Soon, CNG will power local trains

Mumbai:- Worried by the rising the fuel bill, Indian Railways has now started attempts to convert the conventional diesel engine into a duel fuel engine using CNG. With consumption of two million kilometres of diesel every year, the railways is banking heavily on the experiment with CNG, a proven pollution-free fuel. The railways has already started using bio-diesel to cut down on the spiralling fuel bill. In fact, it has decided to set up four bio-diesel plants across the country on its surplus land to manufacture and supply bio-diesel to trains. Now, in its pursuit to control consumption of diesel, it is experimenting with CNG.

CNG is used as a fuel by trains in many countries, including the US, Japan and Malaysia. Indian Railways Organisation for Alternative Fuels (IROAF), an autonomous body under the ministry of railways, has called for tenders from engine manufacturers to collaborate in the engine conversion project. As per the tender, the IROAF wants to convert the conventional engine in a Diesel Power Car (DPC), self propelled coaches, into a dual fuel engine using CNG.

The diesel-powered cars are used in trains plying on short routes up to 200 kms. Instead of using a conventional locomotive, these train have two diesel-powered cars after every five coaches to push the rake forward R Srivastava, Chief Mechanical Engineer (CME) at IROAF, said the attempt is to fit in a CNG tank and cylinders adjacent to the diesel tank under the engine of the DPC. "We would like to run the diesel power car using 70% diesel and rest using CNG. This proportion can be gradually increased if the technology is successful," he said.

Officials in the railway ministry said conversion of the engine in a locomotive used in express trains. Srivastava said IROAF is looking at both ignition and fumigation technologies for conversion to CNG. While the ignition technology allows using maximum of 30% CNG along with diesel, the fumigation technique can ensure that the green gas can be used up to 90%, entailing a huge saving for railways. "But the fumigation technology is not available with too many engine manufacturers. However, it is not impossible to get the technique," said Srivastava.