LocomotiveIn 1948 the first gas-turbine electric locomotive in the U.S. was track-tested in Erie, Pa. Preliminary road tests of the 4800 hp Alco-GE locomotive included hauling of 85 loaded freight cars at speeds as high as 65 mph. In a gas-turbine engine, air is drawn through a compressor into several combustion chambers. Fuel (bunker "C" oil) is injected and the mixture burns, raising the temperature of the compressed air. Resulting gases expand and move at great velocity against the turbine blades, turning the shaft which drives both the power plant compressor and a generator supplying electric power to eight traction motors driving the wheels. The gas-turbine engine was originally designed for aircraft, in which it gives forward thrust from the reaction of its exhaust stream. |
