Evolution of the American Diesel Locomotive

J. Parker Lamb

Description

A comprehensive narrative of the development of the American diesel locomotive

The diesel locomotive sent shock waves through rigid corporate cultures and staid government regulators. For some, the new technology promised to be a source of enormous profits; for others, the railroad industry seemed a threat to their very livelihoods. Evolution of the American Diesel Locomotive introduces the reader to the important technological advances that gave rise to diesel engines, examining not only their impact on locomotive design, but also their impact on the economic and social landscapes. J. Parker Lamb describes the development of these technologies, allowing the reader to fully understand how they were integrated and formed a commercially successful locomotive. Like its companion volume, Perfecting the American Steam Locomotive (IUP, 2003), this book emphasizes the role of the leading engineers whose innovations paved the way for critical breakthroughs. Rail fans will appreciate this authoritative work.

Preface
Chapter 1 Precursor Technologies
Chapter 2 Self-propelled Coaches
Chapter 3 The Diesel Climbs Aboard
Chapter 4 Streamlined Trains
Chapter 5 Developments Beyond La Grange
Chapter 6 Alco Rebounds
Chapter 7 Postwar Shakeout
Chapter 8 Road Switchers Take Over
Chapter 9 A Monopolized Market
Chapter 10 Special Purpose Designs
Chapter 10 New Heights for Diesel Power
Chapter 12 Recent Developments
Chapter 13 The Diesel Century in Perspective
References
Index

Sujets

• Railroads
• Transportation
• Rail transport
• History

Informations

• Publié par: Indiana University Press
• Date de parution: 14 juin 2007
• Nombre de lectures: 2
• EAN13: 9780253027986
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

EVOLUTION OF THE AMERICAN DIESEL LOCOMOTIVE
Railroads Past and Present George M. Smerk, Editor
EVOLUTION OF THE AMERICAN DIESELLOCOMOTIVE
J. Parker Lamb
I NDIANA U NIVERSITY P RESS Bloomington and Indianapolis
This book is a publication of
Indiana University Press 601 North Morton Street Bloomington, IN 47404-3797 USA
http://iupress.indiana.edu
Telephone orders 800-842-6796 Fax orders 812-855-7931 Orders by e-mail [e-mail]
© 2007 by J. Parker Lamb All rights reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. The Association of American University Presses’ Resolution on Permissions constitutes the only exception to this prohibition.
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z 39.48-1984.
Manufactured in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Lamb, J. Parker. Evolution of the American diesel locomotive / J. Parker Lamb. p. cm. — (Railroads past and present) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN-13: 978-0-253-34863-0 (cloth: alk. paper) ISBN-10: 0-253-34863-3 (cloth: alk. paper) 1. Diesel locomotives—United States—History. 2. Electro-diesel locomotives—United States—History. I. Title. TJ619.2.L36 2007 625.26′60973—dc22
2006032194
1 2 3 4 5     12 11 10 09 08 07
This book honors my close friends David Price and Tony Howe,whose patient tutoring allowed me to become proficient in digital rehabilitation of antique images.
CONTENTS
Preface
1. Precursor Technologies
2. Self-Propelled Coaches
3. The Diesel Climbs Aboard
4. Streamlined Trains
5. Developments beyond La Grange
6. Alco Rebounds
7. Postwar Shakeout
8. Road Switchers Take Over
9. A Monopolized Market
10. Special-Purpose Designs
11. New Heights for Diesel Power
12. Recent Developments
13. The Diesel Century in Perspective
List of References
Index
PREFACE
Full-scale introduction of diesel-powered locomotives into the American railway industryoccurred primarily during the fifteen years following World War II. Although this is arelatively short time for such a fundamental change, the actual gestation period of thisrevolutionary technology had taken much longer, as one would anticipate. Building on thehighly documented segments of this significant sequence of events, the following narrativepresents the evolutionary highlights of dieselization without delving into excessive detailsconcerning each builder, each railroad, or each locomotive model. Moreover, the presentationnot only includes technical aspects but also comments on the economic and socialramifications.
Clearly, these revolutionary machines evolved via the traditional trial-and-error meldingof rudimentary concepts from disparate sources, followed by the absorption of periodicrefinements of both electrical and mechanical elements, to produce a machine so powerfulthat it led to larger freight cars, stronger couplers, and more robust roadbeds. Thisenabled American railroads to continually set new world standards for Gross Ton-Miles perTrain Hour, symbolic of the aggregate power produced by moving heavy trains at highspeeds. Such results may well have been part of the motivation for the bold statement by aprominent rail commentator in March 2004 that the diesel revolution was “the greatesttechnological change of the twentieth century.” While many would say that this is anexaggeration, others would agree that this was certainly one of the century’s most importanttechnical changes.
This book will follow the general approach used in my companion volume, Perfectingthe American Steam Locomotive (Indiana University Press, 2003). Thus there will be emphasison the role of leading engineers whose innovations paved the way for criticalbreakthroughs. Unlike steam locomotive evolution, which occurred in parallel with developmentof the nation’s railway network, introduction of diesel power represented arevolutionary upheaval for an established sector of the economy that sent shock wavesthrough rigid corporate cultures and staid government regulators. To some it representedthe promise of enormous profits from rail operations, while to others it was an unmitigateddisaster that personified the oft-repeated plight of business enterprises, namely, dealingwith the introduction of a labor-saving technology that carried with it harsh consequencesfor many of its employees.
A recurrent theme in technological evolution is incrementalism, with progress onvarious components occurring simultaneously in many locations. Thus an understanding of these precursor (or enabling) technologies is extremely important. For diesel locomotives,there were separate developments early in the twentieth century on three key technicalareas: a lightweight and efficient diesel engine, an effective electric-drive system, and acontrol system to modulate the power train. Only after these subsystems had reached acertain level of sophistication could the important process of integrating them into acommercially successful locomotive be undertaken.
The coverage will consider five developmental periods of the twentieth century.
Internal combustion powered coaches —These used mostly gasoline engines, but powerto the wheels was usually by direct current electricity.
Early diesel-electric locomotives —Eight large companies built and marketed diesel locomotivesbefore 1950, but only two had emerged by 1970 to advance this technology toa higher level.
Maturation period —The two major builders competed fiercely by offering continuallyimproved designs for direct current locomotives, increasing power steadily to meetindustry demands for higher speeds and longer trains.
Electrical revolution —Technical advances in solid-state electronics after 1960 permitteddevelopment of new devices that produced alternating current propulsion by 1993 asa more efficient alternative to traditional DC drive.
Manufacturing turnaround —In one of the greatest reversals in American industrialhistory, the last decade of the century saw an industry pioneer, and the leading dieselbuilder for over five decades, relegated to second place by an even older Americancompany.
Proper coverage of such a broad subject requires the assistance of numerous colleaguesand associates. I wish to express my deep appreciation to the following group of fellow railenthusiasts. Especially useful were instructional manuals for early diesel units used by raillines for their locomotive operators. These were supplied by Ed Mims, David Orr, andDavid Price, the first two of whom are former railroad executives. Reviewing early drafts ofthe manuscript to improve its accuracy and clarity was a time-consuming task that wascarried out enthusiastically and successfully by James Mischke, a leading archivist of dieselhistory, and Mark Reutter, a widely published historian of American heavy industry. Anextremely valuable contributor was my former colleague at the University of Texas, MackGrady, an expert on power electronics, which represented the enabling technology for therealization of AC-drive locomotives.
To assist with illustrations, I was most fortunate to enlist some of America’s leadingphotographers and photo collectors. From Arizona came historical Southern Pacific imagesfrom noted collector Arnold Menke, while Jim Shaughnessy of New York provideddetails of the Flying Yankee restoration and the Delaware & Hudson PA’s. From theMidwest came the assistance of Kevin Keefe and the David P. Morgan Library of Ka-lmbachPublishing, as well as important additions from the vast collection of Louis Marre,who has archived and written about diesels for over four decades. A trio of my longtimefriends from the Southeast, Jerry Lachaussee, David Price, and Louis Saillard, also providedkey illustrations for this book as they did for the steam volume. In addition, Messrs.Mims and Mischke solved critical photo needs, while images of contemporary dieselscame from fellow Texans Ted Ferkenhoff and Chris Palmieri along with Bill McCoy ofFlorida and Beth Krueger of Montana. A significant contribution was the artistic talent ofTony Howe, producer of the line drawings. As a computer expert, he assisted me and DavidPrice with many of the digital renditions of antique images.
EVOLUTION OF THE AMERICAN DIESEL LOCOMOTIVE
Figure 1.1 The rapid transition from steam to diesel-electric power after World War IIproduced countless scenes like this one in Birmingham, Alabama. Antique 4-6-0 No.7113, built by Baldwin in 1907 as Atlanta Birmingham & Atlantic No. 113, provides a starkcontrast to purple-and-white GP7 No. 103. The colorful 1,500-hp Atlantic Coast Linediesel was less than a year old when photographed in May 1951, but the steamer would bescrapped within months. J. Parker Lamb.
  CHAPTER 1  
PRECURSOR TECHNOLOGIES
Internal Combustion Engines
The transformation of thermal energy into mechanical power using a piston-cylinderconfiguration was one of the fundamental concepts brought to practicality during theIndustrial Revolution of the nineteenth century. In these machines, piston movement isproduced by a working fluid that becomes highly energetic through a combustion process.In the intervening centuries, two major types of reciprocating heat power machines havese