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Battle of the bulge
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20/03/2008
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The movement of bulge waves, first noticed in human arteries, could prove to be the means to turn mechanical motion into hydraulic pressure for storage in accumulators.
Generating an average of about 1MW of power might well be achievable by encouraging the effect in a 7m diameter, 150m long rubber sausage, which could be moored in the sea and allowed to weathercock with tides and currents,
The idea is still very much in the research stage, but the Carbon Trust appears to be very keen, EPSRC funding has been found and Checkmateuk, headquartered in Sheerness, Kent, has taken it on board, with a view to commercialising and manufacturing the sausages.
Paul Auston, chairman and managing director of the company – which makes lifting and lashing, and height safety equipment – has a wealth of experience with flexible materials. Now he believes he may have identified the solution to the nation’s energy needs.
A longer version of this article appears in the next issue of Eureka.
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Author
Tom Shelley
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