this post was submitted on 12 Nov 2024
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[–] [email protected] 382 points 1 week ago (7 children)

The dump truck, at 45 tons, ascends the 13-percent grade and takes on 65 tons of ore. With more than double the weight going back down the hill, the beast's regenerative braking system recaptures more than enough energy to refill the charge the eDumper used going up.

[–] [email protected] 332 points 1 week ago (6 children)

So the energy this truck uses is harnessed via mining and loading... Essentially this energy was stored in the ore via geological processes.

This truck uses continental drift as his fuel.

[–] [email protected] 92 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 53 points 1 week ago

Or in physics terms, potential energy.

[–] brrt 35 points 1 week ago

Since everything seems to be going downhill right now, how would I harness that power? You telling me the crystal peddling influencers were right all along? 🤣

[–] captain_aggravated 27 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I've seen a cable lift that worked basically like that. It transferred ore down the mountain, so heavy buckets going down lifted the empty buckets back up.

[–] [email protected] 10 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Didn't Tom Scott make a video about this?

[–] captain_aggravated 30 points 1 week ago

Statistically, yes.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago

I’ve heard of a diesel-electric logging truck that uses this concept as well. Use the batteries going up the mountain empty, charge them again going downhill loaded.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

The truck has a penis?

[–] [email protected] 59 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Kinda like the mine in the UK that use a cableway without a motor to bring ore down and empty buckets up

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

I saw that Tom Scott episode too. I’ll miss him.

[–] [email protected] 47 points 1 week ago

Is that just a gravity battery that just so happens to be a dump truck as well?

[–] whyNotSquirrel 33 points 1 week ago (2 children)

So it was designed for this mine I guess?

I'm not sure there's a lot of mine you're going down filled up, the images I have in mind are quite the opposite, but that's a really cool idea!

There actually is some design to stock energy this way, with weights you lift while having excess energy

[–] [email protected] 38 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Depends on the scale of "going down". Many mines are in the mountains and the material has to be brought down to lower elevations. The mine entry may be lower than the nearest pass but still a lot higher than the destination of the ore.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Open pit is much more common for this type of equipment and it’s basically a reverse mountain. Still might be enough regenerative braking from just the weight of the truck though.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 week ago

Still might be enough regenerative braking from just the weight of the truck though.

In that case no, because it'd be bringing the weight of the truck and the ore with it.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

An open pit at an elevation of 1.5km still means the bottom of the pit could be 1km higher than the place the ore is processed at

[–] [email protected] 22 points 1 week ago (1 children)

If you're thinking of that CGI crane lifting concrete blocks, it's unfortunately a really bad idea.

Pumped hydro stores energy by lifting weight uphill, instead. Water is basically the cheapest thing you can get per tonne, and is easy to contain and move.

To store useful amounts of energy using gravity, you need pretty large elevation differences and millions of tonnes of mass to move.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 week ago

I love that I knew this conversation was going to happen as soon as I read the article.

And, yes.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Reminds me of this ropeway thing that Tom Scott covered that doesn't require power input either, for similar reasons:

https://youtu.be/6RiYXI1Tfu4

Niche application but still cool.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 1 week ago

ARGH Why did you have to remind me that Tom Scott is still missing from Youtube!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 3 points 1 week ago

Yes, but actually no.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 week ago

I guess it all depends on the physical layout but this seems like a very complicated way to get material downhill.