The TGV train completes its brand. He is already in Hendaia

1990/07/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Garraioak

At number 33 of Elhuyar Zientzia eta Teknika (March of this year), Jon Otaolaurretxe offered us a complete article on the French train TGV or High Speed. In it we were informed of the mark of 482.4 km/h, but in some sessions held in early May this train has reached a speed of 510.6 km/h. This brand has been realized in the Atlantic line of TGV, in a new railroad still not exploited.

The locomotive that has broken the record is different from the previous one. It has wheels of 1050 mm and not of 950 mm like those of the passengers. The shock absorbers have doubled and the power circuits have been reinforced so that each 800 kW engine can request twice its nominal power. The train has three cars (and not four) between the two operating locomotives. The aerodynamics of the train, especially in the rear end of the train and in the sections between cars, has also been revised.

The most serious problems in brand breaches are usually the train itself or the upper electric cable (catenary). The train takes the current of the upper cable through the articulated arm or pantograph, but when touching the cable at these speeds, disturbances occur. At some speeds and conditions there are also phenomena of resonance and the electrical contact is lost, leaving the train without current. One of the ways to solve this problem would be to establish a greater mechanical tension in the electric cable.

Another brand of the Atlantic TGV is that of the route. On 21 June he first arrived in Hendaia and from 30 September he will connect Paris daily with Hendaia in five hours. From Paris to Bordeaux the train will travel with an average speed of 300 km/h, and more slowly to the limit, while the track is renewed.