The Maglev Cobra is a Brazilian

maglev train Maglev (derived from ''magnetic levitation'') is a system of rail transport whose rolling stock is levitated by electromagnets rather than rolled on wheels, eliminating rolling resistance. Compared to conventional railways, maglev trains ha ...

, which was developed at UFRJ (Federal University of Rio de Janeiro) by Coppe (Instituto Alberto Luiz Coimbra for Graduate Studies and Research in Engineering) and by the Polytechnic School through the LASUP (Laboratory of Applications of Superconductors). The Brazilian train, like the German maglev, floats on the tracks, having friction only with the air during its displacement. It is based on

levitation Levitation, Levitate, or Levitating may refer to: Concepts *Levitation (illusion), an illusion where a magician appears to levitate a person or object *Levitation (paranormal), the claimed paranormal phenomenon of levitation, occurring without an ...

superconductivity Superconductivity is a set of physical properties observed in superconductors: materials where Electrical resistance and conductance, electrical resistance vanishes and Magnetic field, magnetic fields are expelled from the material. Unlike an ord ...

(which means its floor needs to be fueled with liquid nitrogen), moving without friction with the ground through a short primary linear motor, thereby avoiding

greenhouse gas Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are the gases in the atmosphere that raise the surface temperature of planets such as the Earth. Unlike other gases, greenhouse gases absorb the radiations that a planet emits, resulting in the greenhouse effect. T ...

emissions, and

noise pollution Noise pollution, or sound pollution, is the propagation of noise or sound with potential harmful effects on humans and animals. The source of outdoor noise worldwide is mainly caused by machines, transport and propagation systems.Senate Publi ...

Overview

The prototype was presented in 2009 by the professor who created the project, Richard Stephen, which consisted of creating the first route within the university, and a module (wagon) with capacity for 28 people that would travel at 30 km/h. In 2018, the test line was being operated in the testing phase in a 200-meter stretch, on the premises of the University City of UFRJ, connecting two buildings of the Technological Center and transporting more than a thousand students everyday. Having successfully completed the testing phase, the University has issued an application for international certification and is awaiting the result of its approval to begin with its industrial production. In 2020, the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

ended up making it difficult for UFRJ to search for partners in order to enable the expansion of Maglev, the project that could be a cheaper and more sustainable option for public transport is currently abandoned in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

, due to lack of investments.

Superconductivity-based levitation

Its levitation occurs due to a superconducting ceramic plate which is cooled with

nitrogen Nitrogen is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a Nonmetal (chemistry), nonmetal and the lightest member of pnictogen, group 15 of the periodic table, often called the Pnictogen, pnictogens. ...

and, when approaching magnetized rails by means of magnets – made from an

alloy An alloy is a mixture of chemical elements of which in most cases at least one is a metal, metallic element, although it is also sometimes used for mixtures of elements; herein only metallic alloys are described. Metallic alloys often have prop ...

neodymium Neodymium is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Nd and atomic number 60. It is the fourth member of the lanthanide series and is considered to be one of the rare-earth element, rare-earth metals. It is a hard (physics), hard, sli ...

(Nd),

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

(Fe) and

boron Boron is a chemical element; it has symbol B and atomic number 5. In its crystalline form it is a brittle, dark, lustrous metalloid; in its amorphous form it is a brown powder. As the lightest element of the boron group it has three ...

(B) –, it causes the effect of levitation. The researchers carry out bench tests with the isolated components, including a module that was able to support the weight of six adults, to then assemble the vehicle and test all the interconnected components.

Overview

Superconductivity-based levitation

References

Further reading