b'DECEMBER 20, 2021FEBRUARY 13, 2022ANALYSIS & PERSPECTIVE9(SAVEcontinued from page 7) ington Northern Santa Fe railroad andClass 1 railroads to convert to renew- health damage costs per year. consumption needed to achieve a suffi- the California Air Resources Board isable energy as their operations are aDespitebeingmorefueleffi-cient daily range while maintaining veryunderway to reduce pollution in popu- majorgeneratorofgreenhousegascientthantrucks,theselocomo-high efficiency. In addition, the naturelated areas that also suggests a strat- (GHG)emissions,suchascarbontivesproduceclosetotwicethe ofbatterytechnologyandrailopera- egyforrailroadstotransitionfromdioxide(C02),thatcontributetoairpollutiondamagescompared tions provides plentiful opportunities fordiesel power to battery power: global warming. While locomotiveswith heavy-duty trucks per unit of recharging during long hauls.Althoughweestimatebatteryaremorefuel-efficientthantrucks,fuel consumed owing to less strin-sizesforaveragedailyfreighttrainthey generate more pollution due togentpollutioncontrolsonloco-r ailc onversion ToB aTTeriesi s ranges, much smaller batteries can sub- less regulation: The US freight railmotives.Since2015,newand n oWf easiBle stantiallymitigateairpollutiondam- sectorprovidesauniqueopportu- remanufacturedlocomotiveshave The Lawrence Berkeley Nationalages. Assumingmostdamagesresultnity for aggressive near-term climatebeen required to install a catalytic Laboratory report, authored by Amolfrom concentrated populations aroundaction. It transports more goods thanconverter, reducing nitrogen oxides Phadke and colleagues, outlines theirrailyards, train operators may wish toanyotherrailsystemintheworld(NOx)andfineparticulatematter planforClassIrailroadstoconvertadd just enough capacity to run trainsanddependsondieselfuel,which(PM2.5)emissionsby8090%by tobatteriesandreduceenergycosts.on battery power in these areas. BNSFaccounts for over 90% of the rail sec- 2040.Notably,thesemeasuresdo The authors argue that projected tech- Railwayiscurrentlypursuingthistors total energy consumption. Cur- not impact GHG emissions.nology price declines will soon resultapproach as part of a project fundedrentlytransporting40%ofnational inbattery-poweredtrainsbeingcost- by the California Air Resources Boardintercity freight, its capacity is pro- M eThoDologyD rivingc onclusionscompetitive with diesel-powered trains:to reduce emissions around railyards.jectedtodoubleby2050.WithoutThe authors described the meth-Hereweshowthata241-km(150Additional battery tender cars could besubstantial changes to its propulsionodologybywhichtheydeveloped mile)rangecanbeachievedusingaadded to the consist (sequence of cars)system,theUSfreightrailsystemtheirconclusions:Ouranalysisis single standard boxcar equipped withto increase the range of the locomotive.will be responsible for half the globalbased on a representative Class I train a14-MWh(mega-watt/hour)batteryFurther research could provide insightdiesel used in the freight rail sectoroperatinginCalifornia,withfour and inverter, while consuming half theintooptimalrangesfordifferenttripby the same year. These diesel loco- 3.3-MWlocomotivespulling100 energy consumed by diesel trains.lengths and locations. motivesemit35milliontonnesofboxcars and 6,806 revenue-tonnes (or At near-future battery prices, bat- CO2 each year and produce air pol- tonnes of payload). A standard 14.6-m tery-electric trains can achieve parityu rgency ofu.s. r ailroaDs lutionthatcausesabout1,000pre- boxcar has a rated payload capacity of with diesel-electric trains if environ- r eDucingp olluTionmaturedeathsannually,accounting114 t, although some heavy-duty cars mentalcostsareincludedorifrailThere is an urgent need for U.S.for approximately US$6.5 billion in(SAVEcontinued on page 15)companies can access wholesale elec-tricity prices and achieve 40% use of fast-charging infrastructure. Accountingforreducedcriteria airpollutantsandCO2emissions, switchingtobattery-electricpropul-sionwouldsavetheUSfreightrail sector US$94 billion over 20 years.Therapidtransitionispossible, becausedieselelectriclocomotives canbeconvertedtobatterypower: US Class I locomotives are diesel-electric:adieselenginedrivesan electric generator that powers traction motors to drive the axles. Such a loco-motivecanbeconvertedtobattery-electric by adding one or more battery tender cars, referred to as tender cars, withwiringthatdeliverselectricity to the drivetrain. A tender car could transmitelectricityviacabletothe locomotivescentralelectricalbus andthentransmitthatelectricityto the traction motors. i MproveMenTs inB aTTeryT echnologyr eDucec osTsThe report explains that there have been major improvements in battery technology that make the conversion to battery power economically viable:Three recent developments sup-portaUStransitiontobattery-elec-tricrail:plummetingbatteryprices, increasing battery energy densities and access to cheap renewable electricity.Thesedevelopmentssupportthe conversion of diesel locomotives to bat-tery power: Between 2010 and 2020, battery energy densities tripled and bat-tery pack prices declined 87%. Average industrypricesareexpectedtoreach US$100kWh1by2023andUS$58 kWh1 by 2030, with some automakers alreadyachievinglithium-ionbattery pack prices of US$100 kWh1. At the sametime,electricityfromrenewable sources costs about half as much as elec-tricity from fossil fuels.TheLawrenceNationalLabora-tory report says that efforts to identify zero-emissionspathwaysforfreight rail are underway, with national sec-tor-wide emissions-reductions targets andmorestringentEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA) emissions-reductionsrequirementsfortheUS freight rail sector.Bnsf B aTTery -p oWereDp rojecTr eDucesp olluTionA collaboration between the Burl-'