ODU to sell unused material to keep maglev research on track

NORFOLK

About 134 tons of steel and 50 tons of aluminum are rusting atop an idle magnetic levitation train guideway at Old Dominion University.

Meanwhile, money is running low for ODU's maglev research.

So Thomas E. Alberts, an aerospace engineering professor and leader of the university's maglev research efforts, hatched a plan to sell the track materials as scrap metal to fund continued development of a maglev prototype.

Crews last week began tearing out valuable metal bolted to about 2,200 feet of the elevated concrete guideway.

Alberts said he expects it to fetch about $60,000 in an online auction - enough to keep research moving forward for another year.

"We're funding ourselves with this surplus," Alberts said.

ODU's research team is working to develop an affordable, energy-efficient, low- to medium-speed maglev train that could be used in urban settings. The only commercial maglev in the world, a high-speed train in China, cost billions of dollars to develop and billions more to build.

Maglev uses magnets to float a train over elevated tracks, making it environmentally friendly and easily adaptable in urban environments.

The university's maglev team was assembled after earlier attempts to develop a maglev transportation system in partnership with private industry failed both technically and financially.

The leader of that earlier effort, American Maglev Technology Inc. of Georgia, assembled the guideway in 2001. After its prototype failed and money ran out, the line sat idle except for a small section on the west end for trial runs of the ODU team's test sled, or bogie.

"Most of the track has never been used, never even been aligned. It's just sitting there all rusty - it looks ugly," Alberts said. "Getting it out of there will make the guideway look better."

Alberts said his team will continue to use a section of track near Powhatan Avenue that has been aligned, but it will add a new section of track team members designed to better interact with their test vehicle. The new 80-foot section of track cost $30,000 to manufacture.

Alberts said it should allow the test sled to run smoother and build up speed. While the track work continues, ODU researchers are making adjustments to improve the performance of the test vehicle, including new electronic components and a higher voltage. In addition, they're assembling a protective waterproof shell with a windshield that will make the bogie look more like an actual vehicle.

The refined test bogie may be ready for trial runs on the guideway in the fall, Alberts said.

In addition, ODU has partnered with a Massachusetts-based company to test another maglev train on its campus.

MagneMotion Inc. is expected to bring its prototype maglev vehicle, which is about the size of a van, to the campus within the next year. It will install its own tracks on a portion of the guideway. A first phase of testing was done on a 160-foot test track at the company's headquarters.

Once the MagneMotion vehicle arrives, ODU will provide technical support and full-scale testing on campus. Initial tests would be conducted jointly, with ODU later assuming full testing responsibilities.

The partnership, announced two years ago, has received support from a $7.9 million federally funded program. About $700,000 will go to ODU for its role.

The partnership could help the university fulfill a goal of becoming a nationally renowned research center for maglev development.

Debbie Messina, (757) 446-2588, debbie.messina@pilotonline.com