Discipline: Technology and Engineering
Subcategory: Civil/Mechanical/Manufacturing Engineering
Ana Karen Dominguez - University of California Irvine
Co-Author(s): Bander Linjawi, University of California Irvine
The future of transportation is being redefined by newer and better technologies. Ellon Musk imposed the idea of Hyperloop and identifies it as the fifth mode of transportation. The idea is presented in competition between multiple universities, where a pod is designed to run in a tube under vacuum. The prediction is that our pod will be able to run at 213 mph using an air levitation system. Since a levitation system has not been designed in the past for a high speed vehicle, the research resources available to us are limited. By using a hover design for the levitation system, we predict that the Hyperxite will be able to run. It is extremely important to conduct through research of our system’s design in order to be able to run our pod safely on the track. However, for a successful design, it is important to understand the distribution of the forces through the pod structure. This summer, the Hyperxite team focused on running multiple computer simulations of the main components that make up the structure of the pod. Additional individual research has been done to understand the material property of Carbon Fiber Honeycomb sandwich plates, the material we are using for our pod, in order to simulate it more precisely. The main assemblies that were analyzed were the magnetic braking system, the center core of the pod, the suspension plates, and the tank plates. The majority of the results for each simulation were positive but multiple modification had to be done to make improvements. Once the structural simulations were done, a modal analysis would be done to predict the movement of the pod at high velocities. However, due to the time constraint and technical difficulties, the vibrational analysis has not been complete. Currently, the team is conducting small scale tests to predict the motion of the pod. However, we are still unable to accurately predict the performance of the brakes and the levitation speed in vacuum at high speeds. The full scale tests are scheduled to take place in November at a speed of 50 mph. The full scale final run with SpaceX will take place in January. By then we will be able to confirm our predictions of the pod.
Funder Acknowledgement(s): The Hyperxite team and I would like to thank the UC Irvine Engineering Dean, Gregory Washing, for the help in funding and the Elite Aviation (E3) for lending us their space to work in building the pod. We would also like to thank the 20 other sponsors that have made this $100,000 project possible, we couldn’t have made this happened without them.
Faculty Advisor: Roger Rangel, rhrangel@uci.edu
Role: I focused on the computer analysis of the mechanical systems of the pod. In addition, I also took part in the small scale physical testing of the materials.