Title: Longitudinal dynamics and energy flow modelling for diesel-electric locomotives

Authors: M. Saadat; M. Esfahanian; M.H. Saket

Addresses: Mechanical Engineering Department, Isfahan University of Technology, P.O. Box 8415683111, Isfahan, Iran ' Mechanical Engineering Department, Isfahan University of Technology, P.O. Box 8415683111, Isfahan, Iran ' Railway Engineering Department, Iran University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 1684613114, Tehran, Iran

Abstract: Railway transportation systems are one of the main consumers of fuel and energy. Owing to energy limits, intelligent energy management systems for railway transportation are expected. One of the basic requirements for this research area is to develop suitable simulation models in which the performance of the locomotive's components can be evaluated. In the existing models for train motion simulation, fuel consumption is calculated via an indirect index. In this paper, the energy flow through the locomotive's subsystems can be modelled and the efficiency of these components can also be evaluated. The diesel engine's parameters are tuned based on the experimental test data. Longitudinal train dynamics and rail-wheel adhesion in the proposed model are based on the empirical models. The proposed model is evaluated by simulation of a real trip and comparing the fuel consumption and journey time values of the proposed model and experimental test results.

Keywords: modelling; simulation; diesel-electric locomotives; fuel consumption; railway transport; longitudinal dynamics; energy flow modelling; intelligent energy management; simulation; component performance; locomotive components; train motion; railways; train dynamics; rail-wheel adhesion; diesel engines.

DOI: 10.1504/IJHVS.2016.075504

International Journal of Heavy Vehicle Systems, 2016 Vol.23 No.2, pp.155 - 170

Received: 09 Feb 2015
Accepted: 31 Oct 2015
Published online: 27 Mar 2016 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article