[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 149 (Tuesday, November 27, 2012)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1816]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    CONGRATULATING PROFESSOR LEI ZUO

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. TIMOTHY H. BISHOP

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 27, 2012

  Mr. BISHOP of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and 
congratulate Professor Lei Zuo of Stony Brook University and his 
students, Teng Lin and John Wang, for their tremendous achievement as 
their project was recently named Best Application of Energy Harvesting 
at the Energy Harvesting and Storage USA 2012 conference.
  There has been a significant progress over the last couple of decades 
to find new and innovative ways to generate, store, and harness energy 
in an efficient, cost-effective, and environmentally-friendly manner. 
This is exactly what Professor Zuo and his team have done. The project, 
entitled ``Mechanical Motion Rectifier (MMR) based Railroad Energy 
Harvester,'' has the potential to revolutionize the way in which 
railroad equipment is powered.
  Professor Zuo and his team have been studying various uses for MMR 
technology. They first created a device that can be retrofitted to 
automobiles and use vibrational energy captured as the car travels to 
recharge the battery and power other electronic components. They then 
turned their attention to other industries in which the technology 
might be useful. The railroad industry presented the type of challenge 
the team was looking for.
  In order to operate the over one hundred thousand miles of track 
throughout the United States efficiently and with as few train 
accidents as possible, the industry utilizes a system of signal lights, 
crossing gates, and track switches. Each of these systems requires 
electricity to operate, which often means having to find a way to 
install and maintain power sources in remote or hard-to-access 
locations.
  The device created by the team at Stony Brook University can be 
installed on train tracks without much difficulty. It collects the 
unusable up-and-down vibrational energy created by train cars passing 
over the tracks; this type of energy is generally wasted. The collected 
energy is then converted into unidirectional energy that can be used to 
power the safety components needed to operate the rail system. The 
creation of electricity at the location where it is needed will save 
time and money that would otherwise be required to install, maintain, 
and repair electrical lines connected to the components. Over the long 
run, this technology will help increase the efficiency of rail systems 
and, hopefully, cut down on costly service disruptions.
  I thank Professor Zuo and his team for their important work on energy 
harvesting. It is critical that we find new and innovative ways to 
increase energy efficiency. Projects such as this, which find ways to 
capture energy that would otherwise be lost, are the key to unlocking 
new avenues of green technology. I also wish to congratulate Stony 
Brook University, which I am very proud to represent in Congress, for 
its continuing support for innovative breakthroughs in science and 
technology.
  Mr. Speaker, on behalf of New York's first congressional district, I 
again congratulate Professor Zuo and his team on the well-deserved 
recognition they have received and wish them success in their future 
research endeavors.

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