Delft Hyperloop team: the first team in the world to add a track change to the Hyperloop.
This is a continuation of the article on the developments of the Hardt Hyperloop test track. On this track tests will be conducted with a prototype vehicle. Bakker Magnetics is supplying the magnetic levitation assemblies for this prototype. These assemblies are extremely powerful and allow the vehicle to levitate, ultimately resulting in a travel speed of over 700 km/h!
One of the magnetic levitation assemblies
First passenger test ride in 5.5 years!
The Delft Hyperloop student team was the first in the world to add a track change to the Hyperloop, the vacuum train that can float 1000 kilometers per hour through a tube. The first full-scale tests with passengers will be in 2030. “The vacuum train leaves for a different European city every 2 minutes. So you can be in Paris from Amsterdam within 30 minutes,” said Cem Celikbas, team captain of the Delft Hyperloop team.
Sustainable and peaceful travel
The Hyperloop works on the basis of magnetic propulsion. This means that no fossil fuels are needed in moving the pod, the capsule in which the passengers sit, forward. “Therefore, the Hyperloop is an attractive mode of transportation for people who want to travel sustainably,” Celikbas said. Karel van Dalen, associate professor of Dynamics of Structures at TU Delft, is also positive about Hyperloop developments. “There are doubts about the feasibility of “green” aviation. That’s why I’m glad the students are working on the alternative of this: the Hyperloop.”
More mobility
The student team expects a 150 percent increase on transportation by 2050. If current modes of transportation continue to be used, more fossil fuels will be emitted. “With the Hyperloop, you minimize fossil fuel emissions. This is because they are not needed to propel the pod,” Celikbas explained. In the Netherlands, Schiphol Airport could be a possible boarding point for Hyperloop travelers. This could disperse the crowds at the airport.
“The Hyperloop can depart for a European destination every 2 minutes, so travelers never have to wait long. This prevents unnecessary long queues and crowds at the airport. In addition, it offers Schiphol the opportunity to continue to grow in a sustainable way.”
Financially feasible
According to Delft Hyperloop, the construction of Hyperloop is realistic. After all, it costs the same as building a high-speed rail line. Another advantage is that there are almost no maintenance costs involved in a Hyperloop. In addition, fossil fuel emissions costs are not factored into the price of a ticket because they are simply not emitted. “As a result, a one-way trip on the Hyperloop can be cheaper than a one-way trip on a plane,” Celikbas said.
The Hyperloop is a means of transportation that combines the speed of an airplane with the comfort of a train. Because the capsule – also known as a pod – floats through a vacuum tube, there is no air and rolling resistance and the pod can travel up to 1,000 km/h. Magnetic propulsion, which works entirely electrically, also means no fossil fuels are emitted.
The Delft Hyperloop team consists of 39 students who all took a gap year at TU Delft to further innovate the Hyperloop. So every year a different batch of students works on the Hyperloop. On June 11, the student team will present a prototype of the fully floating means of transportation. This will take place at their workshop in the “Dream Hall,” located on the TU Delft campus.
The student team will travel to Zurich in July for the European Hyperloop Week 2024. There, the students will compete with more than 20 other international Hyperloop teams. The team’s goal here, as in previous years, is to show that Delft is the leader in Hyperloop technology. Delft Hyperloop won the competition in 2021 and 2022 and came in second in 2023.
As Bakker Magnetics, we are still very proud of our contribution to the hyperloop and will keep you updated on the continued success of the Student Team and wish them every success in the near future!
