Imagine traveling from New York to Los
Angeles by car in 10.5 hours, while the rail system you are
running on is producing enough extra hydrogen to power 70
percent or more of the nation’s entire energy demand at no
extra charge? Sounds impossible?
Don’t bet against it. If a young group of
dedicated pioneers have their way, within a year ground could
be broken on a new kind of accelerated highway across America
that runs on clean-burning hydrogen-powered magnetic
levitation (MagLev) rails, transporting automobiles, freight
and people at up to 250 mph. An article about this unusual
project appeared in the ACSA Advances magazine
(http://www.acsa2000.net/hshrt) recently.
This new, so-called "Hydrogen Super
Highway," the "Trailblazer," is one that can
almost silently carry cars, passengers and freight between
major metropolitan areas—reportedly with absolutely no fuel
cost, and an amazing benefit. If all goes well: once completed
Trailblazer could potentially produce enough excess hydrogen
from its built-in solar panel arrays to power all of America,
say proponents, with near zero environmental consequences.
Unlike today’s oil, coal and nuclear
fuels, hydrogen from solar cells has no long-term toxic
emissions, and produces only oxygen and clean water. A new
process, Amorphous Silicon Thin Films, produces high
output solar cells without many of the environmental
byproducts of previous solar cell manufacture. And so, America
could very well be powered by a new source of sustainable,
clean hydrogen before not very long, if the Trailblazer is
built!
The Trailblazer is designed so that long
distance travelers and freight can travel in style, at very
low cost. Stations at key locations and emergency centers
provide services for the system at no extra cost. Even
propelling vehicles at 250 mph, the new system will still have
enough solar panel energy available during daylight hours to
produce additional hydrogen for sale to business and the
general public in abundance, says the Interstate Traveler
Company (http://www.interstatetraveler.us ).
The hydrogen fuel provided by the
Trailblazer for general use is called "Hydroline™"
by the ACSA (the American Computer Scientists Association Inc.— http://acsa.net ).
Hydroline™ is a slightly compressed form
of hydrogen obtained when electrons from a solar energy panel
are fed to ordinary water. It is cooled and stored within the conduit that is part of the rail system. When needed, it is fed to
fuel cells for electricity production or to Hydroline™-powered
internal combustion engines which burn the fuel cleanly,
yielding only water and heat.
The startup company, Interstate Traveler
Company, (http://www.interstatetraveler.us ) has been
"adopted" by the American Computer Science
Association as "the wave of the future, now!"
According to the ACSA, who has studied the company’s plans
in depth, Trailblazer advances a truly revolutionary
technology solution: one which has broken down the barriers to
a ready supply of cheap, hydrogen energy for the future clean
energy economy of America.
Dr. Jack A. Shulman, VISTA (the Very
Innovative Science and Technology Advances Laboratory at ACSA)
coordinator stated: "The secretary of the US Department
of Energy recently advised that we buy 98 quadrillion BTUs of
energy every year in America. He says we will need 120 quads
by 2020. We spend nearly $500 billion on energy annually. It
looks to us at ACSA like Mr. Sutton’s Interstate Traveler
solution will change everything. It will make it far easier to
get from Washington to Chicago in three hours. If it works,
its hydrogen from solar production system could reduce the
entire cost of energy in America by $100 billion per year by
the end of its first construction year, $200 billion its
second year, $300 billion the third, $400 billion in the
fourth. If the company’s estimates are correct: by the end
of the fifth year the Interstate Traveler’s built-in
solar-to-hydrogen converters could be paying for nearly all of
America’s energy needs."
"That’s great news for America! It
could spell an end to dependency on non-sustainable energy
sources like oil and coal, and an end to our dependency on
foreign fuel, while it can be redirected to making lubricants,
chemicals and plastics."
Trailblazer’s high speed MagLev transit
system does represent a unique scheduling, piloting, energy
management and maintenance opportunity for any automation
system. But, reportedly, representatives of such major
companies as Sun Microsystems and Microsoft appear to agree
that it could route its rail cars, in high volume and at high
velocity, about the same way the Internet schedules itself.
That would allow the MagLev rail cars to carry people, autos
and freight at 250 mph and switch off to a future elaborate
ramp of commuter branches. When offloading, drivers would have
to "gas up" from the inexpensive hydrogen at the
off-ramp of the system at their destination.
"Then, what we call ‘gas stations’
today would truly be ‘GAS’ stations…" stated Dr.
Shulman with a twinkle in his eyes. "While the
interstates are 54,000 miles long, ITC could also build along
the 90,000 or so miles of rail corridors, tripling the
hydrogen output. It will also have enough fiber optic cabling
within its system to massively expand today’s Internet
backbones by an order of magnitude."
Dr. Shulman commented: "Obviously,
this solution solves many problems, and is highly scalable.
Yet its key is the HydroSol™ process used to produce
Hydroline™ (Hydrogen in a storable, slightly compressed
form, or Hydrol™ for short). ACSA was always attracted to
hydrogen from solar (HydroSol) energy, because: "once
commercially rendered feasible, it is the cleanest, soundest
way to obtain energy. One is literally ‘mining sunlight for
electrons’ and then, converting ordinary water into hydrogen
and oxygen with it. In this case, the hydrogen Hydrol™ is
not only clean burning, whatever it takes from the
environment, it puts nearly all of that back—heat, water,
oxygen… and it can do nothing but improve the earth’s
atmosphere, not even a trace of pollution is available from a
hydrogen engine or fuel cell…."
The Interstate Traveler’s conceiver,
Justin Eric Sutton, has been described by the ACSA as:
"an extraordinary scientist and an outstanding and
brilliant entrepreneur, who has hit upon an amazing
multi-disciplinary solution to problems that face us in
America today, namely: energy and how to obtain it cleanly and
inexpensively." Dr. Shulman recently indicated that he
felt that Sutton (and his partners) would eventually take his
place among the "great pioneers" in American
history, such as Howard Hughes, Wiley Post, Robert Moses,
Alexander Graham Bell, Henry Ford and others.
The Interstate Traveler’s transit system
is said to use new medium size automobile carriers and small
passenger/freight carrying MagLev cars that would travel
between cities at breathtaking speed. Interest in the new
system has ranged far and wide, including some pretty powerful
state government bodies such as the state of Oklahoma and the
state of Michigan, purportedly. And it has reportedly
interested many in the big three automobile manufacturers and
abroad.
The Trailblazer has been designed with
safety in mind, and security, with emergency response rail
cars throughout the system able to speed to any repair point
at 250 mph in a few minutes. Fireproofing, weatherproofing and
delivery systems for stations to easily obtain and sell
Hydroline™ are also fully planned for. Most major auto
manufacturers have already designed for conversion to hydrogen
power (Hydroline™).
ACSA is at this time anticipating
widespread support for the Trailblazer among its business
affiliations and the membership.
Copyright © Written
by Edison Park, freelance journalist: exclusive to the
ACSA Inc. 2005. All rights reserved. Hydroline,™
Hydrosol,™ and Hydrol™ are trademarks of the
American Computer Scientists Association, Inc.
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