Australian technology may help generate power from defunct gold mines in Kolar Gold Fields

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An Australian renewable-energy company’s unique scheme to generate electricity may resuscitate the fortunes of one of India’s iconic but defunct gold mines, namely the  Kolar Gold Fields (KGF), in Karnataka .


A hiccup that makes renewable energy unreliable, from solar or wind power, is that there is no power during nights or windless days. Charging a battery to use as a backup during this downtime hikes power prices. While the common approach to addressing this challenge is to design them better, find more efficient conducting materials and install large battery farms to store power, Green Gravity’s idea is to rely on low-tech gravity.


Their plan is to find defunct mines, which often go hundreds or even thousands of metres deep, and haul a ‘weighted block’ — this could be as much as 40 tonnes — up to the top of the mine shaft using renewable power during the day when such power is available. When backup power is required, the heavy block will fall, under gravity, and the ensuing momentum will power a generator via a connected shaft (or rotor). The depth to which the block can slip can be determined via a braking system, thus giving control on the amount of power that can be produced.

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So basically a mechanical battery. Probably just an experiment ie. non commercial project.

Benevolent Benevolent
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igen wrote:

So basically a mechanical battery. Probably just an experiment ie. non commercial project.

Nothing new goes back to 1900's & a lot of functional system are already working to provide power in various countries. Can Look for PUMPED STORAGE HYDROPOWER which is kind of same thing.

Benevolent Benevolent
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Renewable's are bleeding & power demand's are soaring specially the so called hydro power even though it's good but definitely not as clean as it looks like. The effects on ecology due to these massive dams are devastating a recent example is of uttrakhand as there's are so many projects going on without even understanding the geology of the area & goes same around the globe.

It's good that alternatives are being looked as these small productions can be really helpful instead of building something humongous at one place. But sadly most of times these projects funded by western countries are only more or less ways of corruption & caring least about that place & it's people.

The Alpha The Alpha
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So kgf is real?

Analyst Analyst
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Ash-D wrote:
power demand's are soaring
Mostly a lot of it is just power wastage in the name of blah blah blah... Last week we had Earth Day, and oh boy I was just laughing at the mockery... I think it's high time people start caring just a tiny bit about the environment...
Benevolent Benevolent
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BlueFlash wrote:
Mostly a lot of it is just power wastage in the name of blah blah blah... Last week we had Earth Day, and oh boy I was just laughing at the mockery... I think it's high time people start caring just a tiny bit about the environment...

Indeed bro & amazing part is it's when unlike European countries where most of people use all sorts of appliances regularly unlike here where a majority only use very basic ones & even the things like Ac or washing machine is not a regular thing.

But times are changing as soon as these things will reach a major chunk & become a day to day thing I can't even imagine how the power demands are gonna meet.



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