British Rail Class 799
| British Rail Class 799 HydroFlex | |
|---|---|
.jpg) 319001 prior to conversion operating for Govia Thameslink Railway in September 2014 | |
| Manufacturer | BREL as Class 319 Quinton Rail Technology Centre as Class 799 |
| Built at | York Works |
| Family name | BR Second Generation (Mark 3) |
| Constructed | 2019 |
| Number built | 1 units |
| Fleet numbers | 799001 |
| Specifications | |
| Car body construction | Steel |
| Car length | 19.83 m (65 ft 3⁄4 in) (DTCO, DTSO) 19.92 m (65 ft 4+1⁄4 in) (MSO, TSOL) |
| Width | 2.82 m (9 ft 3 in) |
| Height | 3.58 m (11 ft 9 in) |
| Prime mover(s) | Ballard FCveloCity |
| Engine type | Hydrogen fuel cell |
| HVAC | Electric |
| Electric system(s) | 25 kV Overhead line 750 V DC third rail |
| Current collector(s) | Pantograph (AC) Contact shoe (DC) |
| Coupling system | Tightlock |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1⁄2 in) standard gauge |
The British Rail Class 799 is a one-off tri-mode multiple unit prototype built using the bodyshell of a Class 319 electric multiple unit. The existing 25 kV AC and 750 V DC equipment has been retained with a hydrogen fuel cell added.
History
In September 2018, Porterbrook announced it would develop a hydrogen fuel cell demonstrator in partnership with the University of Birmingham's Centre for Railway Research & Education. In December 2018, Porterbrook procured an FCveloCity fuel cell unit from Ballard Power Systems.[1]
The unit was converted from Class 319 EMU 319001 that had last been used by Govia Thameslink Railway.[2][3][4] It was unveiled on 20 June 2019.[5][6][7]
In June 2019, it was announced that approval for mainline testing of the unit (branded as HydroFLEX) had been granted after a period of demonstration at Rail Live 2019.[8]
References
- ^ "Ballard Receives Order From Porterbrook For Fuel Cell Module to Power U.K. HydroFLEX Train". Ballard. 12 December 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2019.
- ^ UK hydrogen train demonstrator to be tested in 2019 Railway Gazette International 19 September 2018
- ^ Hydroflex – the next iteration of the Flex concept Rail Engineer 28 September 2018
- ^ The Hydroflex, UK's first hydrogen train Rail Live 2019
- ^ See UK's first hydrogen train Rail Live 2019
- ^ "Hydrogen trains: Are these the eco-friendly trains of the future?". BBC News. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
- ^ Clinnick, Richard. "Main line testing of UK's first hydrogen train gets green light". RAIL Magazine. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
- ^ "Mainline Testing of UK's First Hydrogen Train Gets Green Light". www.birmingham.ac.uk. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.