Indian locomotive class WAG-9
Encyclopedia
WAG-9 is the name of a type of electric locomotive used in India
. Homed mainly at Gomoh, Ajni,Lallaguda,Tughlakabad and Bhilai, it is currently the most powerful locomotive in Indian Railways' fleet. It is very similar to the class WAP-7
; The only difference being the gear ratio
which makes it suitable for heavy freight operations. In November 1998, CLW started producing these with indigenous components. The first one, 'Navyug' (translated, 'New Era'), was flagged off on Nov. 14. They have ,like the WAP-5 units
, GTO thyristor
converters and 3-phase asynchronous motors.
Newer versions starting from Wag-9 31248 feature full igbt traction control.
The class is named as Wag-9i
There is a technical variant of this class named WAG-9H.
is referred to as the "Heavy Haul" freight locomotive of the Indian Railways
This locomotive was conceived owing to the extreme growth in the rail freight transportation sector. The growth in this
sector is considered to be of great importance in the growth of the economy of India
. This need had arisen the need for
more electrification
and electric locomotives in India
. Around 60 to 65 % of the freight haulage of the Indian Railways
takes place on the electrified section of the Golden Quadrilateral (Indian Railways) and diagonals(which accounts for 25% of the route.)
These routes are highly busy routes, so clearance is a necessity. The power
of 6350hp and 120km/h rated speed
give it
great sectional clearance ability. Thus these locomotives are important for the Indian Railways.
Around 350 of these locomotives have been put to service as of early 2011.
These locos should enter Mumbai Area in Western Railway some end of December 2011 or Start of Jan 2012. And these should be enter Mumbai area of Central Railways at the start of Jan 2013.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Homed mainly at Gomoh, Ajni,Lallaguda,Tughlakabad and Bhilai, it is currently the most powerful locomotive in Indian Railways' fleet. It is very similar to the class WAP-7
Indian locomotive class WAP-7
WAP 7 is a high speed locomotive indigenously developed by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works. It is capable of hauling trains at speeds ranging between 140 and 160 km per hour and is now largely used by Northern Railways , South Central Railways , South Western Railway and Southern Railways .-...
; The only difference being the gear ratio
Gear ratio
The gear ratio of a gear train is the ratio of the angular velocity of the input gear to the angular velocity of the output gear, also known as the speed ratio of the gear train. The gear ratio can be computed directly from the numbers of teeth of the various gears that engage to form the gear...
which makes it suitable for heavy freight operations. In November 1998, CLW started producing these with indigenous components. The first one, 'Navyug' (translated, 'New Era'), was flagged off on Nov. 14. They have ,like the WAP-5 units
Indian locomotive class WAP-5
WAP 5 is the name of a class of electric locomotive used by Indian Railways. The first 10 locomotives were imported from ABB in Switzerland in 1995. They are supposed to be a variant of the Lok 2000. Chittaranjan Locomotive Works started production in 2000. It was designed to haul 18 coach...
, GTO thyristor
Thyristor
A thyristor is a solid-state semiconductor device with four layers of alternating N and P-type material. They act as bistable switches, conducting when their gate receives a current trigger, and continue to conduct while they are forward biased .Some sources define silicon controlled rectifiers and...
converters and 3-phase asynchronous motors.
Newer versions starting from Wag-9 31248 feature full igbt traction control.
The class is named as Wag-9i
There is a technical variant of this class named WAG-9H.
Introduction
This locomotiveLocomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
is referred to as the "Heavy Haul" freight locomotive of the Indian Railways
Indian Railways
Indian Railways , abbreviated as IR , is a departmental undertaking of Government of India, which owns and operates most of India's rail transport. It is overseen by the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India....
This locomotive was conceived owing to the extreme growth in the rail freight transportation sector. The growth in this
sector is considered to be of great importance in the growth of the economy of India
Economy of India
The Economy of India is the ninth largest in the world by nominal GDP and the fourth largest by purchasing power parity . The country is a part of the G-20 major economies and the BRICS, in addition to being partners of the ASEAN. India has a per capita GDP of $3,608 as per 2010 figures, making it...
. This need had arisen the need for
more electrification
Electrification
Electrification originally referred to the build out of the electrical generating and distribution systems which occurred in the United States, England and other countries from the mid 1880's until around 1940 and is in progress in developing countries. This also included the change over from line...
and electric locomotives in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Around 60 to 65 % of the freight haulage of the Indian Railways
Indian Railways
Indian Railways , abbreviated as IR , is a departmental undertaking of Government of India, which owns and operates most of India's rail transport. It is overseen by the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India....
takes place on the electrified section of the Golden Quadrilateral (Indian Railways) and diagonals(which accounts for 25% of the route.)
These routes are highly busy routes, so clearance is a necessity. The power
Power (physics)
In physics, power is the rate at which energy is transferred, used, or transformed. For example, the rate at which a light bulb transforms electrical energy into heat and light is measured in watts—the more wattage, the more power, or equivalently the more electrical energy is used per unit...
of 6350hp and 120km/h rated speed
Speed
In kinematics, the speed of an object is the magnitude of its velocity ; it is thus a scalar quantity. The average speed of an object in an interval of time is the distance traveled by the object divided by the duration of the interval; the instantaneous speed is the limit of the average speed as...
give it
great sectional clearance ability. Thus these locomotives are important for the Indian Railways.
Around 350 of these locomotives have been put to service as of early 2011.
These locos should enter Mumbai Area in Western Railway some end of December 2011 or Start of Jan 2012. And these should be enter Mumbai area of Central Railways at the start of Jan 2013.
Sheds Holding WAG-9s
- Gomoh (GMO)
- Ajni (AJNI)
- Lallaguda (LGD)
- Bhilai (BIA)
- Tuglakabad (TKD)
Technical specifications
| Manufacturers | ABB, CLW |
| Traction Motors | ABB's 6FRA 6068 (850kW, 2180V, 1283/2484 rpm, 270/310A. Weight 2100kg) Axle-hung, nose-suspended. |
| Gear Ratio | 77:15 / 64:18 |
| Transformer | ABB's LOT 6500, 4x1450kVA. |
| Power Drive | Power converter from ABB, type UW-2423-2810 with SG 3000G X H24 GTO thyristors (D 921S45 T diodes), 14 thyristors per unit (two units). Line converter rated at 2 x 1269V @ 50 Hz, with DC link voltage of 2800V. Motor/drive converter rated at 2180V phase to phase, 971A output current per phase, motor frequency from 0 to 132 Hz. |
| Hauling capacity | 4250t |
| Bogies | Co-Co, Fabricated Flexicoil Mark IV bogies; bogie wheelbase 1850mm + 1850mm |
| Wheelbase | 15700mm |
| Axle load | 20.5t |
| Unsprung mass per axle | 3.984t |
| Length over buffers | 20562mm |
| Length over headstocks | 19280mm |
| Body width | 3152mmn |
| Cab length | 2434mm |
| Pantographs | Two Secheron ES10 1Q3-2500. |
| Pantograph locked down height | 4525mm |
See also
- Indian RailwaysIndian RailwaysIndian Railways , abbreviated as IR , is a departmental undertaking of Government of India, which owns and operates most of India's rail transport. It is overseen by the Ministry of Railways of the Government of India....
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