Nuclear powered Engines?

[vsmith]

OH NO not this topic again!

How long before we get into that mythical ex NW 2-8-8-2 with a bootleg reactor roaming the backwoods of India again. hahahaha

Or shall I revive the Legendary Soviet Atomic "Big Joe" locomotive...heheheee

[domefoamer]

Last year, Rail History Quarterly (I think) published a research paper into the history of these efforts. It's fascinating reading. The loco would have been enormously heavy, and to what benefit? Compare this to a nuclear submarine, which is designed to roam the seas self-contained for years at a time, far from ports, hidden from sight. That's an application that almost demands nukes. But trains operate in the exactly opposite mode. You can't hide them. They stop frequently to drop or add freight and exchange crews. Far from self-sufficient, they travel within their own supporting infrastructure and pass a diesel tank every 100 miles or so, at least. Leaving aside the many intractable difficulties of a nuclear locomotive, there's just no benefit I can see...

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by kevarc

I have been non-PC all my life, I don't plan on changin now. I have sensitivity for those who do not know and ask a question, I have none for those who are clueless and post absurd and completely incorrect information. I have a very low tolerance for stupidity.

I had a friend like this guy several years ago. He was a very bright individual, but despised most people because in his book, they were "below him"...
One night for no reason, he stuck a 9mm pistol in his mouth and ended his life.

As for nuclear powered trains. I don't know about that. Cold fussion maybe-if they ever actually develop it...

trainluver1

[zardoz]

How about a solar-powered electric locomotive? There could be an array of photo-voltaic cells all across the top of the locomotives, as well as numerous solar collectors along the right-of-way feeding the power directly into overhead wires. There could also be a connection to the main power grid to be used on cloudy days, and when the trains are not using the power, or if there is an excess of power in the system, the solar power could be sold back to the utility companies.

[dldance]

QUOTE: Originally posted by zardoz

How about a solar-powered electric locomotive? There could be an array of photo-voltaic cells all across the top of the locomotives, as well as numerous solar collectors along the right-of-way feeding the power directly into overhead wires. There could also be a connection to the main power grid to be used on cloudy days, and when the trains are not using the power, or if there is an excess of power in the system, the solar power could be sold back to the utility companies.

it takes a lot of solar cells generating milliwatts each to produce the megawatt that a locomotive needs - much more than even the surface area of a DD40.

dd

[Hugh Jampton]

QUOTE: Originally posted by zardoz

How about a solar-powered electric locomotive? There could be an array of photo-voltaic cells all across the top of the locomotives, as well as numerous solar collectors along the right-of-way feeding the power directly into overhead wires. There could also be a connection to the main power grid to be used on cloudy days, and when the trains are not using the power, or if there is an excess of power in the system, the solar power could be sold back to the utility companies.

OK,, lets throw some numbers at this and see what happens.

The amount of solar energy reaching the Earth's surface is roughly 1 horsepower per square yard (it varies quite a bit over the latitudes covered byu the US, but that's an easy average to work with)
Solar panals are around 10-15% efficient (a 1 square yard panel receiving 1HP of sunlight will produce 1/10th HP of useable electricity)
A modern loco is around 4000 HP, so doing the math means that 40,000 square yards of collecting area are required for each loco you intend to run. That's 7.5 football fields.

[jchnhtfd]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Hugh Jampton

QUOTE: Originally posted by zardoz

How about a solar-powered electric locomotive? There could be an array of photo-voltaic cells all across the top of the locomotives, as well as numerous solar collectors along the right-of-way feeding the power directly into overhead wires. There could also be a connection to the main power grid to be used on cloudy days, and when the trains are not using the power, or if there is an excess of power in the system, the solar power could be sold back to the utility companies.

OK,, lets throw some numbers at this and see what happens.

The amount of solar energy reaching the Earth's surface is roughly 1 horsepower per square yard (it varies quite a bit over the latitudes covered byu the US, but that's an easy average to work with)
Solar panals are around 10-15% efficient (a 1 square yard panel receiving 1HP of sunlight will produce 1/10th HP of useable electricity)
A modern loco is around 4000 HP, so doing the math means that 40,000 square yards of collecting area are required for each loco you intend to run. That's 7.5 football fields.

[:D] I was going to throw those numbers, but you beat me to it. But I'd sure like to see a locomotive that size trundling around!!! Let's see. Assume a 10'6" width for clearances, and restrict ourselves to the top of the thing... that's about 40,000 feet of locomotive[:)]

[zardoz]

Actually, my post was meant rather tongue-in-cheek.

But considering the numbers mentioned, and considering the part of my post where I indicated "line-side solar collectors" maybe, when solar cells become more efficient, it might not be too far-out of an idea.

[Anonymous]

The thickness required for reactor shielding could not fit into the width or height of a locomotive body. No shielding, no reactor.