Abstract
Due to increasing awareness of the deleterious environmental and health effects of diesel combustion emissions, major regulatory action and policy measures are focused on reducing emissions from diesel engines. Freight operations, including rail-based freight transportation, have received special attention as an industry where major change can be affected, especially in neighborhoods located near operations centers. A FORTRAN-based dynamic simulation model of an SOFC–GT (Solid Oxide Fuel Cell–Gas Turbine) system from a prior feasibility study has been adapted to analyze system operation along a representative but demanding route in southern California. In previous simulations with the model, the basic operational feasibility of the system has been demonstrated as well as the in-service operation for pre-reformed fuels. In the current study, the analysis is extended to include reformation of two fuels (diesel and natural gas) onboard the locomotive and analyses of system efficiency, fuel consumption, CO2 emission, and NOx emission that can be attained through careful thermal integration of the reformer unit. Route-averaged fuel-to-wheels system efficiencies of 60% and 52% are predicted for natural gas and diesel fuel, respectively. Additionally, SOFC–GT operation could provide (1) a reduction approaching 98% in NOx for both fuels; (2) a 54% savings in CO2 for operation on natural gas; and (3) a 30% CO2 reduction for operation on diesel fuel compared to state-of-the-art locomotive technology. These gains may be offset by design challenges, especially for the diesel case, due to the requirement for large volumes of water to support the reformation process even for medium-length freight hauling trips.
Highlights
The combustion of diesel fuel drives the transportation of freight, a major sector of the United States and California economies
The major difference between the two is the type of the reformer; the natural gas case employed a steam-methane reformer (SMR) while the diesel case was modeled with an autothermal reformer (ATR)
The statements and conclusions in this Report are those of the contractor and not necessarily those of the California Air Resources Board
Summary
The combustion of diesel fuel drives the transportation of freight, a major sector of the United States and California economies. In 2007, the total value of all goods shipped was approximately $11.7 trillion dollars, generated by nearly 12.5 billion tons of goods. These goods traveled over an extensive network of railways, highways, and pipelines, and onboard ships and airplanes for a total. 27% of these were jobs directly from the various sectors that handle the transportation of freight in particular. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach alone handled 70 million metric tons of freight, valued at $364 billion, and generated $5.1 billion of tax revenue and 1.1 million jobs for California in 2008; the national effect was $21.5 billion and 3.3 million jobs [4,5]
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