In December, tests of an unusual electricity generation system will start in the Japanese town of Aomori. Electricity will be generated due to the difference between the temperature of the snow and the air temperature, adyrna.kz reports with reference to 3dnews.ru.
Previously, Aomori city services dumped snow collected on the streets into the sea, but now it has found an unexpected use.
The city has partnered with IT company Forte and Tokyo Telecommunications University to equip a local school's swimming pool with a heat pipe system and fluid. The public utilities will dump the snow collected from the streets into the pool, while on the other side the pipes will be taken out into the air and exposed to the rays of the sun. Due to the temperature difference in the tubes, the convection movement of the liquid will begin. The fluid, in turn, will drive the microturbine. The higher the temperature difference, the greater the power output.
The snow that has melted in the pool can be disposed of as ordinary melt water, and the usually snowy winters in the area will not allow the pool to be empty.
The system will be tested until March. It is expected that its efficiency will be comparable to the generation of energy by solar panels, and the environmental friendliness will be higher than that of wind generation. Indeed, the proposed solution with snow and a pool will have practically no waste, while solar panels and wind turbines are subject to disposal over time and cannot be completely recycled.
