On May 23rd, the test prototype of 600km/h high-speed maglev train rolls off production line in CRRC, which witnesses the great breakthroughs China has made in high-speed maglev technology. It can fill in the speed gap between air transport and high-speed train, and also has significant technological and economic influence on the further improvement of high-speed passenger transport network.
After three years of painstaking research, remarkable achievements have been made in a series of core technologies of the high-speed maglev system. Regarding the vehicle, CRRC succeeds in the development of the test prototype of 600km/h high-speed maglev train after surmounting the core technological barriers. Considering the high requirements on strength, stiffness, lightweight and noise reduction of the carbody under the super-high speed, CRRC develops the new generation carbody with light weight and high strength; the aerodynamic resistance and aerodynamic lift are tackled by breaking the restriction from complicated fluid coupling impact; CRRC develops the levitation and guidance system, speed detection and location detection system and control system featuring high accuracy; difficulties on key process methods, such as laser hybrid welding for long and thin aluminum alloy carbody wall, foil winding of the electromagnets, and precision casting of the levitation frame, are overcome, and the carbody, electromagnets and related controlling devices proves excellent performances.
For the traction system, CRRC independently develops new ANPC-based traction converter system with high power of 24MVA and high-speed & multi-sectional traction control system. In terms of operation control and communication, innovation is made in system architecture, and CRRC develops the high-speed full-automatic control system suitable for long mainline transport and tracking operation in multiple sections. In addition, new communication system based on LTE structure with short time delay is developed. Now test prototypes of the traction system and control & communication system have been completed.
The test prototype car can serve as the test and verification platform for the real high-speed maglev train. Based on it, verification and optimization for the key technologies and core components of the high-speed maglev system can be made. It will lay a solid technological foundation for the research of engineering prototype of 600km/h high-speed maglev train in the future.
According to the latest news, research on the engineering prototype of 600km/h high-speed maglev train is moving forward, and it is estimated to roll off production line in 2020.
The high-speed maglev train, as an emerging and high-speed transport mode, features high speed, reliable safety, low noise, little vibration, large passenger capacity, good weather resistance, high punctuality rate and less maintenance.
The highest operation speed of high-speed train can reach 350 km/h, and cruising speed of aircraft is from 800 to 900 km/h. The high-speed maglev train with the speed of 600 km/h will fill in the speed gap between the high-speed train and airplane.
the high-speed maglev train can serve in the long-distance transport. It can create a high-speed corridor between two large hub cities or two different urban agglomerations. High-speed maglev train acts as the fastest means of transportation within the operation mileage of 1500 km if calculated by the actual traveling time. Take the line from Beijing to Shanghai for example, it takes about 4.5 hours by air or 5.5 hours by high-speed train, while only about 3.5 hours are needed if you take the high-speed maglev train.
In addition, the high-speed maglev train features the speed advantages of fast starting and stopping, which makes it suitable for passenger transport in short and middle distance as well. It can be applied to regional commuting in big cities and connection for neighboring cities in the urban agglomeration. Commuting efficiency can be increased on a large scale, and integration and agglomeration will be further enhanced.
The high-speed maglev train straddles on the track and there is no risk of derailment during operation. Traction power supply system is deployed on the ground to supply power for the vehicle by section, and only one vehicle can run in each individual power section so that rear-end collision can be basically avoided. Compared with the wheel rail train, maglev vehicle doesn’t have the traditional wheel. The train will not contact with the track when running, so maintenance work can be much less without wheel-rail friction, which makes life-cycle cost another big advantage of it.