Innovative trains
from locomotive suppliers. Operators themselves are experimenting with sustainable technologies on a smaller scale. Dutch infrastructure company Strukton has harnessed the power of the sun by equipping one of its locomotives with a solar panel, and the success of the project has spurred the company’s rolling stock engineers to start thinking bigger. In recent years the Stendal works of Alstom Locomotive Services has specialised in rebuilding many former East German V100 diesel locomotives for a second lease of life. At a time when the liberalisation of Europe’s railfreight industry was taking off, these locomotives were a cost-effective way of meeting the traction requirements of the new and small operators that were emerging.
One of the V100s was treated to something a little different. The locomotive was selected to be a testbed for hybrid propulsion, based on a concept Alstom had begun to develop in 2004. A battery, diesel generator, power electronics, and mechanical gearbox were built into the shell of the locomotive. The generator recharges the batteries when not in use and can supply additional power if greater haulage capacity is required. Because the propulsion system does not use energy while idling, fuel consumption can be cut by 40% for an operational cycle with 75% idling time, a major bonus for shunting operations. The locomotive was completed in 2006 and went on display that year at InnoTrans in Berlin, before undergoing trials with various operators such as Rotterdam Rail Feeding in the port of Rotterdam. It is now at the Volkswagen car plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, where it will operate daily for the next two years.
Giving various operators temporary use of the locomotive not only familiarised potential customers with the
Table 1: Hybrid V100 prototype, series H3
Length (mm) Height (mm) Width (mm)
(battery, hybrid, dual and single-engine) V100 hybrid prototype V100 hybrid series 14240
Weight (tonnes)
4255 3110 67
Maximum speed (km/h) 60 (80 hauled) Maximum tractive effort (kN) 196 Wheel arrangement Axleload (tonne) Engine type
B’B 16.5 V6 diesel Power rating (kW) 238
technology but gave Alstom valuable feedback on performance and operations. This information was used for further development and product improvement. For instance, in 2007 the battery packs were exchanged with a new more powerful NiCd battery. During operations the battery management control systems were also calibrated.
First hybrid fleet
In 2010 Alstom and DB Schenker subsidiary Central German Railway (MEG) signed a contract for the delivery of five hybrid 600kW V100 diesel-battery locomotives. Initially the locomotives are being leased, but at the end of the contract in 2018 MEG has an option to purchase them outright. Four of the locomotives were handed over in June and are used at a chemical plant in Schkopau, Germany. Alstom is cooperating closely with the user, checking and monitoring the performance
14240 4255 3110 67
60 (80 hauled) 200/100 B’B’ 16.5
V6 diesel 238 H3
12800 4245 3080 67.5 100 240
A’AA’ 22.5
V6 diesel 2x V6 diesel V12 diesel
No diesel (battery only) 350
2 x 350 1000
of the locomotives alongside technical teams from German Rail (DB) in an open book policy. The operation of a fleet and the long leasing period means there is much more potential for experimentation and evaluation than with just a single locomotive. According to Alstom, the benefits of
the hybrid V100 include: a 30-50% reduction in energy
consumption reduction in CO2 emissions of up to 50%, and lower noise due to the use of a
smaller diesel engine and less idling. The monitoring and evaluation of this small fleet will play a crucial part in the development of a new generation of hybrid diesel locomotives, a project Alstom launched in 2009.
The decision to develop a completely new locomotive was influenced by a
number of factors: few unrefurbished V100s remain
available for upgrading the hybrid V100 is too large to
replace smaller shunters upgrading and retrofitting is
expensive - a
hybrid V100 costs
Alstom’s forthcoming three-axle H3 hybrid locomotive. 54
IRJ September 2012
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