Class 614 Hydrogen Train

The ex-Class 314 was renumbered today at Bo'ness.
Its new running number is 614209.

https://realrail.smugmug.com/Trains/Bon ... -RD6tX3S/A

DAH
https://realrail.smugmug.com/Trains

 

Really appreciated those links, so many thanks for posting. This one is a fascinating project, concerning which I'll be digging deeper. If successful (i.e. no gremlins, rather than the underlying tech ... which has already been shown sound), it bodes well for rendering full transition to a decarbonised* railway a lot more cost-effective.

Hadn't seen one of those portable train weighers in use before.

*does everyone else's spell checker still throw a wobbler with words like 'decarbonistation'?

 

We had a Weighwell in So'ton West Docks when the Railtrack ballast contract was running. It worked fine, but because it was installed on a long term basis it had every train banging over it. It works by transferring the load to the wheel flange which runs across the load cell.
Pat

 

An interesting project but the link is not working properly for me. (Opera browser)

A quick search found this which gives some background:
https://www.railengineer.co.uk/scotlands-hydrogen-train/

 

I had the same problem but... the first link isn't complete (hence the error message) but if you click on the second link which is direct to the OPs photos the album can be clicked to from there - it is two clicks instead of one

 

I hope the judgement of success includes type of conversation (green, blue etc) and carbon in fuel transfer, the energy involved in production (3 or 4 W to provide 1W of hydrogen), speed and range (operating at line/ stock speed and full diagram), passenger capacity (the 321 loses a carriage to carrying the fuel) etc.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to see a successful trial with green hydrogen produced efficiently at source. I suspect however that it’ll be declared a success with hydrogen produced remotely from grey/blue/offset green sources and the train operated on short routes, limited speeds/diagrams etc.

Patrick

 

In the short term, when they're developing the trains, it hardly matters where the hydrogen comes from, though obviously the whole project makes sense only if it can be properly green in the long term.

 

I do take the point, but as you say hydrogen trains are in service and production elsewhere already, so I’m not sure what the ‘success’ of this demonstrator is meant to be?


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For me, "success" would be demonstrating a train that could be used within UK loading gauge for a meaningful distance, without hydrogen storage impinging upon the passenger space. In 1938, London Underground introduced a mass fleet of trains that moved all of the traction equipment underfloor, and allowed maximal use of finite platforms; over 80 years later, I find it deeply depressing that one of the other hydrogen demonstrators takes a mainline sized 4 car unit, removes one car, and then fills 2 half cars with hydrogen storage. Talk about a backward step.

 

O/T the Stadler FLIRT family has all the gubbins above floor height on both their emus and bimodes in order to give a low floor train throughout. They market it as a USP

Patrick


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And they achieve that at the cost of short power cars mid unit on the diesel sets. I’m not clear where the hydrogen storage would go on such a hydrogen powered unit.


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Single cab loco + hydrogen tender + Nova 3 trailer set


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Couple of thing are for certain, if things go wrong they'll go like a rocket. And when/if it goes bang anybody left alive will glow in the dark......

 

Isn't that what'll happen if someone cocks up converting a steam loco to thorium firing?

 

More pics added to the ex-Class 314 ( now Class 614 ) Hydrogen conversion gallery:
https://realrail.smugmug.com/Trains/Bon ... unk-Works/

DAH
https://realrail.smugmug.com/Trains
https://www.youtube.com/user/BONESS27001/videos

 

Class 614 Hydrogen No Nonsense train update at Bo'ness.
Video at;


DAH

https://realrail.smugmug.com/Trains
https://www.youtube.com/user/BONESS27001/videos