- Gas turbine-electric locomotive
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Description
In a GTEL a turbine engine, similar to a
turboshaft engine, drives an output shaft that is in turn attached to anelectrical generator via a system ofgear s. This in turn powers thetraction motor s. In overall terms the system is very similar to a conventionaldiesel-electric , with the large diesel engine replaced with a smallergas turbine of similar power.A gas turbine offers some advantages over a
piston engine . There are few moving parts, decreasing the need forlubrication and potentially reducing maintenance costs, and thepower-to-weight ratio is much higher. A turbine of a given power output is also physically smaller than an equally powerful piston engine, allowing a locomotive to be very powerful without being inordinately large. However, a turbine's power output and efficiency both drop dramatically withrotational speed , unlike a piston engine, which has a comparatively flat power curve. This makes GTEL systems useful primarily for long-distance high-speed runs.Union Pacific operated the largest fleet of such locomotives of any railroad in the world, and was the only railroad to use them for hauling freight. Most other GTELs have been built for small passenger trains, and only a few have seen any real success in that role. After theoil crisis in the 1970s and the subsequent rise infuel costs, gas turbine locomotives became uneconomical to operate, and many were taken out of service. Additionally, Union Pacific's locomotives required more maintenance than originally anticipated, due to fouling of the turbine blades by theBunker C oil used as fuel. This type of locomotive is now rare.History
witzerland
Swiss Federal Railways agreed to test a gas turbine-electric locomotive Am 4/6 in 1939 and it was delivered in 1941/42. It was built by Brown Boveri with the unusualwheel arrangement of 1A-Bo-A1 and had a 2,200 horsepower (1.6 MW) turbine. This is one of the first applications of gas turbine technology of any sort;jet engine s in England and Germany were first being started at about this time and would not enter squadron use until 1944.United Kingdom
The
Great Western Railway ordered two gas turbine-electric locomotives in the 1940s but these were not delivered until afternationalisation . They were numbered 18000 and 18100 byBritish Railways . Number 18000 was built in Switzerland with a Brown Boveri industrial gas turbine of 2,500 horsepower (1.9 MW). In contrast, number 18100 was built in Britain byMetropolitan Vickers and had an aircraft-type gas turbine of 3,000horsepower (2.2 MW). Maximum speed, in both cases, was 90 miles per hour (145 km/h).The
British Rail APT-E , prototype of the failedAdvanced Passenger Train , was turbine-powered. Like the French TGV, later models were electric instead. This choice was made becauseBritish Leyland , the turbine supplier, ceased production of the model used in the APT-E.Fact|date=June 2007France
SNCF (French National Railways) used a number of gas-turbine trainsets, called theTurbotrain , in non-electrified territory. These typically consisted of apower car at each end with three cars between them. Turbotrain was in use up until2005 .The first
TGV prototype,TGV 001 , was also powered by a gas turbine, but steep oil prices prompted the change to overhead electric lines for power delivery.United States
Union Pacific ran a large fleet of turbine-powered freight locomotives starting in the 1950s. These were widely used on long-haul routes, and were economical due to their use of "leftover" fuels from the petroleum industry. At their height the railroad estimated that they powered about 10% of Union Pacific's freight trains, a much wider use than any other example of this class. As other uses were found for these heavier petroleum byproducts, notably for plastics, the cost of operating these units became uneconomical and they were retired from service by 1970.In the 1960s United Aircraft built the Turbo passenger train, which was tested by the
Pennsylvania Railroad and later used byAmtrak andVIA Rail . VIA's remained in service into the 1980s and had an excellent maintenance record during this period, but were eventually replaced by the LRC in 1982.Amtrak purchased two different types of turbine-powered
trainset s, which were both calledTurboliner s. The first set were similar in appearance to SNCF's Turbotrain, though compliance with FRA safety regulations made them heavier and slower than the French trains. None of the first set of Turboliners remain in service. Amtrak also added a number of similarly named Rohr Turboliners (or RTL) to its roster. A number of refurbished RTL IIIs are currently in service.Canada
Canadian National Railways (CN) was one of the operators of the Turbo, which were passed on toVIA Rail . They operated on the major Toronto-Montreal route between1968 and1982 , when they were replaced by the LRC.In
2002 ,Bombardier Transportation announced the launch of theJetTrain , a high-speed trainset consisting of tilting carriages and a locomotive powered by aPratt & Whitney turboshaft engine. No JetTrains have yet been sold for actual service.Russia
In
2007 Russian Railways started testing a new type of gas-turbine powered locomotive [http://www.parovoz.com/newgallery/?ID=87941&LNG=RU GT1-001] .The turbine produces 8.3 MW (11200 hp) and runs onliquefied natural gas .External links
* [http://donsdepot.donrossgroup.net/dr068.htm Photos of Union Pacific turbine locomotives, including the ill-fated no. 80]
* [http://www.greatwestern.org.uk/m_in_cas_18000.htm British Railways 18000]
* [http://www.voepelm.de/t_b/sbb5/SBB%20Am%204-6%201101/SBB%20Am%204-6%201101.htm Swiss gas turbine-electric locomotive]References
* [http://www.uprr.com/aboutup/history/loco/locohs05.shtml Historical UP locomotives: Gas turbine locomotives]
* [http://www.northeast.railfan.net/pro_faq2.html#turbine Gas Turbine locomotive FAQ]
* [http://www.northeast.railfan.net/turbine_faq.html Gas turbines FAQ - NE Rails]
* [http://utahrails.net/up/diesels/up-diesel-story-1934-1982-c.php Union Pacific story 1934-1982 part 3]
* [http://www.railpower.com/2support/locomotives.htm Locomotive Engineers Journal; July, 1949]
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