,this drag becomes relatively smaller for higher speeds,which is disadvantage of the system.23 The other form of magnetic levitation is the electromagnetic suspension,or EMS system,which works in a very different way.This method is active,meaning that

89、 the strength of the magnetic field of the electromagnet is being controlled via a feedback loop.Unlike EDS,here the electromagnet is placed close to a ferromagnetic material and will exert a strong attractive force.This force is dependent on the distance to the object,becoming much stronger when th

90、e magnet is closer and weaker when further away.Via a feedback loop,the magnetic field strength of the magnet will be lowered whenever the magnet comes close and vice versa.EMS does not need the same“landing wheels”that EDS needs because the levitation force is not dependent of movement speed,but at

91、 the same time needs an active control system that could be a point of failure.Figure 14:EMS Magnetic Levitation drawing scheme(own elaboration)EMS is currently operational in the Transrapid,Shanghai.It functions as a line connecting Shanghai Airport and Longyang Road Stationwith a top speed of 431

92、km/h.Another example of an operating EMS system is the Linimo,Japan.This is a low speed train that has an operating speed of 100 km/h.The operations have not always gone smoothly.Two accidents with the Transrapid Maglev occurred in 2006,one of which resulted in 23 fatalities.The Technology readiness

93、 level(TRL)depends on the guideway,for the top-EMS the TRL is 5 or 6.For the bottom-EMS the TRL is 9,because it is already implemented into the Shanghai Transrapid.24 Figure 15:Shanghai airport Transrapid()Technology readiness levels(TRLs)are a method for estimating the maturity of technologies duri

94、ng the acquisition phase of a program,developed at NASA during the 1970s.The use of TRLs enables consistent,uniform discussions of technical maturity across different types of technology.A technologys TRL is determined during a Technology Readiness Assessment(TRA)that examines program concepts,techn

95、ology requirements,and demonstrated technology capabilities.(Source:From NASA to EU:the evolution of the TRL scale in Public Sector Innovation).TRLs are based on a scale from 1 to 9 with 9 being the most mature technology.The US Department of Defense has used the scale for procurement since the earl

96、y 2000s.By 2008 the scale was also in use at the European Space Agency(ESA).Apart from magnetic systems,it is also possible the levitate via air bearings.Air bearings thrust air to create a thin air film between the pod and the track.The extremely low friction they have can be clearly demonstrated b

97、y an air-hockey table.The air bearings can be mounted on the vehicle or on the track,but this choice has some design implications.Mounted on the vehicle,they thrust air downwards while being mounted on the track,they thrust air upwards similar to the air hockey table.Just like with the magnets,havin

98、g them installed on the track would mean there needs to be a lot of them since they are required along the whole track.Conversely,in Elon Musks Hyperloop alpha paper he featured a hyperloop design with air bearings mounted on the vehicle.This pod uses a compressor to suck in the high pressure front

99、that the Pod encounters during high speed travel.This air is then redirected downwards through the air bearings for levitation.Air bearings always 25 require some sort air flow control through an air compression system,be it an air compressor,or having valves release compressed air stored on board.F

100、igure 16:Schematic of air bearing skis that support the capsule(Engineering New Record)b.Propulsion Firstly,to come up with a logical method of propulsion it is important for us to consider the environment that the pod is in.Due to the soft vacuum in the tunnel,using conventional combustion engines

101、becomes problematic.Since oxygen is not readily available to allow for combustion to happen.If we were to place a traditional car in a hyperloop tunnel,it wouldnt move a centimeter.Luckily for us,there are many alternatives.The first is the rotational electric motor.These motors are very efficient r

102、unning up to 85%efficiency,converting electrical energy to useful work.It consists of two parts:the rotor on the inside and the stator on the outside.To run the motor,an electric current is applied to the coils of the stator.This current is changing over time,shaped like a sine wave.26 Figure 17:DC

103、Motors(Electronics Tutorials)The coils are designed to create a magnetic field after each other.And since they are placed in a circle,together they create a rotating magnetic field.The rotational speed of this field can easily be changed by controlling the frequency of the electricity.Meanwhile,the

104、rotor is situated inside of the stator and is exposed to this rotating magnetic field.The rotating magnetic field induces a current in the rotor.The action of the current in the rotor and the moving magnetic field causes a net force on the rotor along the direction of rotation.The magnetic field is

105、now applying a torque on the rotor,causing it to spin.For electric vehicles,the rotor is connected to the axle,which is connected to the wheels.Then the wheels start turning,causing the vehicle to accelerate.The second type of electric motor is the linear induction motor or LIM for short.The LIM is

106、essentially a rolled-out version of the Rotational motor.Instead of the magnetic fields creating a torque,the magnetic fields now apply a linear force that can accelerate and decelerate the vehicle.This means that the LIM is a contactless motor,unlike the rotational electromotor,which still relies w

107、heels for force transmission to the track.27 Figure 18:DC Motors(Force Engineering)When designing LIM,the“rotor”can be on the vehicle while the“stator”is part of the track,but it can also be the other way around.The stator needs electric energy to create the magnetic fields.So,if the stator is part

108、of the tracks,weight can be saved on the pods as the electric energy does not need to be stored on board.This reduces energy used to accelerate the Pods and weight of the Pods.Another type of LIM called the double-sided LIM is also an option.A nice advantage of the double-sided LIM is that the rotor

109、 is automatically centered by the magnetic fields coming from both sides.This means that the rotor is stable and wont accidentally hit the stator and destroy the double-sided LIM.Since the LIM and double-sided LIM are of finite length,it suffers of magnetic end effects at both ends.Since the field l

110、ines of the magnetic field must be closed,they curl back around at the ends.This means the fields at the ends of the LIM are oriented unfavorably,reducing the useful magnetic force there.This makes them less energy efficient than the rotary electric motor,which does not have ends being shaped like a

111、 circle.An alternative to these electric motors is a cold gas thruster.28 Figure 19:Cold gas thruster(Wikipedia Commons)The cold gas thruster does not get its thrust force from electric energy like the rotational motor and the LIM.Instead,it uses the potential energy of inert gas being stored at a v

112、ery high pressure.This gas naturally wants to escape,and by directing it backwards the pod is propelled forwards(Like an air balloon).This can be explained by Newtons 3rd law:for every action,there is an equal and opposite reaction.The thrust is controlled using a valve and propelling nozzle.The thr

113、uster is simple in design,yet effective.A downside of the cold gas thruster is that all this gas must be stored on the pod and it has to be refilled by either replacing or refilling the tanks.Work also has to be done by vacuum pumps in the tunnel,to make up for the gas released when pods are travell

114、ing through it.In this system,the gas is not heated,like in a rocket engine.This is what the cold gas thruster owes its name to.Rocket engines could in principle also work in a vacuum tunnel,just like they do in outer space.However,they output a lot of heat which could damage the tunnel.As well as b

115、eing complex and very expensive.I should also consider the Linear Synchronous Motor.The Linear Synchronous Motor is a propulsion mechanism in which the mechanical motion is synchronous with the magnetic field.The thrust force is not created by an induced magnetic field,but the magnetic field is crea

116、ted by windings.For this,it is necessary to know exactly at what position the vehicle is and at what speed it is travelling.29 This method of propulsion is used by most of todays operating Maglev Trains such as the German Transrapid(TR07)and the Japanese SCMaglev.The latter holds the current speed r

117、ecord of 603 km/h.Figure 20:Linear Synchronous Motor(Physics Stack Exchange)c.Braking Besides getting our Pod up to speed we also need to have a braking system to stop at our destination or during transit in case of an emergency.It is of utmost importance that these brakes will be reliable and safe.

118、If the propulsion malfunctions,the Pod will stay in place.If the brakes malfunction,we have a more serious problem.Here I will discuss the most important factors that influence a design and the different ways of braking,including among others friction braking,magnetic braking,but also more unconvent

119、ional ones.If we look at the core function of the brakes,they need to slow our pod down to a standstill.30 Figure 21:Velocity-Distance graph(TU Delft)Our first constraint results from the fact that we are transporting people,which limits our braking force,expressed in g force,which means ratio betwe

120、en the force we experience and the force of gravity,which is always acting on us.Generally,we can withstand forces of around 2 or 3 g without trouble,but it would still be rather uncomfortable.Thus,we limit ourselves to a much smaller number,which should be based on other design factors,especially f

121、or the passenger experience and interior design.Our second consideration is the wear of the material,both for the track and the brakes themselves.If either material is too soft and direct contact,it will wear out fast.Especially for the track this is a concern,since you simply cannot change the trac

122、k every year or few years even.The brakes also should not wear out fast,as this imposes large costs on the operation of the vehicles.Lastly,we need to consider general safety of the system.Since we would be travelling at speeds similar to aircraft,failing brakes would result in huge damage with fata

123、l consequences even.For this reason,a failsafe and redundant mechanisms is required for our brakes.This means that also emergency braking must be well thought out,as this must occur instantaneously,instead of slowly like we can when nearing a station.31 Now we know what factors mainly influence our

124、design,it is time to start looking into our options.First,we can simply go for friction braking.This means we clamp brake pads around something to create a huge amount of friction,which dissipates our kinetic energy.We can do this either on the track or on a brake disc,which both have their own adva

125、ntages.Figure 22:Friction Brake(Machine Design)The big difference is the heat buildup,in a disc brake,you build up all the heat in the disc,while you could also distribute this over the entire brake distance on the track.This means that we can apply a larger friction force to the track before we ove

126、rheat an element.On the other hand,its easier to replace a brake disc than a track segment.32 The second method is passive magnetic braking.Here we also use the same principle as Electrodynamic Suspension,namely using Eddy Currents to generate a force from the magnetic field.By moving the magnets al

127、ong the track,a current start moving and this generates a force.However,instead of the normal force we use for levitation,we now use the drag that these magnets impose,so the force opposite to velocity vector.By bringing magnets closer to the track the drag will increase.The big advantage here is th

128、at we do not directly touch the track,and thus we will not wear it out.The disadvantage is that we will have a decreased brake performance and that the system is more expensive,as we require very strong magnets.Figure 23:Eddy current brake(Wikipedia Commons)Another magnetic braking option could be t

129、o use the Linear Induction Motor that was used for acceleration.But this time we set it to“reverse”and use it to slow down the Pod whilst also regaining part of our kinetic energy.Due to placement of the LIM its impossible to do an emergency stop in between LIMs and therefore this concept is deemed

130、less safe.As unconventional braking systems,we can look at progue parachute.These are proven to work for very high speeds,as rockets and spacecraft use these at supersonic speeds already.The big problem we would have,though,is that this principle is entirely based on air friction which would be grea

131、tly reduced in the vacuum tube.and needs to have enough space for deployment,both of which are very limited in a vacuum tube.33 Figure 24:Drogue parachute(Wikipedia Commons)Staying in the space sector,we can use cold gas thrusters,which are less harmful than usual retro-rockets and do not heat up th

132、e system,however it only allows for relatively small forces,meaning that we require a lot of time to brake and we need to refuel after every brake,even if we are emergency braking.Technology generations This concept of tube-based travel has been considered for over two centuries,but the technology h

133、as now matured so that each required Hyperloop system and subsystem is available in some form in the marketplace.Engineering work is ongoing to appropriately Hyperloop Companies conducts system engineering to integrate and optimize the existing technologies around the human passengers;focusing first

134、 on safety,comfort,and the passenger experience as the primary design criteria while using efficiency,sustainability,cost reduction,and process optimization as objectives within the integration process.Hyperloop System can be broken down into several core components as shown in.The capsule is the ve

135、hicle that carries people and goods.The capsule begins and ends each trip on wheels and levitates using passive magnetic levitation technology above a target speed.Acceleration and deceleration is provided by a linear electric motor,with redundant emergency braking systems.The capsule and propulsion

136、 and levitation system are housed in a tube,which provides a boundary for maintaining a low-pressure operating environment.Vacuum pumps and valves maintain a safe and efficient environment inside the tube.Passengers and goods are able to enter and 34 exit the system at stations and can exit the syst

137、em along the route in emergency situations.An autonomous control system monitored by trained staff oversees all operations of the Hyperloop system.Figure 25:Full-scale HyperloopTT system(HyperlooTT)Technology Readiness Level Technology Readiness Levels(TRL)are a type of measurement system used to as

138、sess the maturity level of a particular technology.Each technology project is evaluated against the parameters for each technology level and is then assigned a TRL rating based on the projects progress.There are nine technology readiness levels.TRL 1 is the lowest and TRL 9 is the highest.Hyperloop

139、companies are developing routes in various countries following reports from reputable consultancies showing the transformational benefits of the technology.These assume that Hyperloop will be operational within the next few years.35 Yet bringing a new transport system into service is a formidable ta

140、sk that requires all parts to be at technology readiness level(TRL)8,which means undergoing active commissioning.In tests in a 500m tube,the maximum Hyperloop pod speed achieved to date is 387km/h.Such research facility testing is at TRL 4.Moreover,many aspects of the system are only at the stage of

141、 establishing basic principles(TRL 1).These include vehicle suspension,air locks,vacuum-tight tube expansion joints and switches.Switches are required for proposed Hyperloop networks that need to route pods between tubes.Yet neither Musks paper nor any of the Hyperloop companies describe how their s

142、witches would work at 600km/h,the turnout speed needed to maintain the capacity of the system.Figure 26:Overview of Technology Readiness Levels(Hyperloop feasibility prelim study)Hyperloop infrastructure The Hyperloop infrastructure is a broad term:many different aspects are part of the infrastructu

143、re.Think of the tubes and its pillars,tunnels and stations.But besides,there are vacuum pumps,possible overseas connections and maybe solar panels on above-ground:all part of the Hyperloops infrastructure.In general,the study for a new mode of transportation is started with an analysis of the existi

144、ng transportation system.In such a study,the different modes of transportation are identified,and more importantly it is studied for which type of 36 travels the different modes are used.Within this framework,it can be seen that people bike or walk in the lowest layer of our network.This is only use

145、d for small-distance travelling.Cars and public transport are used for medium-long distance travel.This is usually between a few kms to a few hundred kms.The highest layer in our network consists of travel by aviation and high-speed rail.These modes are used for international and intercontinental tr

146、avel mostly.Shortcomings in modern-day transport are:congestion pollution low reliability high maintenance costs When examining above mentioned shortcomings on the different modes of transportation,it is shown that the highest leap in quality can be achieved in mostly continental aviation.This type

147、of travel is very polluting and emits lots of noise.Moreover,the user experience is not optimal,as the waiting times at airports are relatively long.In this sense,Hyperloop is ought to make the largest contribution to society by partially taking over demand for continental aviation.According to esti

148、mated calculation by Elon Musk,350-mile trip between Los Angeles and San Francisco,one of the most traveled corridors in the state,will cost$20 each way for a passenger.To build the extravagant tube system,Musk in his White Paper estimates its costs will be between$6 billion and$7.5 billion.His$6 bi

149、llion estimate is for two one-way tubes and 40 capsules with no cargo space,while the higher end of the estimate would carry cargo.With tubes departing every 30 seconds and carrying 28 passengers each,a single tube would be able to transport 7.4 million people per year.By simple multiplication,the p

150、roposed two-tube structure could carry roughly 15 million people per year.At$20 per ride and an estimated 15 million trips per year,the Hyperloop would have the potential to gross$300 million in annual revenue.37 For current researches and experiment,cargo transportation by Hyperloop is not taking i

151、nto account due to the value of time of goods.It is too low to transport cargo against the higher costs of Hyperloop.Hyperloop will however also carry the potential to be suitable to transport high-value goods,such as medicines and perishables.Focusing on the Europe continental travel,Hyperloop work

152、s best when the larger population hubs are connected.This means that cities like:London,Brussels,Paris,Amsterdam,Berlin,Milano should be included in the Hyperloop potential network.Such cities of continent might be European network connection hubs.Also,in case of underground tunneling we need to con

153、sider landscape and areas with higher seismic activity.It is likely that some parts of the Hyperloop will be constructed underground.The reasons to construct underground are primarily:environmental conditions,urban planning,and landscape pollution,but moreover also structural benefits.First,the envi

154、ronmental conditions.When constructed above ground,the Hyperloop tube will be exposed to sunlight.The tube will therefore increase in temperature after which the tube wants to expand,thermal expansion.At some points,these thermal strains are prohibited and as a result,compressive strains will arise

155、in the tube.When these compressive strains are becoming too large,there is a chance of buckling of the entire structure.A solution to this might be the use of dilation segments which allows for the tube to expand freely.The downside however of these dilation segments is their risk for bad air tightn

156、ess.More vacuum pumps will therefore be needed to overcome leakage of air into the tube.Another environmental issue is that most hubs are located near the coast.The air will contain saline water,which has the potential to corrode parts of the structure.This asks for intensified and costly maintenanc

157、e.The most important consideration in the construction of underground Hyperloop infrastructure is however that in densely populated areas,it is extremely difficult to construct Hyperloop tubes above ground.In order to accommodate comfortable 38 travel for passengers,the radii of the bends in the Hyp

158、erloop infrastructure should be immense.This makes it nearly impossible to fit the infrastructure within the current urban planning and housing.Moreover,the construction of tubes above ground will inevitably lead to landscape pollution.Potentially,the tubes will also form a social barrier as line in

159、frastructure may lead to social segregation,literally creating physical borders between people.All of these phenomena are unwanted in modern-day society.Lastly,underground infrastructure is desirable in earthquake prone areas.Underground infrastructure consists of segments which form a relatively fl

160、exible structure.During earthquakes,the tunnel will move with the soil surrounding it,therefore preventing damage to the structure.This is not the case for above ground infrastructure where the entire structure will start to move and perhaps collapse.The largest downside of underground infrastructur

161、e is however that the construction costs are higher.This,as the rate of construction is lower,and accessibility is more difficult.In addition to that,an additional investment needs to be made into the purchase of a specialized tunneling machine.As a result,additional methods are needed to make the u

162、nderground construction of Hyperloop more profitable.Key to this is including other utilities into the infrastructure of Hyperloop.This way,additional earnings can be created resulting in profitable underground Hyperloop infrastructure.An example of such a utility that can be included are electricit

163、y and internet cables that are located at the top of the tunnel.Using cable trays,the cables itself can be installed and maintained easily.The vacuum tubes of Hyperloop are spaced in such a way,that personnel can perform maintenance on these cables and the tubes,while inside the vacuum tubes,the pod

164、s still continue to travel.Another solution for building Hyperloop tube is build it alongside with other infrastructural facilities such as:railway,high-way,pipelines etc.Including internet cables provides a good way of connecting the larger hubs between which there is a lot of data traffic.Concerni

165、ng the electricity cables,sustainable energy which is usually generated in less densely populated areas can be transported between the larger hubs of Europe.This while considerably reducing the costs of the construction 39 of these high-power cables,as use can be made of the Hyperloop tunnel.By this

166、 way the cost of digging and construction will be sharable.Figure 27:Submerged Floating Tunnel(Civil Engineering Portal)Another challenge that must be overcome is the longer construction time of underground infrastructure.At this moment,underground tunnels are built at a rate of around 15 meters per

167、 day when using a Tunnel Boring Machine.When partially building the Hyperloop network underground,the construction rate must go up.Otherwise,it will simply take too long to build a Hyperloop network.Several initiatives have however been started worldwide to increase the advance rates of tunneling ma

168、chines.One of them is the Boring Company,initiated by Elon Musk too.They are developing equipment to dig faster and make the process more cost effective.The company was announced in 2016 with the aim to develop a digging machine to dig high-speed underground tunnel in the fastest way.The technology

169、might be revolutionary for digging and construction of underground infrastructure.The objective of this Boring Company is to increase tunneling speed to over 100 meters per day.40 Figure 28:The Boring Company tunnel boring machine()Designing the tube A Hyperloop tube needs to be strong to withstand

170、the forces exerted on it and stiff enough to resist major deformations.Moreover,thousands of kilometers need to be produced for the European network requiring the tubes to be easily produced and relatively inexpensive.These criteria need to be taken into account when comparing potential tube materia

171、ls.The materials examined are concrete,steel,aluminum and acrylic.Due to the high strength,high stiffness and the ability for mass production,steel is chosen as the best option.The other materials were not chosen for several reasons.Concrete has a low tensile strength and is not always airtight.Alum

172、inum has a lower stiffness and higher costs than steel.Acrylic is significantly more expensive than steel.Now that a material has been chosen,the different forces exerted on the tube need to be explored.Since it is quite early in the design stage,not all forces in and around the tube are known.Desig

173、ning the tube for allowed deformation(maximum deflection)is therefore not possible.However,designing for another important aspect is possible:the air pressure due to the near-vacuum environment.The 41 difference in air pressure exerts a radial force which can cause buckling.This phenomenon is called

174、 vacuum buckling and is especially dangerous for thin-walled containers,such as the Hyperloop tube.The equation below describes the relationship between the wall thickness,tube radius and pressure difference(Hauviller,2007).Where p is the critical pressure difference,E the Youngs modulus,the Poisson

175、s ratio and t divided by R the ratio between the wall thickness and the radius.The air pressure inside the tube is assumed to be 3 Pa and outside atmospheric pressure.The Youngs modulus and Poissons ratio are both characteristics of the material used,in this case,steel.Finally,there is the radius of

176、 the tube,which is currently set at 1.75 m.Using all the known parameters,a minimum wall thickness of 21.4 mm is needed to prevent vacuum buckling.With a safety factor of 1.5 applied to the pressure difference(p multiplied by 1.5),the Hyperloop tubes get a design wall thickness of 25 mm.Hyperloop Li

177、near Infrastructure and Tunneling from Hyperloop TT The Linear Infrastructure develops the transportation corridor that passenger capsules travel through between station areas.The primary requirements are for a grade-separated tube shell that encloses a reduced-pressure environment and the levitatio

178、n and propulsion guideway.The tube provides attachment points for communications,power,and safety systems.The tube may be elevated,with pylons supporting tube sections,or underground using cut-and-cover or deep tunnel configurations.Typical civil engineering principles are employed in the design of

179、the structural capacity of the tube even considering the reduced pressure inside the tube.42 Figure 29:HyperloopTT Elevated Infrastructure(HyperloopTT)The elevated guideway section will be used when the elevation difference between the planned profile and ground is less than 65 feet(19.8 m).A typica

180、l span is 100 feet(30.5 m).The tube structure is continuous over multiple spans,but it can be curved and the guideway internally super elevated to meet geometric and lateral acceleration requirements.In areas of variable terrain,or to pass underneath built-up urban areas,tunnels are appropriate to r

181、educe unreasonable grades,maintain a smooth profile with long vertical and horizontal curves,and avoid surface disruption and visual impacts.Bored tunnels can be used for this purpose.These tunnels need to have at least 30 feet(9 m)of overburden before a Tunnel Boring Machine(TBM)can be used.Depths

182、shallower than this would be constructed by using open trenching and other transitional configuration methods.While highway and railway tunnels tend to be of very large diameter,HyperloopTT uses much smaller tunnels.At intervals of about 6 to 7 miles(9.7 to 11.3 km),an underground chamber and cross

183、link between tubes will be constructed to enable emergency evacuation of capsules and access to the tubes for emergency and maintenance personnel.43 For shallow tunnels,cut and cover techniques can be used.In urban areas,construction typically requires installation of underground retaining walls to

184、reinforce both sides of a vertical excavation and prevent cave-ins.After this,the area between the walls is excavated and cross-braces are installed to reinforce the retaining walls.After the tunnel is complete the excavation can be backfilled,and the retaining walls removed.Utility relocation,if re

185、quired,would be coordinated with the appropriate local utility.If extensive utility relocation is needed,a deep bored tunnel may be more economical.In a rural area it may be possible to excavate a trench and slope the ditch walls consistent with local building code requirements.When constructing alo

186、ngside an active rail line or highway within 25 feet(7.6 m)of the centerline of rail tracks or highway lanes,an underground retaining wall may be required to protect the rail or highway side of the excavation,determined in consultation with the rail or highway authorities.Air pressure inside the tub

187、e would be reduced to provide large reductions in aerodynamic drag.HyperloopTTs vacuum partner,Leybold,will provide a very reliable and nearly turn-key vacuum solution for the HyperloopTT System.This system will be optimized to achieve the target operating pressure in the tubes while minimizing ener

188、gy consumption and maximizing operational uptime.Leybold has developed a“standard HyperloopTT vacuum unit”that fits within a standard shipping container.This container will contain all vacuum pumps and ancillary equipment(including electronics and cooling)and can be swapped in and out for off-site m

189、aintenance via relatively simple electrical and bellows connections.44 Figure 30:Vacuum pumps and modular housing(Hyperloop TT)The HyperloopTT system is designed to be net energy positive over the course of a year.This is achieved through efficient capsule movements where drag,even at high-speeds,is

190、 drastically reduced through the use of passive magnetic levitation and through the use of the reduced pressure environment inside the tube.Additionally,the system is able to generate energy through solar panels and other renewable sources.Finally,the system is able to recover energy through regener

191、ative braking as the capsules are slowed.Solar farms would be developed at various locations along the corridor as needed,in partnership with local communities.This would extend the economic benefits of HyperloopTT into communities that may not currently possess the travel demand necessary for a sta

192、tion.For above-ground HyperloopTT tubes,solar panels are integrated within the tube cladding.For below-grade segments,easements may permit installation of above-ground solar panels.Utilities buildings,(e.g.,locations that house vacuum pump containers,power electronics,and emergency escape refuges)ar

193、e also suitable locations for roof-mounted solar and adjacently sited solar farms.45 Tube to Station Vacuum Interface from Delft Hyperloop To transfer hyperloop pods from the low-pressure tube environment to a station to allow passengers to exit,some sort of airlock is needed.There are several ideas

194、 about taking the pod out of the tube,as well as leaving the pod inside the tube.The main objective is to have a smooth passenger transition from pod to station.In this section,the two most promising airlock concepts will be explained and a comparison between the two is made.The low-pressure tube en

195、vironment is crucial for the hyperloop and is what makes the hyperloop unique and stand out.A pod arriving at a station cannot simply open the doors and let passengers out,because of the harmful low-pressure environment.In order to let passengers safely exit the pod,the inside of the pod should be i

196、n direct contact with atmospheric pressure.Multiple options and innovative ideas have been developed by people around the world.All these ideas can be divided into two main categories.The first option is a chamber in between the two states of pressure,called an airlock chamber.In this chamber,the pr

197、essure will vary,depending on which direction the pod goes.If the pod goes from atmospheric pressure(station)to the near-vacuum tube environment,the chamber will start with atmospheric pressure and will depressurize once it is sealed.When the pressure in the chamber is the same pressure as in the tu

198、be,the chamber will open on the side of the tube,allowing the pod to continue.The other way around works as well with this method.This is the same principle that was used in the Space Shuttle.The second option involves bridge doors at the platform that will lock onto the pod doors,similar to a jet b

199、ridge.In this case,the vacuum tubes will continue into the station and the pod never leaves the low-pressure environment.The bridge doors will connect the inside of the pod to the station atmosphere.The air in the bridge or in the airlock when the pod departs will dissipate into the tube.This is ach

200、ieved by opening a vent in the door.From within the tube,the air will be pumped out by the vacuum pumps.Both options have advantages and disadvantages,these are listed in the table below.46 Table 2:Advantages and disadvantages of airlock chamber and bridge doors(own elaboration)Pod freedom at the st

201、ation is understood as the ability to easily move the pod around and to allow for possible maintenance.The perceived safety is lower for the latter option due to passengers directly stepping into a sealed off low-pressure tube.Next to these(dis)advantages,the mechanisms can be compared in operation

202、time,safety and structure.Looking at the operation time,both concepts are expected to be in the same range.For the airlock option,two big doors need to be moved,one to close the chamber and one to open the chamber.It is estimated that one door movement will take around 30 seconds.The removal/additio

203、n of the air is expected to take around one minute.The option with bridge doors also has two door/bridge movements which are also expected to take around 30 seconds per movement.The bridge doors are smaller;however,they require a better sealing for the safety of the passengers.The removal/addition o

204、f the air will take less time than the airlock since the volume is smaller(only around the door versus around the whole pod).In terms of safety,the airlock chamber is preferred.Humans are not able to survive a(near)vacuum environment.In an airlock chamber,the passengers are protected from the low-pr

205、essure environment by the pod at all times.However,when walking through the bridge used in the other option,passengers will pass close by the connection from the bridge to the pod.On the other side of this connection is the low pressure.A perfect seal should be guaranteed to avoid fatal accidents.47

206、 Structure-wise,the airlock is preferred as well.A hyperloop station requires up to 12 platforms to accommodate all incoming pods and to provide enough time to embark and disembark.Thus,pods should be able to move from the tube to(at least)half of the platforms,and desirably more.A large transfer ar

207、ea between the tubes and the platforms is needed.With the bridge doors option,this means that a transfer area from one tube to at least six platforms will have to be placed inside the low-pressure environment.This results in large spans of the low-pressure tube resulting in extreme forces.The airloc

208、k also has its structural problems,due to the repetitive cycle from atmospheric pressure to near vacuum and back,fatigue issues will occur.However,the airlock can be designed to keep the stresses in the tube below the endurance limit,nullifying fatigue effects.To conclude,the airlock chamber concept

209、 and the bridge doors concept both have their advantages and disadvantages looking at the operation time,safety and structures.The bridge doors concept wins it in terms of the time it takes to transfer people from the tube to the station using the bridge doors.However,the bridge doors concept perfor

210、ms worse than the chamber concept in terms of safety.The bridge doors concept has more possible fatal failures,whereas,with the airlock,the passengers are protected by the pod.In terms of the structures,the large low pressure transfer area for the bridge doors option seems to be unrealistic.All in a

211、ll,for now it is opted for the airlock chamber concept by Delft since it seems the most realistic and reliable solution.Hyperloop Stations from Hyperloop TT HyperloopTT stations will serve as the focal point of the HyperloopTT System where all transport functions and technologies converge.Station pl

212、anning considers the complete passenger experience,embracing access,Accessibility Act compliance(European Accessibility Act,ADA,etc.),safety,security,movement,amenities and services,all in support of the passenger experience delivered in a sustainable,energy-efficient design.48 Lessons learned from

213、decades of experience in station planning for various transport modes recognizes that passenger handling facilities must accommodate not only todays needs but also,to the extent practicable,tomorrows passenger expectations.HyperloopTT combines the best attributes of passenger facility planning from

214、airports,mass transit systems,high-speed rail and other transport technologies providing a high level of transport safety,efficiency,economy,and speed.The overall design concepts of the station guide passengers through the arrival and departure experiences.Physical wayfinding signage further guides

215、and reassures passengers that they are on the correct path.Augmented reality is employed as state-of-the-art wayfinding for individualized passenger approach and navigation.Moving walkways and inclined ramps are important components and themes of the HyperloopTT passenger experience.The experience o

216、f effortless,smooth movement with no waiting is realized and emphasized.Figure 31:Station Concept Designs(HyperloopTT)Station gates enable the efficient transfer of people and goods from the station environment to the capsule environment before departure and after arrival.Fast battery and cooling re

217、charge take place during the alighting and boarding process.49 The capsule navigates the station on powered wheels,with autonomous guidance similar to that found in autonomous guided vehicles in ports,warehouses,and other confined and controlled environments.Figure 32:Station Concept Design(Hyperloo

218、pTT)Several station configurations are under development as model solutions and comparative basis for design and analysis.The Dewdrop Station is inspired by creating a central geometry for passenger guidance.Passengers can walk along the curve as an efficient form of wayfinding.Capsules turning in t

219、he same operating direction as passengers is an effective solution for high-demand capacity.One of the HyperloopTT system advantages is the ability to retrofit into existing systems and terminals.The HyperloopTT Plug-in Station is a strategy to add a new station to an existing HyperloopTT tube conne

220、cting city centers,or to retrofit a HyperloopTT portal into an existing train station,transit station,or airport.50 Infrastructural Challenges Vacuum buckling and other technical challenges have been accounted for,but some other infrastructural challenges and bottlenecks still remain.These need to b

221、e overcome for the Hyperloop to become a reality and are important future research topics.The cost of steel:as explained earlier in the post,steel has many benefits.It is strong,stiff,easy to produce and relatively inexpensive.However,creating a tube of 25 mm thick for thousands of kilometers requir

222、es enormous amounts of steel.This is not only expensive but also harmful to the environment.Different tube design could potentially reduce the material needed while still retaining the required strength and stiffness.The invention of new materials could also result in a higher strength-to-weight rat

223、io.Moreover,research into cleaner production processes could help reduce emissions.Damage to the tube:The Hyperloop is not influenced by weather and other external factors due to the steel tube.To make sure external factors remain inconsequential,the tube must be able to withstand these external fac

224、tors without being damaged.Furthermore,it is important to know what happens if the tube does get damaged.An assessment of the effect of corrosion,wind loads and other external influences on the tubes,in the form of structural health monitoring,could be used to create a robust and sustainable design.

225、Thermal expansion:Steel experiences thermal expansion when exposed to temperature changes.Due to the tubes being clamped between two stations,compressive forces in the tube may occur.To prevent buckling of the tubes,these compressive forces need to be minimized.Solutions to this problem consist of u

226、sing mechanical/thermal prestressing to reduce the compressive stresses in the tubes.Moreover,connections between tube sections can be created into expansion joints or filled with elastic material which allows the sections to elongate.High-speed Switches:In a hyperloop network,all stations are conne

227、cted with links.However,there are multiple ways to connect to a station using the links.The first option is to directly connect all stations similar to a metro system.All links pass 51 through the stations where the pods have to stop.The second option is to use a highway system,using on-and off-ramp

228、s to connect to the station.This allows pods to cruise past the station and thereby create direct links throughout the whole network.This increases the efficiency of the system and reduces the average travel times.However,pods need to switch to an on-or offramp at high speeds.These high-speed switch

229、es are crucial for efficient operation of the system.Current developments on high-speed switches are in the early stages and the technological feasibility is yet to be proven.Safe Haven Design:To guarantee safety inside a hyperloop pod,an emergency system must be designed.The Safe Haven concept prov

230、ides a first vision on how a safety system could take shape to maximise passenger safety,whilst minimising emergency exit costs.However,due to the uncertainty of the hyperloop design and a lack of regulation,it is still unknown how safety can be guaranteed.Emergencies in which passengers need to be

231、evacuated are impossible to avoid.Designing emergency exits in a way that both accommodates sufficient safety and acceptable costs is a challenge that must be overcome Integration with Current Modes of Transportation:Hyperloop is a means of public transportation and does not accommodate for door-to-

232、door travel all by itself.The hyperloop needs to connect to other modes of transportation to allow passengers to travel further to their destination.This is important for connectivity and will increase the accessibility of the hyperloop.Currently,there is not always space near the stations of existi

233、ng infrastructure for the implementation of hyperloop stations.This complicates the intermodal connection of hyperloop to other modes of transportation.Finding smart ways of connecting to other public transportation or spatial planning will be challenging Crossing Waterways:In order to connect desti

234、nation overseas or destinations surrounded by large waterways,such as fjords,hyperloop tubes must be able to cross waterways.Due to the large curvature radius,it is unlikely that the hyperloop can make the correct horizontal and vertical curves to follow the irregularities on the seabed.A bridge is

235、not always the solution as the spans or water depths can be too 52 large.Therefore,connecting these destinations that are separated by large waterways will be a challenge.Tunnel Boring Machine Speed:Large operations speeds of hyperloop pods result in large curvature radii.Therefore,in densely urbani

236、sed and mountainous areas the hyperloop is required to travel underground.It is currently estimated that 50%of hyperloop infrastructure will be build underground.Current Tunnel Boring Machines(TBM)have a boring speed of approximately 15 meter per day in soft soil.To construct a single link of severa

237、l hundreds of kilometers long with one TBM,multiple decades of digging is needed before completion of the link.Multiple TBMs can be used for the construction of one tunnel to significantly reduce the time needed for this process but with the current speed for TBMs this is still a long and costly pro

238、cess.It is of great importance to speed up the digging speeds of TBMs to both decrease the construction time of the hyperloop and to reduce the costs of the hyperloop,as this would be positive for the feasibility of the hyperloop.Technology Cost Reduction:Parts of the hyperloop rely on new innovativ

239、e technologies that have not been optimised for costs.Since these technologies are going to be used in large quantities,the costs for these systems will quickly add up.Reducing the technology costs for example for levitation and propulsion could greatly reduce the total costs for the hyperloop infra

240、structure.Therefore,cost reduction for these technologies must be realised to increase the economic feasibility of the system.Business Case Towards Implementation:Besides the technological challenges,it is important to determine a business case for a hyperloop.The first link will be very important a

241、nd crucial for the success of a hyperloop system.Many stakeholders will be involved including different levels of governments.It is desired that this first link creates sufficient passenger demand to increase the economic feasibility of the link.Data Communication:The communication system of a hyper

242、loop depends on multiple design aspects.The choice for the levitation mechanism defines the responsibility for data collection,whether in the pod or at the infrastructure.This 53 decision still has to be made.Another decision relates to the communication between a moving pod and the tube.A potential

243、 concept is based on photoelectric sensors located in the tube that will read information displayed on the pods.A decision on what type of photoelectric sensor is best to use,and what data should be presented at the surface of the pod are two important decisions that have yet to be made.Safety and P

244、olitics Safety This chapter discusses the safety of a hyperloop system on a top-level,in order to determine the largest safety risks.First,the importance of safety in transportation is highlighted.Afterwards,the method,scope and top-level system description of the safety analysis are given.A Hazard

245、Analysis is conducted to come up with the most important risks per subsystem,and the overall largest risks are described afterwards.Hazard mitigation methods are described for each risk,in order increase the safety of the system.To get brief understanding of the Hazard Analysis by TU Delft the follo

246、wing types of risks have been taken into account:Strategic risk:The strategy of a company decides how the firm is going to achieve their goals.This strategy can become less effective as time passes.This is called strategic risk.Compliance risk:Businesses must comply with all laws and regulations in

247、the sector.This regulation constantly changes and is different in each region of the world.Breaking or not complying with these rules can pose a huge threat on a company.This is called compliance risk.54 Operational risk:Unexpected failure in the day-to-day business can have a significant impact.The

248、se internal threats are called operational risk.Financial risk:Sufficient cash flow and appropriate credit/debit is important for a business to stay afloat.The risk of for example interest rates going up suddenly is called financial risk.This risk will not be used directly in the assessment but will

249、 be kept in mind when reviewing assets.Reputational risk:Reputations of companies are important for customers,employees and suppliers.A worsening of the reputation can affect the morale of your employees,the willingness of the suppliers and the attitude of the customers.Cyber security risk:Cyber inf

250、rastructure has become crucial in various sectors over the last few decades.For example,cyber infrastructure is an important part of transport systems.To protect this crucial part of the system,cyber security needs to be improved.Several methods and control measures exist to reduce the risk related

251、to cyber security.Change risk:The business landscape is changing rapidly nowadays due to fast technological innovation and globalization.Organizations need to adapt to this change to maintain their competitive advantage.However,adapting to this change often ends in failure.Therefore change managemen

252、t and the associated risk is an important risk type to consider for the hyperloop.Hazard Assessment format provides an organized,systematic framework to follow in presenting potential hazards/threats/vulnerabilities,causes,recommendations,and control measures.Furthermore,it offers the opportunity to

253、 consider and discuss potential hazards and vulnerabilities the technology could present.The complete Hazard Analysis together with the adopted Safety Framework for the European Hyperloop Network can be found in research paper of TU Delft.The largest risks lead to a conceptual Safe Haven design:a ne

254、w method to guarantee safety whilst minimising the investment cost.Finally,a recommendation is given on how to mitigate hazards and to pinpoint the major safety risks of a hyperloop system.55 For a hyperloop system to be realised,the safety of the system must be guaranteed.The safety level of a hype

255、rloop needs to be at least at the same level as other high-speed modes of transportation,to be accepted by governments and used by passengers.When designing the system,many lessons can be learned from other modes of transportation.In the past,large accidents have caused transport innovations to be s

256、lowed down or even to be withheld from implementation.An example is the accident with the Transrapid magnetic levitation train in 2006 in Lathen,Germany.During a trial run,a train collided with a maintenance vehicle,causing 23 casualties.Although the accident was caused by a human error,a Maglev tra

257、in has never been realised not only in Germany but in Europe in general ever since.To avoid a similar situation,it is crucial that the hyperloop technology is tested thoroughly before the first passenger ride takes place and that possibilities of human error are minimised.Figure 33:Lathen train coll

258、ision()Another accident,a train derailment in Santiago de Compostela in 2013 with 80 casualties,shows the importance of track curvatures at high speeds.With hyperloop speeds multiple times higher than a train,it is important to design all trajectories with safe track curvatures.56 Figure 34:Santiago

259、 de Compostela derailment(Eglish EL PAS)Accidents can also signify the end of fully operational modes of transportation,as can be seen with the Concorde.In 2000,an aircraft ran over debris during take-off,which was lost by the previous aircraft taking off.This caused a blown tyre and a punctured fue

260、l tank,leading to a fire and ultimately 113 fatalities.Although the Concorde had been used for decades,after the accident,passenger numbers diminished and the Concorde ceased operation in 2003.These accidents show that it is important to focus on safety at all times:during design,testing and operati

261、on.Figure 35:Air France Flight 4590(Wikipedia Commons)57 Safety is by far the most important aspect of human transportation,since no one will travel in a vehicle that they cant trust to safely transport them.First,lets discuss safety on the pod itself.When looking at the safety for passengers in cas

262、e of a malfunction in the pod itself,we can take a look at airplanes.First of all,when something happens in the pressure cabin the safety systems will have to work almost exactly the same,mainly ensuring that the emergency is suppressed,and habitable conditions are maintained.This means that for exa

263、mple fires must be extinguished automatically and a means to solve pressure leaks has to be present.If we assume that this part of the safety is handled,our next logical step would be to look at ways to safely exit the passenger from the pod and the tube.This comes down to emergency exits,which requ

264、ire air locks.These will greatly increase the cost of the system but are unavoidable.Their magnitude is something however that can be decreased.So our goal will be to maximize safety,but also minimize the cost.Although,it is maybe not logical at first sight,the safety concepts for Hyperloop can be t

265、aken from that of airplanes.Airplanes are built in such a fashion that when an emergency occurs at cruising altitude,these planes are still able to land.Figure 36:US Airways flight 1549 emergency landing,2009()58 When designing such a system for Hyperloop,this means that the emergency exits needed c

266、an greatly be reduced,perhaps to intervals of 15 km.For the design of Hyperloop,this means that all systems should either be made fully passive or redundant in such a way that during a failure,the passengers are safe and the vehicle can be moved to the nearest emergency exit.When we look at the safe

267、ty inside the station,we again have a look at airports.As we are very likely to cross country borders during a trip,security will have to be similar to airports.Figure 37:Airport security customs(Wikipedia Commons)Thus,people will have to go through customs,like you do at airports.Also,cameras and o

268、ther safety scans will be present.In case of an emergency,tubes would have to be present that pass by the station at lower speeds and redirect pods to other nearby stations.In addition to terminals and capsules,the security of the tube and corridor will also be important.The engineering design secti

269、on identified that the tube is expected to be constructed of steel and may be reinforced with concrete.This would not only 59 provide the low-pressure environment but could also reduce the ability of external entities to cause damage to the tube.Monitoring the corridor by cameras and sensors is expe

270、cted to be an important component of a network-wide security system,forming part of the operation control centre for the network.It is important to note that very little research into the unique security risks Hyperloop could create has been conducted at this stage,representing an area for significa

271、nt further investigation.Politics One important characteristic of a European hyperloop network,is that it will connect numerous different countries,and therefore will cross many borders.I will highlight three important political challenges that arise for such a network:The first one is that most cou

272、ntries,or provinces,or even municipalities would like to have a hyperloop station to increase its connectivity within Europe.On the other hand,these parties dont want to have a hyperloop tube on their land,if there is no stop and thus,they dont benefit from it.As the hyperloop is most efficient on h

273、igh speeds,it is preferred to have a large distance between stations.Furthermore,the train network on smaller distances is already quite efficient,and the hyperloop must not compete with the energy-efficient train.For these reasons,the number of stations is limited.The second challenge is that the h

274、yperloop will need to operate in many countries,and standardization is very important.It would make no sense to have a tube diameter of 4 meters in eastern Europe,while the diameter in western Europe is 3.5 meter.Therefore,standards need to be set on a European level.This sounds obvious,but standard

275、ization is still a problem in todays rail industry.The width of European train tracks differs between countries,which used to make it complex and expensive to have trains operating internationally.Furthermore,as shown in this map,the railway electrification systems currently differ a lot between cou

276、ntries.60 Figure 38:Europe rail electrification(Wikipedia Commons)Standardization is a challenge for hyperloop.At this moment,multiple companies are working on the hyperloop concept,with different ideas.In the end,it is important that a hyperloop network has a single standard.Therefore,hyperloop com

277、panies should eventually converge to a standardized concept.Although it might sound logical,system parameters such as tube diameter must be the same to increase interoperability between countries.For comparison,the width of European train tracks differs between countries,which used to make it comple

278、x and expensive to have trains operating internationally.It is important that in the end,companies working on hyperloop converge to a consensus on important design parameters.These parameters lead to standards that must be determined together with governments.However,standards must not be decided up

279、on too early in the process,as this constrains the development of innovative technologies or ideas.Multiple technologies have to be researched and developed first in order to determine what the best option is to use in the eventual standardized hyperloop system.61 The third political challenge is fi

280、nancing the network.Who is going to pay for it?As the hyperloop infrastructure is expensive,it is impossible to find a single party that is able to finance the construction of a hyperloop network.A public-private partnership is most likely needed,as it is also not expected that governments will full

281、y finance the system.However,they will contribute to the project,as a hyperloop also offers socio-economic value to society.Because a European hyperloop network will be international,it is challenging to determine the amount of investment that is coming from each country.To overcome these three poli

282、tical challenges,the European Union is already collaborating with multiple governments and hyperloop companies and thereby thinking of the future of transportation!There will be many challenges,but in the end,a complete hyperloop network would be beneficial for many people.Hyperloop Freight Market T

283、his chapter focuses on the development of the express freight volume and revenue estimates that were used in the Great Lakes Hyperloop study(HyperloopTT).Possible Freight Target Markets Hyperloop promises to develop a freight service which is faster than truck and cheaper than air,which would undoub

284、tedly position it as a premium freight service.It is possible that Hyperloop could also be cheaper than truck and faster than air,in which case Hyperloop would likely become a dominant mode for intercity freight transport,rather than just a niche provider of transportation services.Either way,once H

285、yperloop becomes a reality,existing logistics patterns will adjust to take advantage of the capabilities of this new mode of transportation.Nonetheless,the more Hyperloop can fit into existing models for freight distribution,the easier it will be for Hyperloop to quickly gain market share.Minimizing

286、 changes that shippers,carriers and consignees must make would make it easy for them to 62 add Hyperloop into their supply chains.There are at least four possible target markets that a Hyperloop could pursue:1.Full Container or Truckload Service one approach to the market would handle full sized tru

287、cks or shipping containers and move them point to point,similarly to how rail intermodal services work today as in Figure 36 and 35;but much faster and without the need for batching containers to build trains,since each container would move individually and on-demand.Such a system could handle 40 oc

288、ean containers from ports;but Hyperloop could also participate in domestic markets if it had the ability to handle the larger 53 containers that now predominate in domestic shipping lanes.For shorter trips it may even be attractive to use a roll-on-roll-off model that ferries the drivers and their t

289、ractors as in Figure 38.This would avoid the problems of needing large parking lots to store containers awaiting pickup at the destination.Figure 39:Railroad Intermodal Yard for Full Container Service()63 Figure 40:Truck Intermodal Yard(Contship Italia)The idea of shipping full truckloads or contain

290、ers of freight by Hyperloop,including ocean containers,has attracted a lot of attention in the popular press.Certainly,it is technically feasible to do so,since magnetic levitation system designs have been developed specifically for this application,as in Figure 39.Figure 41:Semi-Truck Ferry Service

291、 in the EuroTunnel()64 Figure 42:Inductrak III for Magnetic Levitation of Containers()However,adding a capability for full container shipping would require a tube of a much larger internal diameter than the 4-meter tube that has been assumed for this study.Therefore,full sized ocean or domestic cont

292、ainers are simply too large to fit inside the tube and therefore cannot be handled.It is likely that enlarging the tube to the size needed for handling full containers would entail an increase in the cost of both civil infrastructure and guideway.Using a larger tube would likely have a large impact

293、on tunneling costs.Elevated guideway sections would have to be strengthened to take heavier loads.As well,the maglev guideway would have to be electrically strengthened using more powerful coils,both for levitation and also for propulsion of heavier container loads.Electric supply would have to be i

294、ncreased and the greater internal volume of the larger tubes would require more vacuum pumps.HyperloopTT has been developing technology solutions for container shipping as part of its joint venture with HHLA(Hambur Hafen und Logistik AG)(Source:),the operator of the Hamburg port.However,the costs an

295、d benefits of increasing the tube size to develop a container-compatible system have not been assessed by the current study.However,by trans-loading freight from full sized containers into smaller“air cargo”type containers,Hyperloop could still capture some container freight,even with a smaller diam

296、eter tube.Many shipping containers(usually 30-50%of sea containers)are already trans-loaded or repacked at manufacturing and distribution sites near ports.This transload provides a ready opportunity for some of the freight to be 65 repackaged for Hyperloop.The use of air cargo containers would certa

297、inly make sense for high value commodities,where Hyperloops much higher speed would justify the small additional cost.1.Next Day Air Cargo Container Service If Hyperloop connects airports,Hyperloop can compete with air cargo service by using air cargo containers as shown in Exhibit 6-4 and would run

298、 similarly to an airline.Hyperloop would be both time and cost competitive with air service and offer a more flexible service.This service would be primarily focused on overnight or next-day delivery.Air cargo containers are much smaller and lighter than ocean shipping containers and easily fit in t

299、he Hyperloop capsule.They are usually handled on a roller bed floor system9 that can be powered for automated handling.While Hyperloop may compete with some air services,it would also connect with long haul air cargo services and would likely even exchange containers at the airports with connecting

300、airlines.Figure 43:Air Cargo Container Service()2.LTL Ground Freight Market A Hyperloop service using air cargo containers would be attractive not only to air freight,but if costs are low enough would likely attract a substantial share of palletized Less-Than-Truckload(LTL)ground freight as well.Thi

301、s is because LTL freight has to go through break bulk terminals just like air freight does,so using Hyperloop to replace truck for the line haul between terminals would not add significantly to the existing LTL cost structure.This is especially true if LTL break bulk terminals are located close to 6

302、6 the Hyperloop freight depot 3.Same-day Express Parcel Service-would not likely use shipping containers at all,but rather would handle high value shipments individually or in mail bags,as the Mercitalia Fast does.Figure 44:Mercitalia Fast:parcels at 250km/h()This service would be primarily focused

303、on same-day delivery.Express parcels could be shipped in passenger capsules as an adjunct to checked baggage service.Many airlines already move high priority freight and packages in the bellies of passenger planes along with luggage.Figure 42 shows an example of this type of cargo being loaded from

304、a platform onto a Eurostar high-speed train.Express parcel freight will be very lightweight and relatively low volume from a tonnage perspective but will have a very high revenue yield and will generally require custom handling to meet very tight delivery deadlines.This is why these packages can eve

305、n be handled in the passenger capsules,since by so doing these shipments can receive the highest possible level of expedited service.Pickup and delivery is likely to be provided by courier services(or drones in the near future)for the fastest possible delivery to customers.67 Figure 45:Express Parce

306、ls being loaded onto a Eurostar Passenger Train()These service offerings are not mutually exclusive;Hyperloop can serve all four markets at the same time.With a large diameter tube,Hyperloop could move full truckloads or containers.But even with only a small diameter tube,some Full Truckload or Cont

307、ainer freight can still be accommodated by using the Air Container service.Air Containers can accommodate a broad spectrum of freight as shown in Figure 43.Only the same-day express parcel freight would be separately handled due to its very high value and demanding service requirements,so that each

308、parcel can be given individual attention to make sure it is expedited to its destination.The other categories of freight could all be accommodated by Air Container service.Figure 46:Hyperloop Freight Market and Service Offerings(own elaboration)68 SUMMARY The broad objective of this study is to exam

309、ine the Hyperloop transportation concept on the possible technologies.The Hyperloop will integrate engineering,operations and safety concepts from aviation and highway as well as from rail.Therefore,the Hyperloop has been called a“fifth mode”of transportation,since it doesnt fit neatly into any of t

310、he existing established models,but rather it integrates design and operational concepts from a number of different existing transportation modes.Many of Hyperloops concepts are not really new,but rather integrate already proven technologies in a new way.Although in theory it sounds fantastic,it is i

311、mportant to consider the several challenges Hyperloop faces in both construction and its impact on society.The biggest speed bump hyperloop faces is the cost of the technology as a brand new mode and elaborate tube system,estimated to cost millions of dollars.The vehicle is transported by electric p

312、ropulsion through a low-pressure tube and floats above the track using magnetic levitation.The long vacuum chamber manufacturing requires advanced technical skills which are costly and also risky to maintain.High risk to life,limited space in the train and land use rights are some other concerns and

313、 challenges that hyperloop will face,not to mention the installation would require a large number of trees to be cut down,leading to environmental loss.Approaches to security for existing modes such as air and rail differ significantly.Safety and security are highly complex,interdependent issues and

314、 are closely connected to perception and human emotion.Given the breadth of this issue,this section aims to lay out some key features informing the transportation industrys approach to security in relation to modes such as rail and air travel.According to Preliminary Feasibility Study of Hyperloop T

315、echnology prepared by AECOM Canada Ltd.,based on all available information,some key constituent technologies of Hyperloop can be classified as TRL 7,but the technology as a whole cannot,because the required infrastructure has not yet been built and tested by any Hyperloop company over long distances

316、.However,noted that the Hyperloop 69 companies using infrastructure-side linear motors as their propulsion technology start at an advantage as this has been proven at relatively high speeds in existing MagLev systems,while other types of propulsion technologies such as vehicle-side linear motors and

317、 axial compressors have not.Figure 47:Summary of the Technology Readiness Level of Hyperloop Components(Hyperloop feasibility prelim study)CONCLUSION The biggest issues with hyperloop technology are speed and scale.It is still unclear how to create a prototype that verifies the safety of the technol

318、ogy and allows testing of all necessary components.It is easy to imagine safety concerns limiting hyperloop speeds to just a fraction of its theoretical top speed or right-of-way issues keeping stations far from urban centers.These deployment details are critical issues for the hyperloop,but as long

319、 as the tests are focused on the planned 5-mile test tracks that are under development,it is not clear these issues will ever be fully understood.If one wonders how fast the hyperloop can go or how safe it will be at high speeds,a 5-mile test track will only provide the slightest glimpse of the impo

320、rtant challenges ahead.A test track of only 5 miles falls far short of the distance needed to reach 700 miles per hour.For the same reason,these test tracks cannot address the unique safety issues that come with near-supersonic travel.The result is just a tube-powered version of conventional transpo

321、rtation technology such as maglev and high-speed rail.70 A possible solution proposed by Hyperloop Transportation Technologies could be to create a full-scale version on a commercial route used for freight transport only.Using this approach,all components of the system could be tested under optimize

322、d speed and acceleration conditions,and valuable data would be collected for the final design of system used to transport human passengers.In order to get up to speed and be able to slow down,a minimum length of a little over 38 km(23.61 miles)would be needed,but it would not be able to be used by p

323、eople;a smooth ride would require approximately 120km(74.56 miles).As the cost for such a prototype is close to the cost of a fully operational system,it would make sense to place it in an area that has an actual need for hyperloop transportation.Nevertheless,Virgin Hyperloop hit an important milest

324、one in November 2020:for the first time it has conducted a test of its ultra-fast transportation system with human passengers already.To be sure,the pod didnt reach the hyperloops theoretical maximum speed of 760 mph.Virgin Hyperloop projects that with enough track it can eventually get up to 670 mp

325、h but the companys record to date is 240 mph,which it hit in 2017.The test took place on Sunday afternoon at the companys DevLoop test track in the desert outside Las Vegas,Nevada.The first two passengers were Virgin Hyperloops chief technology officer and co-founder,Josh Giegel,and head of passenge

326、r experience,Sara Luchian.After strapping into their seats in the companys gleaming white and red hyperloop pod,dubbed Pegasus,they were transferred into an airlock as the air inside the enclosed vacuum tube was removed.The pod then accelerated to a brisk 100 miles per hour(160 km/h)down the length

327、of the track,before slowing down to a stop.By analyzing the concept,technological and design options of the system as well as the infrastructural possibilities and challenges in the past several years,this thesis has shown how Hyperloop can directly and indirectly is already shape modern technology

328、and can shape the future of mobility and transportation.This research aimed to study the fifth mode of transportation and its characteristic together with ongoing researches and constructions and identify effective directions of the Hyperloop transportation enlargement.It can be stated that the prop

329、osed paper work covers all the main concepts necessary for understanding and further research and development.71 REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY 1.Elon Musk“Hyperloop Alpha”.August 2013 2.DelftX,“Hyperloop:Changing the Future of Transportation”MOOC on EdX,February 2020 3.Delft University of Technology,Delft

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331、TransPod.(2017).Initial Order of Magnitude Analysis for TransPod Hyperloop System Infrastructure.Report.7.H.W.Lee,K.C.Kim,and J.Lee,“Review of Maglev train technologies”IEEE Trans.Magn.,vol.42,no.7,pp.19171925,Jul.2006.8.Walker,R.(2018).Hyperloop:Cutting through the Hype.White Paper.9.Bird,J.&Lipo,T

332、.(2019).A study of the effect of using electrodynamic wheels in series.10.Eurostat(2017a).European aviation in 2040.11.Transpod,“TransPod Hyperloop Thailand report”12.Opgenoord,M.,Merian,C.,Mayo,J.,Kirschen,P.,ORourke,C.,Izatt,G.,Monahan,G.,Paxson,D.,Wheeler,C.,Zhang,S.,Zhang,C.,Sakhibova,N.,Vancea,

333、G.,Aggarwal,R.,Ball,S.,Caplan,P.,Chamberlain,P.,Chen,J.,Chen,S.,&Vaish,S.(2017).Mit hyperloop final report.13.Leanna Garfield on Business Insider,“15 remarkable steps that show the 200-year evolution of the Hyperloop”,February 2018,www.businessinsider.nl 14.M.A.M.Cheema,J.E.Fletcher,D.Xiao,and M.F.Rahman,“A direct thrust control scheme for linear permanent magnet synchronous motor based on online