With the advent of high speed trains did aerodynamics make a comeback as an engineering discipline and an important research topic for railway engineers. In Europe, the most important aerodynamic requirements for the safe operation of high speed trains are set out in the Technical Specification for Interoperability. This covers safety against crosswinds protection of lineside workers and passengers on platforms when trains pass at high speed pressure loads in the open air and in tunnels, limiting the possibility of ballast being thrown up at high velocity and reducing the problem of micropressure waves where a super sonic bang occurs at the tunnel exit when a train enters the other end at high speed. Hence the Zefiro design is set to become the new benchmark for high speed trains in terms of low aerodynamic drag while at the same time achieving the highest stability when cruising under crosswind conditions. The engineering process included, aero-acoustics, crashworthiness, cab design and the space envelope for the seated driver and any standing crew, visibility of signals from the cab, floor height constraints, coupler requirements and the gauge profile based on the position of the bogies relative to the body and front end. The aerodynamic performance of the Zefiro offers a 10% energy reduction compared to a current high speed train.
Optimising the aerodynamics of high speed trains
Railway Gazette International ; 167 , 5 ; 41-45
2011
5 Seiten, 5 Bilder, 1 Tabelle, 5 Quellen
Article (Journal)
English
Optimising the aerodynamics of high speed train
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