Advancement in Railways

In 1910, all trains were driven by steam engines. Not until the 1950's were dieselpowered trains introduced. By 1962, most of the trains in almost every part of India were diesel-powered. In 1982, the first stage of electrification for the Railway was completed, and electric trains are still in use today.

Fig. 1 Steam locomotive in a Railway Museum

Fig. 2 Diesel locomotive in a Railway Museum

The development from steam-hauled trains to diesel-powered trains, and then to electric trains were advances in transportation made possible by technological development. Performance and energy efficiency were improved, and the operation costs were reduced consequently. The following table gives a comparison between steam, diesel and electric as the mode of power used in trains. Steam locomotives are much less energy efficient than diesel or electric locomotives, while the latter two are comparable. So the change from steam locomotive to diesel or electric locomotive had significant benefits in terms of energy efficiency. Thermal efficiency of locomotive(%) Steam locomotive Diesel locomotive Electric locomotive 8.0 30.0 25.0 Energy intensity of transport(per ktkm 1) 17.0 kg coal 2.6 kg diesel 12.16 kWh Transport efficiency of energy (tkm 2 / MJ) 1.35 5.91 5.25

Source: Yearbook House of China Transportation and Communications 1999 1 ktkm stands for kilo-tonne kilometre. For example, the figure indicates that on average a steam locomotive consumes 17 kg of coal to transport every metric kilo-ton of the train by one kilometre.

While the cost of building electrified track for electric trains is rather high, electric locomotives are significantly cheaper to run than diesel ones. Therefore, changing from diesel to electrified trains helps reduce the operation costs. Another advantage of electric trains over diesel-powered trains is that the former are more environmentally friendly. Diesel trains produce exhaust gas from the burning of diesel on board the trains. Fig. 3 Electrified trains produce much less pollution than diesel powered trains. The exhaust gas produced causes pollution to areas where the trains are travelling. As for electricity-powered trains, exhaust gas produced during the generation of electricity occurs at power stations which are usually far from urban areas. There is a special railway system in hong kong named as MTR, the Mass Transit Railway .The MTR travels a lot underground and in urban areas. Thus, it is important that the trains do not pollute these areas. When the MTR started service in 1979, all its trains were powered by electricity right from the beginning.

Magnetic levitation (MagLev) trains

Ordinary trains are propelled forward by the rolling of the train wheels on the railway. Friction between the wheels and the railway is unavoidable. Technological advancements in recent years have made it possible to have trains that "float" above the track without the need of any physical support, eliminating the friction between the train and the track. This kind of train is levitated by magnetic force and is thus known as a magnetic levitated train (MagLev). It is very difficult to maintain stable levitation of an object by using permanent magnets alone. In some Fig. 4 A spinning top levitated in air by a special cases, when the object is in magnetic field motion (e.g. spinning), stable levitation can be achieved. See the following figure for a spinning top levitated in air by a magnetic field . Magnetic levitation of trains is achieved by state of the art technology. Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of magnetic levitation train systems. German engineers have

developed an electromagnetic suspension (EMS) system which uses powerful electromagnets to provide an attractive lifting force on the train. Japanese engineers, on the other hand, have developed an electrodynamics suspension (EDS) system which uses superconducting magnets cooled by liquid helium, and track with wound coils to provide a repulsive lifting force.

Electromagnetic Suspension System:

The EMS attractive levitation system is shown in Fig. 5. Electromagnets (called support magnets) are attached to the train and powered by batteries on the train. There are coils (called stators) built into the lower surface of the track (called the guideway). The coils are comprised of sheets of steel and coil windings. When the electromagnets are switched on, the attractive force between the electromagnets and the coils levitates the train. Guidance electromagnets are located on the side to keep the train in position laterally. To stabilize the levitation, a feedback system that utilizes gap sensors keeps the gaps between the train and the guideway at prescribed width. The gap sensors attached to the train contain oscillatory circuits that induce eddy currents in the stators under the guideway. When the gap width changes, mutual electromagnetic induction between the gap sensors and the stators will produce characteristic signals in the oscillatory circuit. The signals are analysed and used to regulate the power delivered to the electromagnets of the train, maintaining the prescribed gap width. In engineering, this kind of control is known as feedback control. One can find toys that achieve stable magnetic levitation using feedback control (Fig. 6).

The power to the train's electromagnets comes from batteries on the train. A charging system is also installed on the train. As the train travels, the stators under the guide way produce a changing magnetic field to charge up the batteries on board the train by electromagnetic induction. The world's first commercially operated MagLev train system is located in Shanghai and it uses the EMS attractive system for levitation. It operates between the Pudong International Airport and the financial centre in Lujiazui, with a single trip distance of about 30 km. The train travels at a high speed over 400 kmh-1 and the trip takes only about 7 to 8 minutes.

Fig. 7 The MagLev in Shanghai is so far the only commercially operated MagLev in the world.

Fig. 8 It takes only 7 to 8 minutes to travel from Lujiazui to Shanghai Pudong International Airport by MagLev.

Electrodynamics suspension system (EDS) The EDS repulsive levitation system has superconducting electromagnets on board the train. Being cooled to a low temperature by liquid helium and nitrogen, the coils of these electromagnets have extremely low resistance (superconducting). Thus, Fig. 9 The guide way of the electrodynamics they allow a large current to flow with suspension system is installed with guidancelittle energy dissipation, producing a levitation coils. strong magnetic field. On the track (guide way) there are guidance-levitation coils that are wound in the shape of an "8" (Fig. 9). When the train travels along the guide way, the superconducting magnets pass by the guidance-levitation coils and create a changing magnetic flux in the coils. By electromagnetic induction, currents are induced in the coils, and these currents produce a magnetic force to levitate the train. When the centre of the superconducting magnets is at the same vertical level as the mid-point of the "8"-shaped guidancelevitation coils, stable levitation of the train is achieved (Fig. 10a). If the train falls below this levitated equilibrium position, the magnetic flux through the upper and lower part of the "8"-shaped coils will change, and a current with direction as shown in Fig. 10b will be induced in the guidance-levitation coils, producing a net upward magnetic force (Fig. 10c) to restore the train to its levitated equilibrium position.

Fig. 10 (a) In equilibrium levitation, the centre of the superconducting magnet (grey area) in the train is at the same vertical level as the midpoint of the "8"-shaped guidance-levitation coil. (b) If the magnet falls below this position, the changing magnetic flux induces a current in the coil in the direction shown. (c) The magnetic force between the coil and the magnet has a net upward component to restore the train to its equilibrium position. As the induced current in the coil increases with the rate of change of magnetic field, the upward magnetic force will only be strong enough to levitate the train when the train is travelling at a high enough speed. Thus for the Japanese system, the train travels on wheels at first and levitation only begins when the train has reached a high enough speed. Energy efficiency of MagLev MagLev trains can travel much faster than ordinary trains because friction between the train and the track is minimized. Energy loss due to friction is much reduced and hence MagLev trains are generally more energy efficient than ordinary trains. Without friction, MagLev trains produce much less noise and need fewer mechanical repairs. However, the main disadvantage of MagLev is its very high construction costs. Building the guide way for a MagLev is expensive and this is why the MagLev is not popular in most countries.