Green Goat

[TrotFox]

Oh well, the little red critters are known for being difficult to capture without death anyway. They're just too smart! } ; ]

I think the new thing on the Green Goat is that they are planning to use gas-turbine power as it can be done efficiently in this type of loco. Past turbine designs had issues because you cannot idle the turbine to save fuel and a large turbine takes time to properly run up/down properly. This machine can use a small turbine that spins up/down quickly and opperates at it's most efficient speed at all times. Also, a reciprocating powerplant can be optimised to run at one speed and do so much more efficiently than one that changes load and RPM often. : ]

Trot, the semi-technical, fox...

[ccvstmr]

Amtrak used to run sets of Turboliners from NYC North up to Albany. This was not your typical RR power plant...didn't have the typcial electrical transmission either. There was a small Astazu jet engine (small enough to fit on your lap) that was coupled to about a 4" drive shaft that went into a gibungus gearbox. Form there, the drive shaft to the trucks must have been a good 10" in diameter. Aside from the blue flames that shot out of the roof exhaust vents when the engine was started...it did sound just like a jet airplane taking off.

Somewhere along the way, there must have been a traction motor coupled to the drive shaft since Amtrak had to change over to electric power before running underground and into Grand Central Station. cb

[willjordan]

When Boeing was in the gas turbine engine business, it built a turbine powered industrial switcher. Lionel even made a model of it. Looked a little strange with a jackshaft in the drive train. The last I heard of it was 20 years ago when it was still in a salvage yard somewhere in the Southeast US.

[catalpa]

I worked on the turbotrains in the midwest. I understand that the 3-rd rail modifications to the turbotrains in NY involved a traction-motor (or equivilant) mounted in the baggage compartment and connected to the other end of the Voith transmission. Never worked on 'em so don't know for sure.

[themnax]

we had one of these working the east end of the yard here in roseville. actualy i only saw it move a few times but saw it sitting with it's hoods up for quite a long while with a bunch of guys in lab coats leaning over and poking and prodding what i couldn't see. haven't checked out those links yet.
spose that's where i'm heading next.
my assumption was that it was some kind of methane burner or batter/methane ...
well having read each of the other entries above sounds interesting.
sort of thing i'm always mostly interested in anyway. just wish i'd seen it opperate more. have no idea what kind of problems they were having with it but looked more like some kind of a test bed then a mature tecnology.
whatever the kinks are i hope they do manage to work them out ... ~;)