Future Fuels and Engines for Railroad Locomotives. Volume II. Technical Document.

摘要

A study was made of the potential for reducing the dependence of railroads on petroleum fuel, particularly Diesel No. 2. The study takes two approaches: (1) to determine how the use of Diesel No. 2 can be reduced through increased efficiency and conservation, and (2) to use fuels other then Diesel No. 2 both in Diesel and other types of engines. The study indicates that the possible reduction in fuel usage by increasing the efficiency of the present engine is limited; it is already highly energy efficient. The use of non-petroleum fuels, particularly the oil shale distillates, offers a greater potential. A coal-fired locomotive using any one of a number of engines appears to be the best alternative to the diesel-electric locomotive with regard to life-cycle cost, fuel availability, and development risk. The adiabatic diesel is the second-rated alternative with high thermal efficiency (up to 64%) as its greatest advantage. The risks associated with the development of the adiabatic diesel, however, are higher than those for the coal-fired locomotive. The advantage of the third alternative, the fuel cell, is that it produces electricity directly from the fuel. At present, the only feasible fuel for a fuel cell locomotive is methanol. Synthetic hydrocarbon fuels, probably derived from oil shale, will be needed if present diesel-electric locomotives are used beyond 1995. Because synthetic hydrocarbon fuels are particularly suited to medium-speed diesel engines, the first commercial application of these fuels may be by the railroad industry. (ERA citation 07:050801)