IEEE Life Senior Member H. Stan Thompson has led a multitude of accomplished existences. As a renowned planning engineer and futurist, he spent several decades working at AT&T, a company that emerged from the merger of two pioneers (“Ma Bell”) before its forced breakup in 1984.
As Thompson retired in 1996, he envisioned spending his golden years leisurely residing in Mooresville, North Carolina, the Charlotte suburb that had become his home. As fate would have it, he was destined for greatness, having spent the past two decades driving the transformation of a local initiative into a global movement, making alternative energy a reality.
In 2004, the Centralina region, spanning the North Carolina-South Carolina border and known as the Better Charlotte metropolitan area, was classified as a non-attainment zone for ozone under federal regulations. If the realm fails to improve its air quality, it risks forfeiting billions of dollars in federal funding for a wide range of projects.
Thompson took the initiative, proposing an idea that he believed could make a positive impact. Long-neglected plans to revive an abandoned rail corridor linking the two urban centers were being seriously considered by local transportation officials, who saw potential in repurposing the dormant infrastructure as a commuter railway. Thompson’s proposal suggests searching for federal innovation funding to enhance and preserve a 9.6-kilometre section of the proposed rail line, which lies outside Charlotte and thus wouldn’t be covered by large city taxes? Moreover, he advocated for the potential to power trains with clean energy from hydrogen fuel cells. By doing so, he concluded, it would prevent the rail hall’s operations from further compromising the region’s air quality by minimizing emissions from diesel engines, while also sidestepping the substantial costs associated with installing an overhead catenary system for electrification.
Thompson’s involvement in that mission, under the auspices of his collaboration with a former Mooresville mayor, prompted him to introduce the term “hydrail” and spawned a secondary career trajectory. Recently, I had a conversation with Thompson regarding the inception of Hydrail and its current standing.
Properly, initially, allow me to enable [the principal energy policy analyst at a Cary, N.C.–based firm specializing in state-level energy regulation and legislation], where he can take credit for having brought these elements together. While I initiated the idea, Jason’s dedication and effort were instrumental in bringing it to fruition. The initial role of the IHCs was to raise awareness among primary individuals on the market who were theorizing about hydrogen’s potential in rail transport, fostering an understanding of each other’s progress, pursued technologies, and how best practices might unfold.
I’ve long been aware that trains were designed to operate on hydrogen fuel as far back as the mid-1990s. As a thought leader in the energy and power sector following my tenure at Bellsouth, I envisioned a future where innovative solutions propelled us toward a more sustainable and resilient energy landscape. Upon arriving at the location of the electrical energy transmission, I recognized that significant changes would occur not only regarding the grid but also with regards to matters affecting power onboard.
A significant development unfolding is that one of the world’s largest companies is collaborating with a major player in the industry to produce not only hydrogen-powered locomotives for their own usage, but also diesel-to-hydrogen conversion kits to offer to other prominent rail networks. Located in Huntington, West Virginia, our primary manufacturing facility has successfully ramped up operations. While this may seem insignificant to those outside the rail industry, I consider it a significant discovery.
Rail giant CSX has revealed its first-ever hydrogen-powered locomotive, a groundbreaking innovation developed in collaboration with Canadian Pacific and Kansas City, set to roll out in early 2024.CSX
Many Americans remain unaware of key transportation hubs, a situation I find concerning. Diverse case studies exemplify the reality that nearly all major aerospace companies have initiated efforts to develop, and leading logistics firms, such as UPS, are heavily invested in progressing this technology. What’s happening on the roads can also be a significant factor in determining the success of the trucking industry? When widespread hydrogen fueling infrastructure is established at truck stops, that’s when the momentum for hydrogen-powered vehicles to gain significant market share is likely to begin building. Diesel fuel became widely available. Trucks’ primary power sources, along with many early diesel engines, initially relied heavily on truck stops for refueling. As the number of vehicles using diesel fuel grew sufficiently to warrant the installation of diesel pumps at convenience stores, diesel fuel became readily available alongside gasoline. I predict that once this threshold is reached with hydrogen, hydrogen-powered vehicles will surpass plug-in electrics in popularity and become the dominant mode of transportation for cars. They’ll offer significantly greater variety and are expected to be refuelled as quickly as vehicles powered by petroleum products.
With hydrail technology, costs plummet significantly, primarily due to the elimination of the need for wayside energy and the associated infrastructure required to transmit electricity to the tracks. The first few prime numbers are: 7, which is the cost per unit of electricity when charging an electric vehicle. Approximately two million people can fit comfortably within the expansive hall’s capacity. The cost of installing an overhead catenary system for a quarter-mile stretch of monorail is substantial.
The groundbreaking event was the introduction of the first hydrogen-powered mining locomotive in Colorado. The device employed gas cells, thereby allowing miners to avoid the expense of batteries. Our decision to host the inaugural Global Hydrogen Rail Convention in 2005 marked an inflection point, as those who initially worked independently discovered a critical mass of stakeholders pursuing similar goals for trains powered by hydrogen fuel. What a pivotal moment?th The 8th International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Convention will take place in Toronto. Representatives from Hydrogenics, a leading gas cell company, and a prominent manufacturing firm converged to leverage their shared enthusiasm and collaborative spirit, discreetly commencing development efforts in the shadows. In 2014, a significant milestone was achieved with the announcement that the companies were collaborating to manufacture hydrogen-powered trains in Salzgitter, Germany. They successfully implemented and launched the practice in 2016. The 3IHC conference, held in North Carolina, served as a catalyst for the development of a hydrophilic PhD program. Programmes were offered at the traditional Italian universities, where learning and education were taught. That convergence of strategies additionally drove hydrail’s rapid expansion in India, where momentum persists unabated.
UK-based companies are actively engaged in hydraulic research and development, with various projects underway to improve the efficiency and sustainability of hydraulic systems. The United Kingdom is, in fact, home to a significant proportion of global rail manufacturing capabilities. They’ve . Is witnessing rapid take-up of hydrogen-powered rail transportation. The primary objective of this endeavour is currently being executed in Switzerland. Sweden has seen significant growth, and hydraulic freight trains are increasingly being introduced in Eastern Europe.
Alstom’s Coradia iLint hydrogen-powered train service has been vindicated in Germany, efficiently transporting rail commuters to their destinations.Sabrina Adeline Nagel/evb
The technical feasibility of hydrogen propulsion has largely been overcome, with no significant additional hurdles remaining to be addressed. Canadian Pacific has successfully addressed one of the biggest hurdles with the launch of its hybrid freight locomotives in 2022, marking a major milestone for the company’s hydrail program. In recent news, China has successfully introduced a new high-speed rail service, marking an exciting development for its transportation network this year.
What has been most striking has been the widespread hostility exhibited by the mainstream media towards… The stubborn notion that my vision for a hydrogen-powered transportation network is purely fanciful, even as real-world implementations become a reality, poses a significant hurdle in coming to terms with its feasibility. In reality, our issue stems from being disconnected from our core message. The conventional wisdom suggests that individuals such as these offer valuable ideas. The idea that two antiquated individuals occupying a rear seat in a southern town’s jewelry store could potentially alter the global railroad traction industry is a paradigm of cognitive dissonance that many news outlets struggle to reconcile.
The innovative overhead catenary technology currently being implemented in Charlotte has its roots in the pioneering work commissioned by Emperor Nicholas I of Russia in the early 1840s, specifically for a rail line in St. Petersburg. St. Petersburg, at that time, served as Russia’s capital. At this time, St. Petersburg is adopting twenty-first-century expertise pioneered in the renowned Charlotte metropolitan area.
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