Traction powerstation
Encyclopedia
A traction power station is a power station
that produces only traction current, that is, electric current
used for railways, tram
s, trolleybus
es or other conveyances. Pure traction power stations are rare and there are many more power stations that generate current for other purposes, such as standard three-phase
alternating current
(AC), in addition to traction current. Hydroelectric
power stations, conventional thermal power stations and nuclear
power stations can be used as traction power stations; wind and solar power stations for the production of traction current currently do not exist but could be used for this goal also.
Power station
A power station is an industrial facility for the generation of electric energy....
that produces only traction current, that is, electric current
Electric current
Electric current is a flow of electric charge through a medium.This charge is typically carried by moving electrons in a conductor such as wire...
used for railways, tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
s, trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
es or other conveyances. Pure traction power stations are rare and there are many more power stations that generate current for other purposes, such as standard three-phase
Three-phase
In electrical engineering, three-phase electric power systems have at least three conductors carrying voltage waveforms that are radians offset in time...
alternating current
Alternating current
In alternating current the movement of electric charge periodically reverses direction. In direct current , the flow of electric charge is only in one direction....
(AC), in addition to traction current. Hydroelectric
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
power stations, conventional thermal power stations and nuclear
Nuclear reactor
A nuclear reactor is a device to initiate and control a sustained nuclear chain reaction. Most commonly they are used for generating electricity and for the propulsion of ships. Usually heat from nuclear fission is passed to a working fluid , which runs through turbines that power either ship's...
power stations can be used as traction power stations; wind and solar power stations for the production of traction current currently do not exist but could be used for this goal also.
Examples
- MuldensteinMuldensteinMuldenstein is a village and a former municipality in the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the municipality Muldestausee....
:de:Muldenstein, in the former East Germany http://en.structurae.de/structures/data/index.cfm?ID=s0017514. - Nuclear power station Neckarwestheim Nuclear Power PlantNeckarwestheim Nuclear Power PlantNeckarwestheim Nuclear Power Station is a nuclear power plant in Neckarwestheim, Germany. It is sometimes abbreviated GKN . It is operated by EnBW Kernkraft GmbH.-GKN 1:...
(GKN Block 1) The only nuclear power station that produces traction current directly with the world's largest generator for single phase AC. - Walchensee Hydroelectric Power Station, BavariaBavariaBavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - Pump storagePumped-storage hydroelectricityPumped-storage hydroelectricity is a type of hydroelectric power generation used by some power plants for load balancing. The method stores energy in the form of water, pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation. Low-cost off-peak electric power is used to run the pumps...
power station Langenprozelten, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - Großkraftwerk Power Station in MannheimMannheimMannheim is a city in southwestern Germany. With about 315,000 inhabitants, Mannheim is the second-largest city in the Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg, following the capital city of Stuttgart....
, GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... - Former Newport A Power Station, operated by the Victorian RailwaysVictorian RailwaysThe Victorian Railways operated railways in the Australian state of Victoria from 1859 to 1983. The first railways in Victoria were private companies, but when these companies failed or defaulted, the Victorian Railways was established to take over their operations...
in MelbourneMelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... - Safe Harbor DamSafe Harbor DamThe Safe Harbor Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the lower Susquehanna River with an associated hydroelectric power station. It is the most northerly and last of three Great Depression-era public electrification projects' hydroelectric dams and was constructed between 1 April 1930 and 7 December...
, Conowingo DamConowingo DamThe Conowingo Dam is a large hydroelectric dam in the Lower Susquehanna River. The dam, one of the largest non-federal hydroelectric dams in the US, is classified as a medium height, masonry gravity type dam...
, and Holtwood DamHoltwood DamHoltwood Dam is the oldest of three major dams built across the lower Susquehanna River, and the middle location of the three. It was constructed as the McCalls Ferry Dam between 1905 and 1910 by the Pennsylvania Water & Power Company...
on the Susquehanna RiverSusquehanna RiverThe Susquehanna River is a river located in the northeastern United States. At long, it is the longest river on the American east coast that drains into the Atlantic Ocean, and with its watershed it is the 16th largest river in the United States, and the longest river in the continental United...
provide 25 Hz traction power for the Northeast CorridorNortheast CorridorThe Northeast Corridor is a fully electrified railway line owned primarily by Amtrak serving the Northeast megalopolis of the United States from Boston in the north, via New York to Washington, D.C. in the south, with branches serving other cities...
in the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
See also
- Railway electrification systemRailway electrification systemA railway electrification system supplies electrical energy to railway locomotives and multiple units as well as trams so that they can operate without having an on-board prime mover. There are several different electrification systems in use throughout the world...
- Traction substation
- Traction power networkTraction power networkA traction network or traction power network is an electricity grid for the supply of electrified rail networks. The installation of a separate traction network generally is only done if the railway in question uses alternating current with a frequency lower than that of the national grid, such as...