1941: Railroad Equipment

Diesel - electric Locomotives.

The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad is one of the leaders in the application of Diesel-electric motive power. For passenger service it put into operation the newest of streamliners, a 4,000-horsepower, two-unit, diesel-electric locomotive, delivered May 1, 1941. It will be used to haul the crack 'Super Chief' train of nine passenger cars from Chicago to Los Angeles over a route that includes an elevation of 7,600 feet and grades of 3.7 per cent. The two-unit locomotive designed and built by the General Electric Company and the American Locomotive Company is capable of speeds up to 120 m.p.h. but on this 39 hour run its top speed will be limited to 81 m.p.h.

Santa Fe has also put into service a new 5,400-horsepower diesel-electric freight locomotive built by the Electro-Motive Corporation, a subsidiary of General Motors, which on long-distance runs can move more cars faster than any other motive power that now exists. It is 193 feet long corresponding to the distance occupied by 15 automobiles closely parked end to end; it weighs 415 tons and develops as much power as 60 such automobiles all operating continuously at their maximum output. The locomotive is divided into four sections. The foregoing arrangement permits the locomotive to continue operating at three-fourths capacity in case trouble should develop in any one section. Since the locomotive operates over mountain grades, the control is arranged so that on down grades the motors act as generators and thus effect braking action (dynamic braking). This reduces the use of the air-brakes 75 per cent and also eliminates the frequent stops that would otherwise be necessary to permit the red-hot brake shoes to cool. Incidentally, the electric power generated during the braking period would take care of almost 10,000 average homes. Each Diesel engine is started by means of large 64-volt, Exide Ironclad storage battery.

The locomotive can haul a 5,000-ton pay load a distance of 500 miles in ten hours without a stop, and at its maximum speed of 75 miles per hour it can run on as fast a schedule as most passenger trains.

Storage-battery Trolley Locomotives.

During 1941 the Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company delivered to the Phelps-Dodge Corporation nine of the most powerful storage-battery trolley locomotives ever used in connection with combined mining and railroad service. They are being used in the Morenci open-cut copper mine in Arizona. When hauling the cars up and down the mountain grade the locomotive takes its energy from the trolley at from 630 to 890 volts, and at the same time the batteries are charged. When operating with the storage battery each locomotive must haul a loaded train of twelve loaded cars a distance of 4,000 feet in 6 minutes. Each locomotive weighs 125 tons, is 45 feet long, 14 feet from rails to top of the cab and is equipped with four 380-horsepower railway motors and exerts a tractive effort of 41,800 lbs. The battery system consists of a 240-cell, 500-ampere-hours, Exide Ironclad battery.

Pendulum Car Suspension.

A new body suspension that would isolate the bodies of railroad cars from both vertical and lateral vibrations, and yet produce dynamic stability has been developed. Three cars have been constructed, experimentally, with the body support above the center of gravity of the car body. As the wheels follow the irregularities of the track the body floats about its central position. Another advantage is that in taking curves, the pendulum roll of the body is such that both comfort and stability are effected.

So as not to interfere with utilization of the space within the car, the car body is actually supported at two points (on each truck) on either side of the car. The car body rests on soft helical springs recessed into the side of the body. There is a third point of attachment between the truck and the car body below the floor level.

The cars are of the modern stream-lined type. Another feature of the construction is the employment of the 'stressed-skin' principle. In this principle the outside sheathing skin is utilized not only as an outside protective coating, and streamlining member, but it is designed to take stress as well.

Extensive road tests have been made on two of these cars, with gauges, and other measuring devices being used to determine the deflections, and other riding qualities of the cars. For example, blocks were carefully mounted in different positions so that with undue deflections of a certain magnitude, they would 'tumble.' For comparison, apparatus similar to the above was used to test a standard car. The tests proved conclusively the superiority of the riding qualities of the new cars.

Based on these experiments, a more elaborate program has been undertaken. The Santa Fe, the Great Northern and the Burlington roads have each contracted for a de luxe type of coach incorporating the foregoing above-gravity suspension system and the skin-stressed lightweight body structure. These cars are being constructed by the Pacific Equipment Company.

Pullman Triple-deck Sleepers.

The Pullman Company has put into service, a few triple-deck sleepers with 45 beds in each car arranged in tiers of three. Each car has ten compartments, some having only two tiers. During the day passengers occupy upholstered adjustable seats with individual arms and foot rests. The lower berth is formed by the seat back. The upper berth is stationary and sufficiently high to clear the head of a tall person. The intermediate berth is raised against the upper berth during the day, and at night is lowered to mid-position between the upper and lower berths and also forms a partition between the compartments. Each berth is provided with individual curtains, clothing shelf, hammock, and each compartment has a ladder for the convenience of the passengers in the two upper berths.