http://www.bnsf.com/news-media/railtalk/service/battery-electric-locomotive.html BNSF leads the charge on testing battery electric locomotive Aug 7, 2019 bnsf.com
[images http://www.bnsf.com/news-media/images/rt-bel-ge_graphic-story.jpg http://www.bnsf.com/news-media/images/rt-bel-fuel_source_infographic.jpg ] BNSF leads the charge on testing battery-electric locomotive BNSF and project partners are developing and will soon begin testing a battery-electric high-horsepower road locomotive (the type that moves freight trains from Point A to Point B). BNSF and other railroads have tested low-horsepower battery-electric locomotives in rail yards for years, but mainly for switching freight cars. “What’s different about today’s batteries is that they are significantly more powerful than before, and manufacturers have improved battery quality, reliability and technology so we’re able to test their power for our road locomotives,” said BNSF’s Michael Cleveland, senior manager, Emerging Technologies. In 2018, BNSF and Wabtec (formerly GE Transportation) joined forces to begin developing a 100-percent battery-electric road locomotive prototype that works with conventional diesel locomotives to make a battery-electric hybrid consist. (Consist refers to when two or more locomotives are coupled together.) Performance testing of the hybrid is expected to begin in late 2020. The project is being supported by a grant from the California Air Resources Board as part of its Zero- and Near Zero-Emission Freight Facilities program. Once all the equipment and support systems are in place, the plan is to run tests between Stockton and Barstow, California – about 350 miles. Once fully developed, the battery-electric locomotive will provide environmental benefits and fuel savings for the entire locomotive consist. While in the rail yard, the consist will shut down or idle the other locomotives (when possible) and use the battery-electric locomotive to reduce local emissions and noise. Once on the road, the locomotive consist will work behind the scenes to determine the best way to use the battery power. Thanks to this capability, the consist could also choose to “graze” on battery power when the train is cruising through open landscape, saving hundreds of gallons of diesel. Over the next few years, BNSF and Wabtec expect to learn much about how to build, configure, operate and maintain a battery-electric locomotive. Like the transition from steam to diesel-electric locomotives, it will take years to support an all battery-electric fleet. “It certainly has the potential to be a game changer, especially as the technology continues to mature,” said Wabtec’s Dan McNair, senior product manager for North American Locomotives. “Our demonstration project in California with BNSF will give us tremendous insight into the capabilities of battery power, as well as the best and safest operational methods of leveraging the technology. Smart utilization of the batteries with diesel power can provide multiple operational benefits, and I expect the proliferation of battery locomotives will happen over the next decade." BNSF’s prototype locomotive will use a battery cell similar to what you might find under the hood of an electric car. It is a lithium-ion energy storage unit with cells that contain a combination of nickel, manganese and cobalt. In terms of size and packaging, however, it’s on a totally different scale. Consider a standard electric car battery usually holds a few hundred storage cells — each around the size of a mini-tablet computer. The locomotive prototype will have a battery with approximately 20,000 cells, and future versions may have as many as 50,000 cells. The cells also must be able to weather the heavy-going environment of a locomotive. From the outside, the battery-powered locomotive won’t look much different from its diesel counterparts. Before the pilot testing of the locomotive can begin, a battery charger will need to be designed and installed at BNSF’s Mormon Yard in Stockton later this year. While the Stockton battery charging station will provide an initial charge, the new locomotive will be designed to provide regenerative power under braking to extend its range. “The battery will recover energy through dynamic braking,” Cleveland explained. (Dynamic braking is where the kinetic energy of a moving train is used to generate electric current at the locomotive’s traction motors.) “Essentially, every time dynamic braking is used to slow and control train speed, the battery will refill its energy reserves, which is unlike anything today’s diesel-powered locomotives can do.” The battery-electric locomotives will also use an advanced version of train energy management software to look at the route ahead and calculate how to best use the battery to reduce fuel consumption. “We're developing and testing the ‘next-generation’ locomotive now to build our advantage over long-haul trucks, remain competitive and reduce our operating costs,” said John Lovenburg, vice president, Environmental, BNSF. And together, with our project partners, we’ll be leading the “charge” in railroading’s future. Did you know? The BNSF/Wabtec battery-electric locomotive pilot project is being supported in part by a grant from the California Air Resources Board, which has awarded $22.6 million to BNSF Railway and the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District for the Zero- and Near Zero-Emission Freight Facilities Project. In addition to the locomotive technology development, the Zero- and Near Zero-Emission Freight Facilities Project will pilot several emissions-reducing technologies in and around railyards. The Zero- and Near Zero-Emission Freight Facilities Project is part of California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that puts billions of Cap-and-Trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment — particularly in disadvantaged communities. For more information, visit http://www.caclimateinvestments.ca.gov/ [© bnsf.com/] http://www.yelmonline.com/opinion/article_8f7de12a-bfa0-11e9-8850-7f846b70861d.html Back to Business: Battery Operated Locomotives Could Be Coming Soon 2019-08-15 Don C. Brunell More battery operated cars and trucks are making their way onto streets and highways, so why not trains? That might not be too far off if BNSF tests are successful. BNSF and Wabtec (formerly GE Transportation) are developing a battery-electric high-horsepower road locomotive — the type that moves freight trains between Seattle and Chicago. Once all the equipment and support systems are in place, the plan is to run tests between Stockton and Barstow, California, (350 miles) beginning in late 2020. BNSF and other railroads are already using low-horsepower battery-electric locomotives in urban rail yards. Newer diesel hybrid switchers save fuel and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by shifting power to banks of batteries while idling. That technology is particularly important because cities have high concentrations of noxious air emissions. “What’s different about today’s batteries is that they are significantly more powerful than before, and manufacturers have improved battery quality, reliability and technology so we’re able to test their power for our road locomotives,” said BNSF’s Michael Cleveland, senior manager of emerging technologies. Last year, BNSF and Wabtec, aided by a $22.6 million grant from the California Air Resources Board, joined forces to begin developing a 100-percent battery-electric road locomotive prototype that works with conventional diesel locomotives to make a battery-electric hybrid “consist.” (Consist refers to when two or more locomotives are coupled together). BNSF’s prototype will use a battery cell similar to what you might find under the hood of an electric car. It is a lithium-ion energy storage unit with cells that contain a combination of nickel, manganese and cobalt. In terms of size and packaging, however, it’s on a totally different scale. Once fully developed, the battery-electric locomotive is expected to significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It will have a battery with approximately 20,000 cells and future versions may have as many as 50,000 cells. While in the rail yard, “the consist” will shut down diesel engines when possible. It will change over to a battery-electric locomotive unit which also reduces noise. Once on the road, they can “graze” on battery power when the train is cruising through open landscape, saving hundreds of gallons of diesel. The question arises: Why not just install overhead power lines and bring back the old Milwaukee “Little Joe” electric locomotive? Many trains in Europe and in the northeastern U.S. still draw power from overhead electric lines. In the Pacific Northwest, the Milwaukee Road, the last transcontinental line to be built, electrified its lines across the Rocky Mountains and to the Pacific Ocean starting in 1915. However, the Milwaukee Road replaced electric locomotives completely in 1974 before it ended service in 1980. The chief disadvantage of electrification is the high cost for infrastructure: overhead lines or third rail, substations and control systems. Those costs were particularly high in the sparsely populated western part of our country, which has lower volumes of freight and passenger traffic. Today, battery-operated trains are a key component of the railroads “green strategy.” According to the American Association of Railroads (AAR), in 2017 alone, U.S. freight railroads consumed 732 million fewer gallons of fuel and emitted 8.2 million fewer tons of carbon dioxide than they would have if their fuel efficiency had remained constant since 2000. AAR said U.S freight railroads, on average, move one ton of freight 479 miles per gallon of fuel. By comparison, a tug pushing a barge on the Columbia and Snake rivers can haul a ton of wheat 576 miles on a single gallon of fuel. Hopefully, BNSF’s new hybrid system comes to fruition. It is a way to save fuel, reduce air contaminants, provide family-wage jobs and keep America’s economy moving [© yelmonline.com] ... https://www.google.com/search?q=Battery+Locomotives+Stockton+Barstow [dated] https://www.ge.com/reports/leading-charge-battery-electric-locomotives-pushing-us-freight-trains/ Leading The Charge: Battery-Electric Locomotives Will Be Pushing US Freight Trains Further Oct 24, 2018 ... BNSF will run the pilot program with help from GE Transportation, which is developing the locomotive. Adding even one battery-powered locomotive to the train could ... 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