An interesting idea: Run electric trucks downhill as an alternative to dams. All that’s needed would be existing roads, e-trucks, and small rivers, and cost about half that of conventional hydropower. Dams are the world’s largest source of not necessarily green renewable electricity. Expensive to build, they can displace wildlife and people, cause droughts, and emit greenhouse gases. This idea uses an electric truck to transport water down a mountain and transform the water’s potential energy into electricity to charge the truck’s battery. Containers would be filled with river water at the top of a mountain. When full, the truck would go downhill. Brakes used during the downhill ride, would charge the truck’s battery with the regenerative braking system. At the bottom, water from the tank would be released back into the river, and the truck’s battery would be removed to provide electricity to the local grid. The truck would return with an empty tank and another battery with enough juice to get the truck up the hill.
Source: J. Hunt et al. Electric Truck Hydropower, a Flexible Solution to Hydropower in Mountainous Regions. Energy, 2022.
www.anthropocenemagazine.org/2022/03/electric-trucks-could-be-an-unusual-but-more-ecofriendly-alternative-to-dams/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=electric-trucks-could-be-an-unusual-but-more-ecofriendly-alternative-to-dams