Rail transport is one of the most convenient and affordable modes of transport used by millions of people. Thanks to the capabilities of the railway, thousands of transportations of passengers and various cargoes are carried out daily on the territory of the Russian Federation. Modern technological progress allows the most efficient use of the traction force of diesel locomotives, thereby ensuring a high level of economy and speed of transportation. Therefore, Russian diesel locomotives should be especially carefully considered in order to understand their advantages and technical characteristics.
Brief historical background
The first technical projects of diesel locomotives in our open spaces appeared at the dawn of the 20th century. Russian diesel locomotives of that time were “born” in 1905 thanks to engineer Kuznetsov and Colonel Odintsov, who were pioneers in the technical society, putting on public display a report on an autonomous electric locomotive with a caloric engine.
In 1930, taking into account the development of mechanical engineering, the training of diesel locomotive specialists began on the basis of the Moscow Electromechanical Institute. And since 1950, the production of diesel locomotives was organized at several major enterprises in the engineering industry.
Main classification
Diesel locomotives of Russia and the world differentiate based on several signs.
So, by the nature of their service, there is a division into:
- Passenger.
- Shunting.
- Freight.
- Universal.
- Industrial.
- Performing various work.
They also distinguish diesel locomotives of a cart and a bezelless type. These units differ in the number of sections, of which there can be one or several.
The principle of operation and basic structural elements
Diesel locomotives of Russia (in fact, like the rest of the world) work on this basic principle. The diesel engine of these transport devices converts the chemical energy arising at the moment of fuel combustion into mechanical energy - the rotation of the crankshaft, from which, in turn, the rotation is transmitted directly to the wheelsets through the traction drive. The key point is that a clear coordination of the characteristics of the diesel engine and the locomotive itself is required. For this purpose, special gears were created that allowed the operation of diesel locomotives.
The main components of the diesel locomotive are: frame, body, diesel, transmission, chassis, brake system, automatic couplers. Among the auxiliary devices are: cooling system, diesel air supply, fire extinguishing system, electrical equipment.
Types of gears used in diesel locomotives
Russian railway transport operates on the basis of the following transmissions, namely:
- Electric.
- Hydraulic.
- Hydromechanical.
- Mechanical.
If we talk about mechanical transmission, it should be pointed out that it is endowed with a sufficiently high efficiency, low dead weight, and ease of maintenance. However, it also has a drawback, which consists in the inevitable occurrence of jerks at the time of gear shifting.
Electric transmission provides a much smoother adjustment of the speed of the locomotive, but it has a large weight and high cost of components.
The most finely variable speed transmission is hydraulic. But it is extremely demanding on the purity of the working fluid and the quality of its maintenance, although the resource of its work is many times greater than the mechanical analogue.
The mechanical part of the locomotive
How smoothly the locomotive will move along the rails depends on the design of its crew (mechanical) part, which includes: carts with wheelsets, axle boxes with springs (the main frame is located on them), the body (holds all the remaining equipment).
Wheel pairs of diesel locomotives can be driving (driving) and runner (idle). Russian rail transport today mainly uses moving pairs of wheels.
Modern Russian railway
In the current harsh economic realities, Russian Railways trains play an extremely important role in filling the country's budget. Given this fact, the manufacturers of this equipment make every effort to increase its efficiency and reduce costs. So, in 2015, the Bryansk Engineering Plant created new 2TE25KM trunk diesel locomotives. This model provides an increase in the mass of transported compounds, reduces its performance. Engineers managed to significantly increase the diesel utilization rate . At the same time, the driver’s cab is in accordance with all international requirements for comfort and safety. A passive protection system is also used, which can reliably protect the locomotive crew from injuries in the event of an emergency collision. There is an air conditioning system. A special independent heater, if necessary, heats the air to the desired temperature.
In order to increase staff comfort, these new diesel locomotives are equipped with vibration-damping materials. Significantly increased cab ergonomics. All major nodes have easy access for their maintenance. This fact can significantly reduce the downtime of the locomotive in the depot during its scheduled repair or routine inspection during the trip.
The presentation of 2TE25KM, which took place in April 2015, was attended by the head of Russian Railways Yakunin, president of Transmashholding Bokarev, and. about. Governor of the Bryansk region Bogomaz.
Railway efficiency
In general, Russian Railways trains provide about 80% of the country's total goods turnover and more than 40% of passenger traffic, both in suburban and long-distance traffic.
Such high rates are supported by the advantages of railway transport, which are as follows:
- High carrying capacity.
- Efficiency of transporting bulk goods over long distances.
- Reliability and safety.
- The relatively low cost of transport.
- Minimally harmful effects on the environment and atmosphere.
Market Trends
Modern Russian mechanical engineering, represented by leading manufacturers, is quite actively exploring new markets, sending its products to various countries of the world. At the same time, the technical characteristics of new products are in no way inferior to their foreign counterparts. A detailed review of new models of diesel locomotives can be found in the photo article. Russian diesel locomotives produced by the aforementioned Transmashholding are being actively implemented in Asian countries such as Uzbekistan. In particular, the holding's locomotives will have to contribute to the implementation of a large-scale program aimed at modernizing the railway transport of this Central Asian country.
Summing up, it can be noted that the development of railway transport will be dynamic. Its advantages described above clearly signal the rationality of investing money in the development and practical implementation of new diesel locomotives capable of fulfilling their functions in any weather and climatic conditions.