At 9.1 m long, 4.2 m wide, and 4.2 m tall, the ‘eDumper’ isn’t an obvious candidate for electrification. But eMining AG didn’t just paint the stock dump truck green. The company also added a 600 kWh battery pack to the vehicle – enough to power six long-range Tesla Model S cars. Those lithium batteries tack on another 4 000 kg.
Here’s how it works: The eDumper weighs approximately 41 tons and ascends a hill at, say, a 13 per cent grade. On the way back down, it’s now carrying 59 tons of ore. To rectify that scenario, the truck’s regenerative braking system actually recaptures the energy created by going downhill, refilling the battery’s charge for the next time the truck travels uphill.
This story is from the September/October 2020 edition of Popular Mechanics South Africa.
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This story is from the September/October 2020 edition of Popular Mechanics South Africa.
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