UNUSUAL and SIGNIFICANT TECHNOLOGY NEWS TO WATCH

Reprinted fom the Proceedings of the 2012 HYDRAIL Conference held in the UK :
"Stephen Kent and Jon Tutcher – University of Birmingham Presentation PDF. Stephen Kent is a Research Fellow and Jon Tutcher is a Ph.D. candidate at the Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education. Together, they head up the University of Birmingham team that is currently building a 10.25-inch gauge HYDROGEN-POWERED LOCOMOTIVE to be entered in this year’s IMechE (Institution of Mechanical Engineers) Railway Challenge competition."

OUR IMPRESSION : The HYDRAIL Conference has been principally conceived and executed by Stan Thompson, of Mooresville, North Carolina, a dedicated supporter of the use of hydrogen in unique and environmentally sound ways. He has built a world-wide constituency solely on the basis of his energy, the soundness of his views, and the strength of his commitment. 

BLOG COMMENTS :

What IS a hydrogen-powered locomotive (HYDRAIL) ... especially, a 10.25 inch gauge miniature railway locomotive ? We outlined its application to Mega-Model miniature railways in bold-face type in the lead paragraph above to call attention to this unusual application of an important new technology.

First of all .... HYDRAIL is the fascinating new concept which utilizes a fuel cell, mounted in a locomotive --- and now other modalities with a Green power requirement (it is already being installed in many new ship engine rooms because of recent Draconian restrictions by European countries on carbon emissions) --- to generate electricity for traction motors.

Second of all, "miniature railway" is the Term of Art applied to mega-scale models with a gauge greater than 7½" / 7¼" and less than 24" , especially those operating in Great Britain . Model railways in 10.25" gauge (a scale of 1 : 5.5) are popular in England, where that gauge is utilized in a substantial percentage of passenger-hauling hobby-and-leisure layouts. Our educated guess is that this large gauge was chosen for this installation because it provides a good deal of room for mounting the fuel cell, and possibly also because there was a miniature railway of that gauge handy for testing and running.

Third of all ... the fuel cell : a newly developed device which is fueled by hydrogen (or other fuels) stored on board in a high-compression cylinder, and fed as fuel to the cell. The output of the process is electricity, used to power traction motors in the locomotive, and ... Ta-dah ! it emits only water vapor as exhaust ! This solves four major issues :

1. the diesel particulate problem (a serious health threat)

2. the carbon cycle problem : emission of carbon dioxide by internal combustion engines and its possible effect on climate change

3. geo-political problems engendered by the importation of foreign oil (and the use of domestic oil, also, as the two are essentially commingled in the logistics process, a fact often ignored by those with personal supply chain agendas), and

4. the diesel engine noise problem,

all at one swell foop .

Fuel cells offer a nifty energy solution, but one that is being accepted and adopted only very slowly by the tradition-bound railroad industry.

We sincerely hope that news of the possibilities inherent in this technology are spread among the NGO's (non-governmental organizations --- essentially non-profit organizations), Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPO's) , and political decision-makers, as well as among the usual suspects crowd of technocrats and engineers.

FLASH ! We just (mid-afternoon, 1 October 2012) received a news bulletin that contenders in the famous Albuquerque LTA balloon race may be using hydrogen as a lifting gas for the first time, because of a world-wide shortage of helium, reflected in both availability and price. An amount needed to fill the average balloon with helium now costs $12,000; the cost to fill the same balloon with hydrogen is only $1,000, a very significant difference. If that is an accurate reflection of the situation, it will, in all likelihood, also be reflected in planning and activities for LTA dirigible airships . It will be another good reason for serious exploration of the HYDROGEN ECONOMY !