With high-speed rail, why develop a 600 km/h maglev train?
On August 6, the Ministry of Transport issued the "Guiding Opinions on Promoting the Construction of New-type Infrastructure in the Transportation Field", which proposed to develop and test transportation equipment such as high-speed magnetic levitation at 600 kilometers per hour in terms of building smart transportation infrastructure. Put into use in the future, people will travel more diversely, and travel time and cost will be more reduced. Taking the transportation between Beijing and Shanghai as an example, it only takes about 3.5 hours one way.
From 200 kilometers per hour to 350 kilometers per hour today, to the 400 kilometers per hour high-speed train project under development, my country has formed advanced technical equipment and application experience in the field of high-speed rail. According to the latest news from China National Railway Group Co., Ltd., as of the end of July 2020, the national high-speed rail operating mileage has reached 36,000 kilometers.
With high-speed rail, why develop a high-speed maglev train with a speed of 600 kilometers per hour?
"The development of high-speed maglev is conducive to seizing the commanding heights of rail transit technology, maintaining China's leading advantage in the field of high-speed rail, and helping to build a strong transportation country." In an interview with a reporter from Science and Technology Daily on August 7, Wu Donghua, deputy chief engineer of CRRC Sifang Co., Ltd., said As an international cutting-edge technology, high-speed maglev is a "commanding height" of the world's rail transit technology.
Industry research shows that due to factors such as wheel-rail adhesion, bow-net current and traction power, the pursuit of higher operating speeds will limit the technical routes of wheel-rail trains. The safe operating speed limit for high-speed rail is 400 kilometers per hour. . The high-speed maglev system can better solve the speed-up problem due to the principle of "same sex repulsion and opposite sex attraction", with technical characteristics such as non-contact, vehicle holding track, and ground synchronous traction, and the maximum safe operating speed can reach about 600 kilometers per hour.
"The high-speed maglev transportation system is the fastest large-scale ground public transportation currently achievable." Wu Donghua said that the 600 kilometers per hour high-speed maglev can fill the speed gap between high-speed rail and air transportation, forming aviation, high-speed rail, and high-speed maglev. And the urban traffic speed gradient is more reasonable, efficient, flexible and convenient multi-dimensional traffic architecture.
Public information shows that many developed countries such as Germany and Japan are developing high-speed maglev. Among them, Germany's high-speed maglev has a maximum test speed of 550 kilometers per hour, and Japan's high-speed maglev has achieved a test speed of 603 kilometers per hour.
To occupy the commanding heights, one must master key technologies. What is the key technology of high-speed maglev?
Wu Donghua believes that a high-speed maglev transportation system with a speed of 600 kilometers per hour is mainly composed of four major systems: vehicles, traction, transportation control and track.
In July 2016, my country launched the development of a high-speed maglev transportation system with a speed of 600 kilometers per hour. After 4 years of scientific research, it has broken through the key core technologies of the high-speed maglev series. On June 21, the 600km/h high-speed maglev test prototype developed by CRRC Sifang Co., Ltd. was successfully tested on the maglev test line of Tongji University in Shanghai.
"At present, we have focused on overcoming technical problems such as safety protection, precise control, comfort improvement, and operation and maintenance guarantee at a speed of 600 kilometers per hour." Wu Donghua said.
In terms of vehicles, it has solved the series of problems of the car body under super high-speed working conditions, and developed a new generation of lightweight and high-strength car body. Developed internationally leading levitation guidance, speed measurement and positioning devices and control systems with international performance indicators.
In terms of traction system, it independently developed the world's first 24MVA high-power traction converter system based on ANPC technology, and a high-speed multi-zone traction control system.
In terms of operational control communications, it has established a fully automatic control system suitable for trunk line growth and tracking operation, and innovatively developed a new communication system based on LTE architecture and integrated low-latency technology.
In terms of line and track, the study puts forward core technical indicators to solve problems in processing, installation, and crossing rivers.
How safe and comfortable is the high-speed maglev under high-speed operation?
"The 600km/h high-speed maglev system train adopts a T-shaped rail structure, and the vehicle basically has no risk of derailment. It is traction by linear synchronous motor, and power is supplied in sections according to the position of the train. Only one train runs in the adjacent section, and the risk of rear-end collision is extremely low." Wu Donghua said. .
According to the explanation of the technician of the high-speed maglev research group, the maglev train has no traditional "wheels", it does not contact the track when running, has no wheel-rail friction, and has low running noise and low vibration. In terms of electromagnetic radiation level, it is equivalent to the magnetic field level of other rail transit vehicles, and the magnetic field in each frequency band is far below the standard limit and has no effect on the human body. The train also provides passengers with a more punctual, safe and comfortable experience through intelligent driving, intelligent services, and intelligent operation and maintenance.
According to the news from CRRC Sifang Co., Ltd., in accordance with the high-speed maglev project promotion plan, the 600 kilometers per hour high-speed maglev project prototype will be rolled off the assembly line at the end of 2020, when my country will form a complete set of high-speed maglev technology and engineering capabilities.