Lightweight is a key technology to reduce the energy consumption of train operation. Rail trains made of metal have high body strength, but high quality and high energy consumption. Taking the C20FICAS stainless steel subway train as an example, its energy consumption per kilometer is about 3.6×107 J (ie 10 kWh), and it consumes about 540 000 GJ of energy when running 150,000 km; if the mass can be reduced by 30%, it can save energy by 27,000×30 %=8,100 GJ73.
CFRP is the focus of material selection for the new generation of high-speed rail train bodies. It can not only make the rail train body lightweight, but also improve high-speed running performance, reduce energy consumption, reduce environmental pollution, and enhance safety. At present, the application trend of CFRP in the field of rail vehicles: expand from non-load-bearing structural parts such as car interiors and interior equipment to load-bearing components such as car bodies and frames; from parts such as skirts and baffles to roofs and cabs , The development of large-scale structures such as the entire vehicle body; the hybrid structure of metal and composite materials is mainly used, and the amount of CFRP has been greatly increased.
The mass ratio of the various parts of the subway train: the body mass accounts for about 36%, the on-board equipment accounts for about 29%, and the interior decoration accounts for about 16%. Since there is almost no room for weight reduction in in-vehicle equipment, the body and interior decoration have become key objects of lightweight. In 2000, the French National Railway Company used carbon fiber composite materials to develop a double-layer TGV trailer; on the basis of this, the Korean Institute of Railway Science developed a TTX-type tilting train body with a running speed of 180km/h, which is reinforced by stainless steel The frame, side walls and roof are made of aluminum honeycomb sandwich core, and the skin is made of CFRP sandwich structure. The total mass of the car body shell is 40% lower than that of the aluminum alloy structure, and the car body strength, fatigue strength, fire safety and dynamics Features and other performance are good, and it was put into commercial operation in 2010.
In 2011, the Korea Railway Research Institute (KRRI) developed a CFRP subway bogie frame with a mass of 635 kg, which is about 30% less than the mass of a steel frame. The CFRP high-speed train roof jointly developed by Japan Railway Technology Research Institute (JRTI) and East Japan Passenger Railway Corporation can reduce 300-500 kg per carriage.
In September 2014, Japan`s Kawasaki Heavy Industries (Kawasaki) developed the CFRP frame side beam, whose mass is about 40% less than that of the metal beam.