Caterpillar, Cummins Move On Hydrogen For Trains
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Construction Equipment.
This is the first paragraph.
Caterpillar and Cummins are working separately to put hydrogen to work in locomotives.
They have a lot to lose with the extinction of their diesel businesses, so why not join the party.
What Happened To The Class 158/159 Bi-Mode Study?
In Class 158/159 Bi-Modes?, I discussed the possibility of turning South Western Railway‘s Class 158 and Class 159 trains into bi-modes.
I said this.
In the March 2018 Edition of Modern Railways, there is a short news item, which is entitled Bi-Mode Study For SWR DMUs.
The Class 158 and Class 159 diesel multiple units used by South Western Railway are diesel-hydraulic units.
Under their franchise agreement, South Western Railway, agreed to perform a study, to see if the multiple units could be converted from diesel-hydraulic to diesel-electric transmission.
If this is successful, then the plan would be to fit a third-rail capability to the trains, so they could use the electrification between Basingstoke and Waterloo on services to Salisbury and Exeter.
Could the conversion also raise the operating speed of the trains from their current 90 mph to a more timetable-friendly 100 mph?
It looks like it could be a feasible , especially as the article states they might re-use redundant modern traction equipment from Class 455 trains, which are due for replacement.
It sounded a sensible plan to do a study.
But we’ve heard nothing since.
- Has the late delivery of the Class 701 trains, pushed the availability of the Class 455 trains, that wioll donate the traction system, too far into the future?
- Has the Covids delayed another project?
- Would First Group prefer more Hitachi trains as five of their companies use them or have them on order?
- Is the 90 mph speed of the diesel trains, too slow for the busy London Waterloo and Basingstoke route?
Or could it be that Alstom, CAF, Hitachi, Stadler or another manufacturer have a much better zero-carbon plan?
Ryanair Backs Away From Boeing Jet Order
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Times.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Ryanair has ended talks to purchase tens of billions of dollars of Boeing jets amid a stand-off over the price.
The Irish budget airline had been in talks to buy as many as 250 planes of the 737 Max 10 model but said yesterday that the talks had collapsed.
But have Michael O’Leary and Boeing fallen out over hydrogen?
Consider.
- Many countries in Ryanair’s largest markets are aiming to go net carbon-free by 2050 or even earlier. Scotland is aiming for 2045.
- An airliner delivered today will still be flying twenty or even thirty years later.
- I believe that by 2030, small airliners up to thirty passengers will be zero-carbon.
In Could An A320 neo Be Rebuilt As A ZEROe Turbofan?, I came to this conclusion.
I very much feel that there will be a route to convert some or all of the A 320 neo aircraft to hydrogen power.
If Airbus can offer an airliner, that can be rebuilt as a hydrogen-powered plane that must change the economics of purchasing a fleet of airliners, which could be made worthless by worldwide carbon emission legislation.
Because the Boeing aircraft is a 1960s design with an aluminium airframe, I would doubt it is designed to be converted to hydrogen power.
Ricardo To Engineer Zero Emission Buses For UK’s First Hydrogen Transport Hub
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article from Ricardo.
This is the first paragraph.
As part of its mission to support the decarbonisation of the global transport and energy sectors Ricardo, a world-class environmental, engineering and strategic consulting company, has announced that it has received Government funding to create a retrofit hydrogen fuel cell bus demonstrator for the UK’s first hydrogen transport hub in the north-east of England.
The market for refitting buses with hydrogen power is large, as this sentence from the press release shows.
There are 38,000 buses in service in the UK: 98% are diesel powered; and 50% are less than eight years old.
And that’s just the UK!
The last paragraph sums up Ricardo’s ambitions.
Ricardo will develop a scalable, modular solution, enabling it to be installed, with minimal adaption, to multiple single and double decker platforms. The modular concept may also be saleable as a ‘new fuel cell’ module to coach builders across the European Union enabling them to develop new fuel cell
buses by taking a rolling chassis and applying their coach build body alongside the fuel cell module solution.
Never underestimate Ricardo!
Deutz Hydrogen Engine Ready For Market
The title of this post, is the same as this article on H2 View.
These are the first two paragraphs
A brand-new hydrogen engine has been developed in Cologne, Germany to help accelerate the rollout of low and zero emission drive systems.
Developed by Deutz, the TCG 7.8 H2 engine has already passed initial tests on the test bench and is scheduled to go into full production in 2024.
This could be a very significant development.
Initially from the article, they seem to be concentrating on stationary applications, but it could be an easy route for large vehicle manufacturers to decarbonise their products.
Wabtec Breathes New Life Into Older Locomotives
This title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
This is the introductory paragraph.
This month Wabtec completed the 1 000th locomotive it has remanufactured for customers in the Americas under a programme launched in 2015. Norfolk Southern has taken delivery of 500 of the locos, with other customers including Canadian Pacific, BNSF, Union Pacific and Brazilian operator Rumo.
This second paragraph gives Wabtec’s aims of the remanufacturing.
Wabtec said locomotive modernisation is a key element of its sustainability efforts, with revitalised locos offering fuel efficiency improvements of up to 25%, reliability increases of more than 40%, up to a 55% increase in haulage capability and reductions in maintenance, repair, and overhaul costs of up to 20%.
This ongoing program, which although it only offers a 25 % reduction in carbon emissions, shows the size of the diesel locomotive market in North America.
- A lot of these locomotives were built by GE Transportation Systems, which is now owned by Wabtec.
- It is obviously, a market that is commercially rewarding.
In Freightliner Secures Government Funding For Dual-Fuel Project, I talked about s UK project to decarbonise one of our North American-built Class 66 locomotives.
I do wonder how long it will be before Cummins or one of the other big diesel engine manufacturers like Caterpillar offers a hydrogen conversion for these big beasts.
The numbers shown in the article, show it could be a very large and profitable market.
In the future, a lot of decarbonisation will be driven by commercial interests.
LNER To Serve Cleethorpes
Under the proposed new LNER timetable, which will start in May 2022, there will be a new train service between London Kings Cross and Cleethorpes.
According to this article on the Lincolnite, which is entitled Direct Cleethorpes To London Rail Link ‘Close’ To Getting Go Ahead, there will be one service per day.
It will leave Cleethorpes at 06:24 and Grimsby Town at 06:32 before arriving at King’s Cross at 09:25.
The return will leave King’s Cross at 16:10 and arrive in Grimsby Town at 19:05 and Cleethorpes at 19:20.
The August 2021 Edition of Modern Railways makes these points about the service.
- The larger Azuma fleet makes this extension possible.
- ,A more regular service would require additional trains.
- LNER is examining whether other intermediate stations east of Lincoln could be served.
I would have thought, that Market Rasen station could be a possibility for an intermediate stop.
I have a few thoughts.
Extra Services
This single service is ideal for though living in Lincolnshire, but it doesn’t suit those people, who perhaps need to go to the area from London for business or family reasons.
- Lincoln appears to get around five or six trains per day in each direction to and from King’s Cross.
- Services are roughly one train per two hours.
- I suspect the Lincoln service can be run by a single train, that shuttles between King’s Cross and Lincoln stations.
I believe, that Cleethorpes needs at least a pair of services to and from London, so that travellers can spend a day in North-East Lincolnshire.
- This would probably need more trains.
- Services would go via Lincoln and Lincoln may get extra services to London.
- Selected services could stop at intermediate stations, like Market Rasen.
There are surely possibilities for a integrated timetable between King’s Cross and Lincoln, Market Rasen, Grimsby Town and Cleethorpes.
Battery-Electric Operation
Consider.
- LNER’s Class 800 trains are prime candidates for conversion to Hitachi Intercity Tri-Mode Battery Trains, so they can run away from the overhead wires of the East Coast Main Line to places like Lincoln, by the use of battery power.
- These battery trains could charge using the electrification between King’s Cross and Newark North Gate stations.
- The distance between Lincoln Central station and the East Coast Main Line is 16.6 miles.
- In Plans To Introduce Battery Powered Trains In Scotland, I quote Hitachi, as saying they expect a sixty mile range for battery trains.
I am sure, that these trains would have sufficient range on battery to be able to work King’s Cross and Lincoln services without using diesel.
But could the Hitachi trains reach Cleethorpes with some well-positioned charging?
- The distance between Lincoln and Cleethorpes stations is 47.2 miles.
- In Solving The Electrification Conundrum, I describe Hitachi’s solution to running battery-electric trains, by using well-placed short lengths of 25 KVAC overhead electrification controlled by an intelligent power system.
With a range of sixty miles on batteries and charging at Lincoln and Cleethorpes stations, it would appear that battery electric operation of Class 800 trains between King’s Cross and Cleethorpes is a distinct possibility.
Lincoln Station
Lincoln station has three operational through platforms and I suspect all would need to be electrified, so that trains could be charged as they passed through.
These are distances from Lincoln station.
- Cleethorpes – 47.2 miles
- Doncaster – 36.9 miles
- Nottingham – 33.9 miles
- Peterborough – 56.9 miles
- Sheffield – 48.5 miles
It does appear that if Lincoln station were to be electrified, most services from the city could be run using battery-electric trains.
Cleethorpes Station
This picture shows Cleethorpes station with two TransPennine Express Class 185 trains in the station.
Note.
- The Class 185 trains are diesel, but could be replaced by Hitachi Class 802 trains, which could be converted to battery-electric operation.
- Cleethorpes and Doncaster are 52.1 miles apart, which could be in range of Hitachi’s battery-electric trains.
- It doesn’t look to be too challenging to electrify a couple of platforms to charge the battery-electric trains.
- Cleethorpes station could surely charge both the LNER and the TransPennine Express trains.
- The Cleethorpes and Barton-on-Humber service which is under fifty miles for a round trip could also be replaced with battery-electric trains.
Cleethorpes station could be totally served by battery-electric trains.
Battery-Electric Trains For Lincolnshire
At the present time, there is a surplus of good redundant electrical multiple units and the rolling stock leasing companies are looking for places where they can be used.
Porterbrook are already looking to convert their fleet of Class 350 trains to battery-electric operation and I am certain, that now that Hitachi and others have solved the charging problem, a lot more trains will be converted.
Most would appear to be four-car 100 mph trains, which will be very convenient and should fit most platforms.
Conclusion
Running battery-electric Class 800 trains to Lincoln, Grimsby Town and Cleethorpes could be the start of decarbonisation of Lincolnshire’s railways.
What would battery-electric trains do for the economy of Lincolnshire?
The Hybrid-Electric Plane That Will Switch From Passenger To Cargo In 15 Minutes
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Simple Flying.
If you are sceptical about the concept of zero-carbon flying, then read this article, which takes the form of an interview with the Managing Director of Faradair.
Talgo and Repsol To Develop Fuel Cell Trains Powered By Renewable Hydrogen
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Railway Gazette.
This article follows the pattern, of if you’re going to build hydrogen-powered trains, you need a quality partner for your hydrogen.
I still puzzle, what Talgo will do with their factory in Scotland, if they miss out on the orders for High Speed Two.
- Russia is an obvious market for their Spanish gauge high speed trains and delivery from Rosyth by ship is probably easier, than from Spain.
- The UK probably needs a quality modern hydrogen train for remote routes, as does the island of Ireland.
- As I indicated in LNER Seeks 10 More Bi-Modes, there could be a niche for a small fleet of 140 mph hydrogen bi-modes to run between London and the North of Scotland.
Note.
The UK probably has enough capacity for regional and commuter electric and battery trains, with Alstom, CAF and Hitachi all with modern trains in production.
Ireland and Russia, with their similar gauge to Spain could be worthwhile markets.
However, I do believe that the 140 mph hydrogen bi-modes would slot into substantial markets in continents and countries like Africa, Australia, Canada, India, Norway, South America, Sweden and the United States, where there are enormous mileages of standard gauge railways without electrification.

