In the far north of Japan, electricity must be generated from snow in a test project. To that end, a swimming pool at an abandoned primary school in the snowy town of Aomori was sealed with insulating material to keep the accumulated snow cold, the Kyodo News Agency reported Sunday.
The project, led by local IT start-up Forte Co. and the Tokyo University of Electronic Communications, aims to drive a turbine using energy generated when snow-cooled liquid evaporates from the heat of the surrounding air.
In Aomori, after heavy snowfall, large quantities are cleared off the streets and dumped into the sea every year. This results in high costs. The city now wants to use the project to investigate whether it is possible to generate electricity on a larger scale with the excess snow.
Electricity generation will start in the spring
This would prevent power outages in an environmentally friendly way, according to the company. “Snow is perceived as a nuisance, but we can make good use of it,” said a city official. Electricity generation is expected to start in the spring.
Challenges include finding a large enough facility to store snow and storing heated air in cold seasons, Kyodo reported. To achieve a large temperature difference, the company is considering using heat from natural hot springs. It is a renewable energy source that is unique in a region with heavy snowfall.
Source: Krone
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