Kraków 2023-02-22
Diesel locomotives.
In the article we discuss the history of diesel locomotives used in railways on the normal rail gauge, i.e. 1435 mm. We mainly present the history of Polish constructions and the problems associated with them. The article does not deal with the subject of railcars (motor cars) and diesel multiple units.
Diesel traction vehicles include: diesel locomotives, diesel railcars and SZT (diesel multiple units). All these rail vehicles are driven by an internal combustion engine located in the vehicle. Like steam locomotives, these vehicles have a supply of fuel on board, but not hard coal and water as an "intermediary", but usually diesel fuel. Unlike electric trains, diesel trains are autonomous.
Electric locomotives came into common use much earlier, because the experience gained in the operation of electric trams was used. It seemed that there would be no third type of railway traction, i.e. diesel traction. However, everything has its pros and cons. Diesel locomotives are ready for operation at any time. They do not consume fuel when parked. Their commissioning does not require long preparations, as in the case of steam locomotives. They do not require the construction of a costly electric traction network. The fuel supply in the diesel locomotive tank makes it possible to store energy and use it at the right time.
The efficiency of a steam locomotive, and more precisely its steam engine, on the hook rarely exceeds 10% and is usually 8%. On the other hand, the efficiency of a diesel locomotive on the hook often exceeds 32%. When this relationship was discovered, more and more diesel locomotives were built. Although at the beginning internal combustion engines found their way to fixed installations in factories and to cars and motorcycles. Big problems arose in high-powered rail vehicles.
At the end of the 19th century, the first rail vehicles powered by internal combustion engines were created. The problem was that during this period small internal combustion engines with a power of 5 - 30 HP were built. These engines were suitable for automobiles, not for large and heavy rail vehicles. Engineers built internal combustion engines with a power of 500 - 1000 hp, but there was a problem with transferring power from the engine to the wheels, which we wrote about below.
Internal combustion engine, diesel.
The first successful internal combustion engine, four-stroke, with spark ignition, was built by technician Nikolaus Otto together with engineer Eugen Langen in 1863, i.e. at the time when the wheels of steam locomotives were already speeding up and hundreds of kilometers of railway lines were being built. Designers developed new steam locomotives that did their job well. Therefore, a long time had to pass before the use of internal combustion engines in rail transport.
When we write - a powerful internal combustion engine, we mean a diesel engine operating in a four-stroke or two-stroke system. A diesel engine is a compression ignition engine, also known as a diesel engine. We won't use the name Diesel because it implies that he was Diesel, which is not true. The diesel engine was developed at the same time by many constructors, including Polish engineers.
A diesel engine is a heat engine, internal combustion piston engine, in which the maximum pressure of the refrigerant is much higher than in low-pressure engines, i.e. spark ignition engines. No external energy source is required to ignite the fuel in a diesel engine and it ignites automatically. The mixture of fuel and air burns after exceeding its ignition temperature in the combustion chamber. The compression ratio in diesel engines is in the range of 12-25.
The history of the diesel engine.
According to Polish sources, the diesel engine was developed by Polish engineer Jan Nadrowski. Engineer Jan Nadrowski received a patent for his engine in Poznań, but he did not have the funds to pay for a patent protected worldwide. The Prussian "lent" Jan Nadrowski's plans to Rudolf Diesel and received his own patent. The case went to court, where Jan Nadrowski lost. In 1892, the Prussian Rudolf Diesel constructed an engine with a slightly changed design and principle of operation, and on February 23, 1893, he obtained a patent for his "compression ignition engine" design. The design of the engine, which was developed by the Prussian Rudolf Diesel, was very unreliable and difficult to operate, due to the use of fuel injection into the cylinder with compressed air. Subsequent corrections led to the complication of engine construction and operation. Only the development of a hydraulic fuel injection system solved the problem. The system was developed by engineer James Mc Kechnie, who received a patent in 1910. This solution allowed the diesel engine to run on diesel fuel.
In 1900, Polish engineer Marian Lutosławski built the first diesel power plant in Poland in the Bristol Hotel in Warsaw.
The first serial DM-12 diesel engine was produced by MAN. The engine was a single-cylinder, with a capacity of 19.8 liters, which at a speed of 172 rpm had a power of 15 kW (20.39 hp). In the period 1902 - 1910, 82 stationary diesel engines were built.
In 1903, a diesel engine was used for the first time to propel a ship and the process of displacing steam engines from sea transport began.
In 1923, the first truck and tractor were built that were powered by a diesel engine.
In 1933, Citroen used the first diesel engine in a passenger car.
In 1934, the world's first light tank, type 7TP, was built in Poland, which was powered by a diesel engine.
In 1936, independently of each other, the French and the Germans started the production of passenger cars with diesel engines. However, these cars were not popular because they were loud and did not have such dynamics as cars with low-pressure engines (gasoline).
In 1937, Junkers made the first attempt to use a diesel engine in an airplane. The program ended in a fiasco.
A method of transferring power from the internal combustion engine to the wheels of a rail vehicle.
The first attempts consisted in direct transmission of rotation from the engine to the wheels. However, the unfavorable characteristics of the internal combustion engine for applications in a rail vehicle meant that the intended goal was not achieved. An example of this type of locomotive is a vehicle produced in 1912, commissioned by the Prussian - Helska Railway by the Swiss company Sulzer. It was a locomotive with a two-stroke engine with a power of 960 hp. The construction of the locomotive took three years. Test drives went badly. The weak point of this locomotive was the cooling system, and above all the system of direct transmission of engine power to the driving axles. Problems piled up, and the locomotive was still unfit for operation. The pace of work slowed down significantly and other manufacturers abandoned their plans to develop a diesel locomotive. In 1920, the locomotive was scrapped.
Around 1920, the transmission problem was solved in the USA. There, it was noticed that it was impossible to transmit the power of 1,000 hp from the engine in the traditional way, through the gearbox. Any mechanical transmission where gears and shafts were used quickly deteriorated. The mechanical box had to be replaced with another device. The American company General Electric has proposed that a diesel engine be mechanically connected to a generator that will power DC electric motors. Calculations proved the validity of such a solution with the efficiency of such a three-machine in the range of 70%.
After the USA, Muscovites approached the problem of transferring the drive in diesel locomotives. In 1924, Professor Yakov Modestovich Gakkel designed a diesel locomotive with a power of about 1,000 hp. Soon, Soviet railways ordered locomotives of this type. In 1933, the CCCP already produced diesel locomotives with a power of 1,200 hp.
However, the popularity of diesel locomotives was far away. Much more popular were motor cars, which, at a speed of 120 - 140 km/h, transported rich travelers much faster.
The outbreak of World War II halted the development of diesel traction vehicles in Europe. However, it did not stop their development in the USA. By 1956, about 80% of the transport work in this country was taken over by diesel locomotives. And again we see the stupidity of the Germans who senselessly started World War II.
Gears used in diesel locomotives.
Mechanical gears.
The power from the internal combustion engine is transmitted using shafts and gears, similar to cars. This type of transmission is only suitable for light vehicles and lines with low gradients. This gear is relatively light. Such gears were used, for example, in locomotives: Ls60, SM04, SN61.
Hydraulic transmissions.
Hydrokinetic transmissions have been used in the railway industry. These gears use the kinetic energy of the liquid, most often hydraulic oil, as the medium transferring energy from the pump (active element) to the turbine (passive element). The internal combustion engine drives a special pump. Between the pump and the turbine there is a steering wheel that changes the energy parameters of the liquid. A characteristic feature of the torque converter is the lack of a rigid connection, which allows for significant overloading of the gearbox without the risk of overloading the drive system. The disadvantage of this gear is the relatively low efficiency and the need for intensive cooling. The advantage of this type of transmission is smooth power transmission. The torque converter was also used in motor cars of the SAx "Luxtorpeda" series, running on the PKP network in the period 1933 - 1939. However, this type of gearbox was not often used in PKP. In the period 1945 - 1990, it was not possible to launch the production of appropriate gears of this type. In the entire socialist collective farm, no factory has mastered the production of this type of transmission.
Electric gears.
The most popular and the best transmission for railways is the electric transmission. This is a gear that used to be called a three-machine. The combustion engine drives the electric current generator, and the generated electric current drives the electric motors mounted in the locomotive bogies. The travel speed of the diesel locomotive is regulated by changing the excitation of the generator using an electric adjuster that changes the electrical resistance in the excitation circuit. The disadvantages of this gear include its large weight and efficiency below 80%. But with high power, this type of transmission is irreplaceable. Gearboxes of this type were used in diesel locomotives SM30, SM31, SM42 (SU42, SP42, 6Dg), SU45, SU46, SU47, ST43, ST44, SM40, SM41, SM48.
Rail vehicles in Poland.
In 1911, the Prussians in the area of Poznań and Olsztyn launched motor carriages equipped with gasoline combustion engines on local routes. Battery cars were also introduced, which moved electric motors. Steam wagons were also used, but they were the least competitive.
In 1927, PKP bought Clayton type motor cars with steam engines in England. In Lesser Poland, these wagons were tested for 18 months on the Kraków - Wieliczka route. The wagons showed some shortcomings, so they were abandoned.
The first standard-gauge diesel wagon was brought to Poland in 1927 from the German company TAG from Kiel. The wagon had a petrol engine with a power of 150 hp. The transmission was mechanical. The wagon ran on the Kraków - Wieliczka route.
In Poland, the development of diesel rolling stock could take place only after regaining independence in 1918. The rolling stock taken over by the invaders was incorporated into the newly established Polish State Railways. Among the vehicles there was also one passenger motor car. Its exploitation by PKP showed that it performs better than steam traction. Until 1933, suitable motor wagons were sought abroad. But finally, the production of motor cars of their own design in Polish factories was started. (read the article - Motor cars in the period 1918 - 1939).
In the period 1929 - 1930, the first Polish diesel locomotive with an electric transmission was developed in the Fablok factory. It was a G1C type locomotive, the prototype of which was completed in 1931. In appearance, the locomotive resembles a two-axle summer cart, completely covered with a roof. There was no glass in the windows, and the visibility was 360 degrees. Inside, there was an internal combustion engine, other accessories and a driver's station. The drive was a diesel engine - Warchałowski, which was bought in Austria. The two-cylinder engine had a power of 60 HP and, through a flexible coupling, drove a generator that gave 230 - 300 V and a power of 35 kW. The generator powered two electric traction motors, 2 x 35 kW. The rotation of the electric motors was transmitted through the chain to the axles of the wheels. The wheels had a diameter of 1.00 m. The locomotive was 5.5 m long and 4.30 m high.
In the period 1934 - 1939, the German WUMAG plant produced two-axle MsB motor wagons for the Jizera Railway. In 1945, 12 copies of MsB / MsBi motor cars were delivered to PKP lines, which were marked SN51 in PKP. The vehicles were used in DOKP Wrocław. The wagons were two-axle, powered by diesel engines, 4-cylinder, in-line, with a power of 85 hp. Mechanical transmission. Maximum speed 60 km/h. The number of seats is 21. One copy has been preserved in Poland, which is in Skierniewice.
1945 year.
After World War II, there were three locomotive manufacturers in Poland. In Chrzanów - Fablok produced steam and diesel locomotives. In Poznań - Zakład Cegielski produced steam, diesel and electric locomotives. In Wrocław, PaFaWag produced electric locomotives. All three factories ended the production of locomotives for the Polish market in the 1990s, as a result of the destruction of the Polish economy. The plant in Wrocław - PaFaWag built locomotives for PKP in the period 1997 - 2002, electric EU11 and EU43, which, however, did not hit the Polish tracks.
After 1945, PKP put into operation the first SM01 diesel locomotives. 3 copies worked in PKP. They were locomotives of German production from the period 1930 - 1945. They were built in large numbers, by various manufacturers, with various internal combustion engines with mechanical transmissions.
In 1952, Fablok produced the first post-war Ls40 locomotive, marked in PKP SM02, with a mechanical transmission.
The Fablok 2D locomotive is available under various markings: Ls150, Ls160, Ls180, SM03 (in PKP), SM04 (in PKP for 180 HP engines), 409D, 409Da. The 2D locomotive was developed as a shunting locomotive, intended for use in PKP and industry. The locomotive was designed by the Central Design Office of the Rolling Stock Industry in Poznań in 1958. 2D locomotives have been built by the Polish industry for 34 years and were produced in four different factories.
The Fablok Ls60 locomotive was developed in the Fablok company in 1960. The locomotive was a development version of the Ls40 locomotive. Serial production lasted in the period 1961 - 1971, in the Fablok plant and in the ZASTAL Zielona Góra factory. More than 500 were built. The locomotive has a B-axle arrangement. The service weight is 16,000 kg. Diesel engine type S-324. Engine power 46 kW (60 hp). Total length 5.93 m. Mechanical transmission.
Written by Karol Placha Hetman