Railway electrification means that the substation is located near the railway. It sends the current sent from the power plant through high-voltage transmission lines or high-voltage transmission cables to the contact grid above the railway or the power supply track next to the railway track. The catenary or power supply rail is an electrical device that directly transmits electric energy to an electric locomotive. The electric locomotive obtains the required electrical energy from the catenary or power supply rail through a pantograph or conductive wheel.
Electrified railways refer to railways that can run electric trains. They are named because corresponding electrification equipment is required along the lines of such railways to provide power guarantee for trains. Electrified railways came about with the emergence of electric locomotives, because electric locomotives do not have their own energy and require a continuous supply of electrical energy from the power supply system along the railway to drive the vehicles.
Because electric locomotives have stronger transport capacity advantages than diesel locomotives, the transport capacity of electrified railways at the same scale far exceeds that of non-electrified railways, becoming the mainstream type of modern railways.
Extended information
Different from traditional railways where steam locomotives or diesel locomotives pull trains, electrified railways refer to obtaining electrical energy from external power sources and traction power supply systems, and using electric locomotives to pull trains Running railway.
It includes electric locomotives, maintenance facilities, traction power supply systems, various power devices, and corresponding railway communications, signaling and other equipment.
Electrified railways have the advantages of large transportation capacity, fast travel speed, low energy consumption, low operating costs, and good working conditions. They are suitable for main line railways with large transportation volumes and mountainous main line railways with steep slopes and long tunnels. Electrification has obvious advantages both technically and economically.
Overhead cables are connected to the power supply grid of electrified railways and are divided into two categories: flexible and rigid. Electric locomotives or EMUs are connected to the catenary through a rack pantograph and draw power from it.
Aerial cables and overhead cables are the terminology of Hong Kong and Taiwan, and are often referred to as catenary power supply in mainland China. In mainland China, aerial cables and elevated cables generally refer to high-voltage transmission lines.
Both types of wires ultimately form loops through the train's normal track grounding. There are also a few railways that use the fourth rail (such as the London Underground) as a current loop.
One advantage of overhead cables is that they can also be used as high-voltage transmission lines, such as Japan's Keikyu Line.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Railway Electrification