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Austrian Railways (ÖBB) and Siemens Mobility invest in the future of passenger transport and develop combined traction and accumulator power for rail vehicles. The prototype of the Cityjet eco regional low-floor electric unit with an additional power supply is part of the Desiro ML family of vehicles. It allows the introduction of environmentally sound and clean transport on non-electrified lines. Thanks to the capacities of battery power, the advantages of electric traffic can also be exploited even where passenger trains run by combustion engines are still in operation. In comparison, they bring significant energy savings, complete removal of local emissions of harmful substances and a significant reduction in global emissions, changing climatic conditions on Earth. CO2 emissions can be reduced by up to 50 percent. After extensive testing of this new electric traction unit, it is expected to be deployed in the second half of 2019. Alternative environmentally friendly drives such as accumulators, hydrogen and hybrid systems have an increasingly important role in the Siemens Mobility portfolio. With the Desiro ML ÖBB Cityjet eco, we find a number of positive: With relatively low investment costs, the railways are getting a much more flexible train fleet and passengers will be satisfied with high travel comfort, said Sabrina Soussan, CEO of Siemens Mobility. Climate protection is very important for ÖBB. We are constantly looking for ways to improve our products and make them more environmentally friendly. ÖBB will therefore continue to focus on replacing vehicles with internal combustion engines with electric vehicles. ÖBB is the largest Austrian company in the field of climate protection and Cityjet eco vehicles represent our important means of combating climate change, said Evelyn Palla, Board Member of ÖBB Personenverkehr AG. The combined overhead and cordless power supply of the Cityjet eco vehicle enables the drive of the vehicle from the traction line to be powered by a pantograph on the electrified lines, and the new battery can be stored at the same time. This electric power can then be used to operate on non-electrified lines. As soon as the train leaves the electrified track, the complete power supply to the train including the traction drive is provided by the built-in accumulators. This concept corresponds to the current state of partial electrification of the railway network and allows for the introduction of non-emissive traffic on adjacent lines without electrification. Passengers are offered a direct connection without a transfer. There is no need to build special sources and charging infrastructure - standard traction lines on electrified lines are used. The battery is also used to store energy in regenerative braking on downwind and stop, which further reduces energy consumption and hence CO2 emissions. In the pilot project, which is also significantly involved by the developers from the Czech engineering departments of Siemens, a vehicle is used from the currently running series production of Siemens Desiro ML units for ÖBB. Vehicle design allows additional roof loading. With this procedure, the normal shipping and production period of the new rolling stock can be shortened to less than half in 36 months. The cordless power supply of the modified three-wheeled traction unit includes three accumulator trays, two DC / DC converters, a battery cooler, and other electronic devices. High-performance lithium-titanate accumulators (LTO) are applied in the vehicle. Compared to conventional lithium-ion batteries, LTO accumulators allow for considerably higher charging currents for fast charging. Due to the special thermal concept of accumulator trays, it is expected that cell life and battery charge status will not be affected by external weather conditions. Battery life is expected to be around 15 years, ie replacement is only expected once for the lifetime of the vehicle. Siemens and ÖBB have jointly presented the first results of an innovative pilot project already in mid-September in Vienna, with the prototype of the vehicle being introduced to the general public at the international Berlin InnoTrans 2018 Transport Technology Fair, from 18 to 21 September, at the Siemens Mobility Exposition 1/400). |
