Ecocrane hybrid offers 70% fuel economy

The diesel/battery power plants achieve 70 percent fuel savings in production, leading to an economy of 101,500 litres (26,800 gallons) of fuel per year. Railpower’s technology consists of replacing a conventional diesel generator set with a smaller diesel engine/alternator and leadacid battery energy storage combination (hybrid). Operating speeds, service factors and duty cycles have remained unchanged while fuel consumption, at 8.15 litres per hour (2.15 gallons per hour) generate an economy spanning from 61% to 82% versus traditional RTGs. Railpower’s EcoCrane technology combines two features: capacity to level the power provided by the prime power source to the average demand, and capacity to regenerate the energy when hoisting containers down. This is achieved by using a smaller than conventional diesel generator and a battery equipped energy storage system. “As the price of fuel increases, more and more ports will investigate ways to reduce fuel usage,” says José Mathieu, President and CEO of Railpower. “Retrofitting their RTGs to hybrid power systems is a premier solution to achieving a more fuel efficient system without any additional operational constraint. As well, regulations and public demand are increasingly tightening restrictions on emissions at ports.”

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