Publication Date

1-2-2021

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Energies

Volume

14

Issue

2

DOI

10.3390/en14020464

Abstract

The Hyperloop is a concept for the high-speed ground transportation of passengers traveling in pods at transonic speeds in a partially evacuated tube. It consists of a low-pressure tube with capsules traveling at both low and high speeds throughout the length of the tube. When a high-speed system travels through a low-pressure tube with a constrained diameter such as in the case of the Hyperloop, it becomes an aerodynamically challenging problem. Airflow tends to get choked at the constrained areas around the pod, creating a high-pressure region at the front of the pod, a phenomenon referred to as the “piston effect.” Papers exploring potential solutions for the piston effect are scarce. In this study, using the Reynolds-Average Navier–Stokes (RANS) technique for three-dimensional computational analysis, the aerodynamic performance of a Hyperloop pod inside a vacuum tube is studied. Further, aerofoil-shaped fins are added to the aeroshell as a potential way to mitigate the piston effect. The results show that the addition of fins helps in reducing the drag and eddy currents while providing a positive lift to the pod. Further, these fins are found to be effective in reducing the pressure build-up at the front of the pod.

Funding Sponsor

San José State University

Keywords

Aerodynamic design, Hyperloop, Optimization of airflow, Plunger effect

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Department

Mechanical Engineering

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