RAIL INDUSTRY FOCUS


Making diesel propulsion ‘greener’


T


oday, only 35% of the world’s railway networks have been electrified. With


electrification not seen as economically viable for railway routes that are rarely used, diesel power trains are being used. But, to improve the quality of life in urban areas and enable railway vehicles with an electrified drive train to also use non-electrified lines, alternative drive system solutions are needed. Voith Turbo manufactures diesel engines,


transmissions, cooling systems, couplings, gear units and wheel-sets for high-speed trains, trainsets, monorails, locomotives, special rail vehicles, trams and metros. To meet the demand for eco-friendly and cost-efficient propulsion solutions for diesel-driven vehicles, Voith Turbo is studying different powertrain configurations. Developing hybrid concepts is more challenging


than designing fully electric powertrains. There are many energy storage system alternatives, including batteries, flywheels and double-layer capacitors, and many options for juggling between two energy sources to find out the optimal energy management solution. Engineers must evaluate how hybrid technology


contributes to reducing energy consumption and CO2


emissions, and determine how to adapt


the energy storage system to the longer vehicle lifecycles in rail transportation. They must also select charging and refueling strategies that meet rail timetable constraints.


PHYSICAL REPRESENTATION Voith Turbo started using Simcenter Amesim, from Siemens PLM Software, in 2007. Using this, engineers in the rail division simulate the interactions between rail vehicle systems comprising components from different physical domains – such as cooling systems, combustion engines, hydraulic circuits, hydrodynamic gearboxes and hydrostatically driven onboard system generators. Using the component libraries, they can seamlessly design mechatronic systems and integrate controls design in early development phases. Some specific components are programmed in


C-code with the Simcenter Amesim submodel editing tool that allows users to develop their own components. In addition, Voith Turbo engineers adapt standard Simcenter Amesim components by using model customisation. Sebastian Schmid, a research and development


engineer in the Voith Turbo rail business division, commented: “In the past, Voith Turbo had to perform many tests to optimise products by


modifying various component parameters. Now, real physical representation with Simcenter Amesim enables us to understand how the system behaves when we change a parameter even before a real system has been produced, and in certain cases we can even avoid testing. As a result, we have reduced the time and costs we need for new development and optimisation of our existing products.” The model-based approach is supported by


Simcenter Sysdm software, a team-oriented model management solution that helps specialists manage model variants. “With Simcenter Amesim and Simcenter Sysdm,


Siemens PLM Software provides development engineers with a powerful platform for mechatronic system design,” added Schmid. Not only has Simcenter Amesim helped the


rail division improve the quality of existing conventional diesel multiple units (DMUs) but it has also enabled engineers to shorten the development cycle when dealing with innovative hybrid powertrain concepts. Voith Turbo engineers


build up multi-domain rail vehicle models with Simcenter Amesim, add hybrid components to the conventional powertrain and perform drive simulations. With this approach, they can configure hybrid components under various


Siemens PLM’s Simcenter Amesim has helped Voith


Turbo’s rail division improve the quality of existing


conventional diesel multiple units (DMUs) while enabling its engineers to shorten the development cycle when dealing with innovative hybrid powertrain concepts


objective functions such as battery lifetime, fuel consumption or vehicle performance, and predict lifecycle cost savings for given vehicle and track characteristics, including the engine output, the weight and length of the train, speed limits, track gradients, curvatures and timetables. “Using the electric motors and drives, and


electric storage libraries of Simcenter Amesim, in combination with Python scripts for energy storage lifetime calculations, we concluded that current battery technologies still need to be improved in terms of lifetime to enable a global breakthrough for hybrid rail vehicles,” commented Schmid.


Siemens PLM Software www.siemens.com/plm


A FLEXIBLE SOLUTION FOR LOCOMOTIVES With Simcenter Amesim, Voith Turbo engineers


predict the reduction of fuel consumption and lifecycle costs while accounting for rail vehicle and track characteristics


Arcusaflex highly flexible, axially pluggable, flange couplings from Reich-Kupplungen are being used by the Russian manufacturer of the 14 diesel locomotive. The couplings act as the connection between the engine and the driven machine. Each


engine unit consists of two independently working units, each with an 8-cylinder 4-stroke diesel engine and electric traction generator. There is a requirement for a total of 160 Reich Arcusaflex couplings each year to meet the planned production of 80 locomotives. The couplings feature a flexible transmission element that is installed by means of


plug-in assembly, consisting of a disc-shaped rubber body with torque-to-bore volume ratio. This dampens torsional vibrations to a large extent and enables the compensation of misalignments at operating temperatures up to 80˚C. The 14 is generally used in regions with a temperate climate. The


high performance from the 2,400hp available from this locomotive qualifies the series to be used for shunting services, the transport of heavy goods as well as for mainline services on railways.


Reich Drive Systems UK www.reich-uk.com


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DESIGN SOLUTIONS | JUNE 2019


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