Wireless transmission of electricity is not a dream
A new energy company in New Zealand believes it can power the world through a wireless power transmission system that can deliver electricity to hard-to-reach areas and cost less than traditional power lines. The company is the start-up Emrod, which has partnered with a leading power supply company to test power transmission through a series of antennas. The only limiting factor is that the antennas must be within sight of each other.
The system consists of a power supply, a transmitting antenna, multiple relay stations, and a receiving antenna (often referred to as a "Rectenna rectifier antenna"). Emrod converts electrical energy into microwaves, which are then transmitted to a relay station via a cylindrical beam. These relay stations refocus the beam and guide the beam along a path to the rectifier antenna, where the microwaves are converted back into electrical energy.
Using the exact same technology, it can transmit 100 times more power over longer distances
This concept is nothing new. In fact, futurist, electrical engineer and inventor Nikola Tesla conceived of wireless power systems more than 100 years ago. Intercontinental microwave relay networks across continents opened up telephone communication between Europe and the Americas in the 1950s, and in recent decades have brought us increasingly efficient wireless network and satellite communication technologies.
The most striking thing about the Emrod system is its high efficiency and the brilliant performance of almost no energy loss at all. Greg Kushnir, founder of Emrod, said: "All the components we developed performed very well in terms of efficiency, close to 100%." He emphasizes that his system uses many of the same components as a typical household microwave oven, but the average household microwave oven is only 70% efficient. In recent years, the development of new materials for energy transfer has helped to minimize energy losses.
"We're not the first to use this technology, but we're the first vendor to have a commercially viable solution," Kushnir said. Emrod has tested the system over short distances, reaching as far as 130 feet so far. The company's official representative said there was really no reason to think that the system would not work perfectly within hundreds of miles. Offshore facilities can transmit electricity to hard-to-reach destinations. Electricity can be easily transmitted to mountainous areas, or any area where laying traditional wires is too dangerous or too expensive. After a hurricane or other natural disaster, radio stations can be set up quickly.
"We can use exactly the same technology to transmit 100 times more power over longer distances," Kushnir notes, "and a wireless system using Emrod technology can transmit any amount of power that is being transmitted by current wire solutions."
There have been significant advances in energy generation and storage, but for 150 years the way energy is delivered has stood still
Will wild animals such as birds be hit by microwave beams? Emrod's official representative said that when an object such as birds, other animals or humans approached, the laser beam protection ring that surrounds the microwave transmission and acts as a safety protection mechanism will immediately turn off the beam. A momentary power outage will not affect the overall power transmission. Utilities that use sensitive equipment such as medical devices require back-up batteries in case of occasional power outages, in which case even a few seconds of power outages can be severe.
In addition, the power density is very low. "It's not just how much electricity you provide, it's how much power you can provide per square meter," Kushnir says, "and we use relatively low density levels." Currently, we use a power density rating equivalent to standing outdoors at noon basking in the sun, about 1 kW per square meter." He noted that bad weather or unstable atmospheric conditions do not affect power transmission. If the transmission fails, the mobile station connected to the truck is dispatched to perform the service.
"We have abundant clean hydro, solar and wind energy around the world, but using traditional methods to deliver these energy sources poses a costly challenge," Kushnir said, "I want to propose a solution that moves all clean energy from resource-rich places to where they are needed in an affordable and environmentally friendly way."
"Energy generation and storage methods have made tremendous progress over the past century, but energy transmission has hardly changed in the last 150 years," he said. The company's joint program with Powerco will begin in October. The company also plans to transfer electricity from mainland New Zealand across 19 miles of water to Stewart Island, the southernmost island, at an estimated cost of half that of a traditional wire system.
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