Abstract
Sustainable technologies in transport systems have attracted significant research efforts over the last two decades. One area of interest is self-powered devices, which reduce system integration complexity and cost with an undoubtedly great potential for improving adaptability and developing sustainability in railway transport systems. One potential solution is a regenerative suspension system, which enables the suspension movements and dissipated energy to be converted into useful electricity. This paper explores the application of hydraulic–electromagnetic regenerative dampers (HERDs) under realistic railway operating conditions for a high-speed train (HST). A vehicle-track-coupled dynamics model is employed to evaluate the regenerative power potential of an HST suspension over a range of operating conditions. The work considers typical route curvature and track irregularity of a high-speed line and speed profile. It was found that power could be regenerated at a level of up to 5–30 W and 5–45 W per generation unit when fitted to the primary and secondary dampers, respectively. Such power-regeneration levels were adequate to supply a variety of low-power-consumption onboard components such as warning lights and wireless sensors. Further analysis of the carbody loading level also was carried out. The analysis revealed that, in the case of a high-speed journey, poor track geometry, low curvature, and reduced carbody weight increased the quantity of regenerative energy harvested by the HERDs. It was concluded that a suitable HERD design could be achieved that could facilitate the development of a smart railway damper that includes both self-sensing and power-generation functions.
Highlights
Since the last century, researchers in academia have studied self-powered and energyharvesting solutions from three key sources: kinetic energy, thermal energy, and solar/light energy, to enable the possibility of converting ambient energy sources into electricity [1,2,3,4,5].The innovative solutions began to attract global attention regarding the sustainability of the transport system [6]
The dynamic factors of the tracks, the traction, and gear transmission systems are included within the vehicle–track coupled dynamics model (73 degrees of freedom (DOFs))
A vehicle–track coupled dynamics model considering the vehicle and regenerative damper interaction was developed to predict the power potential and power regeneration according to the multibody dynamics and the mechanical–hydraulic–electromagnetic coupling mechanism for a typical high-speed train
Summary
Researchers in academia have studied self-powered and energyharvesting solutions from three key sources: kinetic energy, thermal energy, and solar/light energy, to enable the possibility of converting ambient energy sources into electricity [1,2,3,4,5]. Under such a time-based or mileage-based approach, it is feasible that unnecessary battery replacement or recharging can be carried out, with a corresponding impact on operating costs and unnecessary maintenance From this example, it becomes clear that the best way to achieve continuous real-time monitoring and onboard, condition-based maintenance (CBM) from the latest technologies/solutions is to design and develop self-powered/self-charging devices. Wang [27] designed and developed a mechanical motion rectifier (MMR)-based energy harvester for rail applications that generated up to 1.4 W average power with 10–25%. Pan et al [37] proposed a harvester design and onboard tests for rail vehicle applications using two sizes of gearheads in typical electromagnetic harvesters, which were installed in parallel with the primary suspension of a low-speed freight wagon.
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