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Tractive Effort Acceleration and Braking
Tractive Effort Acceleration and Braking
Figure 2
Forces acting on a train on
a track with inclination 6
Transport: Railways Tractive effort, acceleration, and braking
B is the brake force(
mg is the weight of the train(
N is the reaction of the track.
7y 8ewton9s second law of motion, the acceleration f is given by'
sin & " & " mg B v Q v P mf
!his equation can be used to derive a number of relationships that are important to
different aspects of railway operation. :ome of these are considered in the following
sections.
Maximum speed as a function of gradient
) train reaches its maximum speed when available tractive effort ust balances the sum
of drag and downhill gravitational force, reducing the acceleration to 5ero.
;onsequently, the maximum speed is found by solving'
1 & " & " mg v Q v P
where
sin
is the gradient.
:ince the approximation to
& "v P
is linear within each segment, and that for
& "v Q
is quadratic, the calculation of maximum speed for a particular gradient reduces to the
solution of a quadratic equation. However, in order to determine which segment of
the tractive effort approximation should be used for a given gradient, it is useful first
to establish a set of gradient values
< =
i
+ +
v
c ! a!
d!
v T
1
/
& "
where'
. & " B ( B ( B
1 $ /
+ + g m q c m q m q a
)ppendix $ shows how this integral can be expressed in terms of standard functions.
From this result, a further integration is needed to recover the distance travelled as a
function of time. ) simpler alternative is to calculate the braking distance directly by
writing'
ds
dv
v
dt
ds
ds
dv
dt
dv
f
in the original equation, to give'
mg v Q B
ds
dv
mv & "
which is a relation between distance s and speed v.
!his differential equation can also be integrated by separation of variables, leading to'
.
& " & "
1
1
+ +
"
V
ds
v Q mg
mvdv
and hence the braking distance " required from speed v is obtained as the integral'
+ +
v
c ! a!
!d!
v "
1
/
& "
where again
. & " B ( B ( B
1 $ /
+ + g m q c m q m q a
)ppendix / shows how this integral can be expressed in terms of standard functions.
:ince braking time and distance depend both on initial speed and the gradient of the
track, there are various summary presentations that provide useful information.
The Mathematical Association 200
Integration
Analytic solution of first order
differential equation with
separable variables
Integration
Analytic solution of first order
differential equation with
separable variables
Differentiation
hain rule
Transport: Railways Tractive effort, acceleration, and braking
)s an example, Figure , shows the distance needed to brake to a standstill as a
function of the track gradient, calculated for a range of different initial speeds.
Time spent accelerating to required speed
Cach stop that a train makes during its ourney involves three phases' braking to a
standstill, remaining stationary to set down and pick up passengers, and accelerating to
the required line speed. )n appropriate allowance for the time taken for each of these
phases, as well as other braking and acceleration manoeuvres "e.g. to traverse a set of
points& must be included when drawing up realistic timetables. !he previous section
considered time taken for braking( calculation of the time taken in acceleration is
similar, but somewhat more involved because of the piecewiseDlinear approximation to
the variation of tractive effort with speed.
:etting 1 B produces the differential equation'
mg v Q v P
dt
dv
m & " & "
which, once the initial speed is given, defines v as a function of time t.
:ince the tractive effort
& "v P
is a function of speed only, the differential equation
can be integrated by separation of variables, leading to'
.
& " & "
1 1
T V
dt
mg v Q v P
mdv
+ +
f
s
v
v
c ! a!
d!
v T
/
& "
+ +
f
s
v
v
c ! a!
!d!
v "
/
& "
where
s
v
and f
v
are, respectively, starting and finishing speeds for the segment,
and the parameters'
( ) ( ) . B ( B ( B
1 1 $ $ /
g m q p c m q p m q a
The Mathematical Association 200 #
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Figure 4
:topping distance as a
function of gradient for a
range of initial speeds.
Tractive effort, acceleration, and braking Transport: Railways
all remain constant throughout the segment. !he two integrals are again of the type
considered in )ppendices $ and /, and so can be expressed in terms of standard
functions. !he total time or distance needed to accelerate to a given speed is found by
summing over the segments.
Dealing with changes in track gradient
4enerally, the gradient
>
c
x
a
x
/
(
/
' 1
/ $
( )
( )
a
c
x
/
(
/
' 1
/ $
+
+
<
,
to minimise loss of accuracy through numerical cancellation.
"tep (' ;heck that the range of integration does not include a singularity.
In case "ii&'
" $
x x x x < <
$ $
or
In case "iii&'
/ $ / $
or or x x x x x x x x
$ " " $
< < < < <
"tep )' ;arry out the integration by making the substitution'
a x ! / B + .
3utting
#
, the results are'
i&
$
"
x
x
#
ax
#
%
1
]
1
,
_
/
arctan
/
ii&
$
"
x
x
ax
%
1
]
1
& / "
/
iii&
$
"
x
x
# ax
# ax
#
%
1
]
1
,
_
+ +
+
/
/
ln
$
& %ntegral of x times reciprocal quadratic polynomial
+ +
$
"
x
x
$ "
c x ax
xdx
x x c a *
/
& , , , , "
For this integral, carry out the checks in steps $ and / above, and then write'
a a ax x / B / B & / " +
The Mathematical Association 200 4
Integration
!ntegration using partial
fractions
Algebra and functions
ompleting the square for a
quadratic function"
Algebra and functions
#he discriminant of a
quadratic function"
Integration
!ntegration by substitution"
Tractive effort, acceleration, and braking Transport: Railways
to give'
& , , , , "
/
& log"
/
$
/
$ "
x
x
x x c a %
a
c x ax
a
*
$
"
1
]
1
+ +
/ The Mathematical Association 200