Al Amin :
A research team of IDEB Research & Technological Institute has invented a ‘smart wind turbine’ which could convert energy from traffic movement of vehicles.
The innovation name is BD Highway Turbine which could minimise cost of electricity with much lesser investment, said the researchers, adding “The electricity which will be generated through the turbines could be added to the grids.”
They said a big turbine plant can generate 900 kilo watt to 1000 Mega Watt and a BD Highway Turbine would able to produce 1000 watt electricity.
The research team includes Abdullah Al Araf, completed his diploma in engineering from Dhaka Polytechnic Institute, currently studying at Southeast University at the CSE department.
Rahat Uddin, another member, completed his diploma in engineering from Dhaka Polytechnic Institute, now studying at Presidency University in the EEE Department, while Rezaul Khan, completed his diploma in engineering from Dhaka Polytechnic Institute, now student of Southeast University’s CSE department.
Araf said BD Highway Turbine is a vertical axis wind turbine that transforms highways into renewable energy sources by using the dynamics of the city.
It will generate energy by using the winds created by the vehicles as well as the natural winds and it uses the wind pressure generated by the fast-moving vehicles on roads such as big trucks and busses that help rotate its blade, he said.
Energy is the key for the development of a country and in Bangladesh, conventional sources especially oil, natural gas and coal are greatly contributing to the power generation. But the conventional sources are depleted day by day.
So, it may be wiser to increase the power generation using the renewable energy sources, the researchers said.
Araf further said, Bangladesh is currently working on becoming climate neutral so already set up some wind turbine, but the popularity of traditional wind turbines is not at an all-time high.
The main reason is the noise they make and their adverse environmental impacts, such as spinning turbine blades posing a threat to flying wildlife like birds and bats.
The development of vertical turbines poses a solution to this problem. Solar power doesn’t perform that well at night, or during the winter.
The turbines that we are delivering are a good match
with solar energy, because wind and solar have natural opposite panel patterns when they produce energy.
In everyday life, the demand for energy is increasing at a rapid rate.
So, it is urgent to increase the production rate. But the fact is that the resources used are mostly conventional energy sources that are limited and decrease with time.
It is important to think of an alternative way to meet the power gap. In this case, renewable energy sources are the best option to minimize the problem. Wind is the most available and cleanest source of renewable energy.
The highway offers a significant and almost constant source of wind power due to high traffic. But This Wind energy produced by the speed of the vehicles on the highway is totally unused. Electricity can be produced by a wind turbine using this wind energy. The stored power can be used for toll gates, street lights, public amenities, etc.
The main advantage of this project is that it can supply constant electrical power. Also, we can use this turbine anywhere such as the home rooftop. In our waterway every day many ships traveled we can use this turbine in ship rooftop.
“We are working to develop a new way to use renewable energy. We will be bringing you to the smart and renewable cities of the future.”
BD Highway Turbine will generate energy by using the winds created by the vehicles as well as the natural winds. It will also measure the city’s temperature, humidity, wind, and CO2 by using the build-in sensors and the IoT platform, he said.
