Speed Challenge Train Unveiled

150 ms^-1 (540 Km/h 356 mph) is one very fast train.

Thanks for doing the math for me Masu... I was just about to grab the calculator.

Bill

At those sort of speeds the wheel/rail interaction depends very greatly upon the aerodynamics of the vehicle. Aircraft take off at lower speeds than this, and rail wear is very much a function of the weight (or strictly, the force) applied to the rail at each wheel. One would need some very fast infrastructure to support it, with great smoothness and flatness, whatever that means.

The suggestion is that the Japanese would go for a maglev [magnetic levitation] at those speeds.

A 2km coal train carrying 10,000 tonnes has 15Mw of locomotive power (QR Bowen Basin, 5 Electric Locos). This baby sure sucks the juice.

I once saw one of these 2km monsters concertina into about 200m in a major derailment, hate to think what 540km would do.

I remember seeing somewhere that the Germans pushed one of their ICE trains to over 400 Km/h (111 ms^-1) and I think they got to 450 Km/h (125 ms^-1) but I can't find any reference to confirm this.

At any rate 540 Km/h (150 ms^-1) is considerably faster and given the trouble the Germans had at 400 Km/h it isn't going to be easy to do. I doubt you could use normal traction type propulsion as the amount of energy you are trying to get from the wheels to the track is going to cause some serious wheel slip. The only way I can see it working is to use some sort of linear motor.

Has anybody got any idea how the French plan to get their train to travel at 150 ms^-1. More to the point, has anybody got any idea why the French plan to get a train to travel at 150 ms^-1.

"Pourqoi", c'est facile: La France à beaucoup d'éléctricité, thanks to its investment in nuclear power stations. One can use electricity to power trains. It hasn't got much oil. One needs oil products to power aircraft. Development of high-speed transport networks based upon its internal resources is a high priority for this nation, and therefore rail will win. Look up the french word "chauvin" in a dictionary. Look up "TGV" and "EUROSTAR" on the 'net. Compare with Charles de Gaulle airport and all will become apparent. Mon dieu!

A quick back-of-the-envelope calculation would indicate that each 3ft 6in diameter wheelset (weighing around 1 tonne) would be doing around 45 revolutions per second, or 2700rpm.

The "Best of British" to them.

Hi folks,

I just saw a news article that said they actually got the train up to 574.8 Km/h (159.67 ms^-1, 357 mph, 310 Kt) on a new segment of track that the train will use when brought into service. The train uses over sized wheels and as far as I can see they was using the normal wheel driven locomotive to drive it.

The showed the train passing under a bridge that was packed with reporters and cameramen. The cameramen and reporters later said being on the bridge as the train passed underneath was not that bright and idea.

I am told they are still 6 Km/h short of the Japanese record but that is for a maglev train so it's not a fair comparison.

Of course you all realize, that that the French rail engineers are going to have even bigger heads than before. If they get a further 6 Km/h out of it, pushing it to 162 ms^-1 and get the absolute speed record for a train we will never hear the end of it.

"Mallard" - eat yer heart out.

http://www.lner.info/locos/A/a4.shtml