China high-speed rail
High speed rail first emerged in Japan in the 1960s, named Shinkansen, and later European countries started to build the network all over the continent. High speed rail greatly reduces the time spent on journeys and brings economic and social benefits. Having noticed these advantages, in the 1990s, the Chinese government also started to develop high speed rail technology. With years of study and experiment, in 2008 the high speed rail between Beijing and Tianjin was put into operation. After the success of this first trial, the development went on rapidly. By the end of 2009, the rail between Beijing and Guangzhou started operating, which symbolized the actual commencement of high speed era of China. Nowadays, many Chinese people even prefer high speed rail than airplane because it is a lot cheaper and more comfortable and there is no big difference in time cost. In short, it has deeply changed life of Chinese people.
High speed rail is a combination of a great deal of technologies so that it can carry hundreds of passengers at a speed of over 300km/h safely. First, the track for high speed rail has to be much more stable and durable than regular railway, and in cold area, weather conditions were taken into consideration during construction. Second, the heart of high speed rail, power unit, is complete electric. Therefore, it is not only environmental-friendly, but also powerful and easy to control. Also, the power unit is located on each bin, which increases flexibility in train formation and improves power performance even more. The electricity comes from the catenary built above the track which carries high voltage to power the train. Third, the wheel is also an important part of the rail. Several years ago, China had to import wheels from European countries because they had years of experience in manufacturing wheels that are capable of super high temperature, large forces, and fatigue. A small deficiency in the wheel may lead to a catastrophe. The manufacturing process is so complex that they made it confidential. After a great number of experiments, Chinese researchers figured out the material that are suitable for high speed rail wheels, and now the train runs at over 300km/h with the wheels manufactured by ourselves. Finally, the control of high speed rail is also crucial in daily operation. Due to its speed, the braking distance of the train is about 2-3km, so the reaction to emergencies must be fast enough. In this situation, not only the following train is affected, many others have to change their schedule as well. This requires the control center to perform necessary data process ability. These are all great achievements accomplished by Chinese researchers within the recent 30 years and I am very proud of them.
