Indian locomotive class WDS-6

The Indian locomotive class WDS-6 is a diesel-electric locomotive used by the Indian Railways mainly for shunting and also for performing departmental duties. The model name stands for broad gauge (W), Diesel (D), Shunting (S) engine, 6th generation (6). As of November 2020, 375 units of this class are currently in use all over India.

Indian locomotive class WDS-6
A Raipur WDS-6 (#36204) doing shunting jobs at Durg Junction
Type and origin
Power typeDiesel
BuilderBLW, Central Railway Loco Workshop, Parel
Build date1975+
Total producedWDS-6: 300
WDS-6AD: 111
RebuilderParel Workshops
Specifications
Configuration:
​
 • UICCo′Co′
 • CommonwealthCo-Co
Gauge1,676 mm (5 ft 6 in)
BogiesALCO Asymmetric cast frame trimount
Wheel diameter1,092 mm (3 ft 7 in)
Wheelbase12.834 m (42 ft 1 1⁄4 in)
Length16.088 m (52 ft 9 3⁄8 in)
Width2.864 m (9 ft 4 3⁄4 in)
Height4.185 m (13 ft 8 3⁄4 in)
Axle load21,000 kg (46,000 lb)
Loco weight113,000 kg (249,000 lb)
Fuel typeDiesel
Fuel capacity3,000 L (660 imp gal; 790 US gal)
Lubricant cap.530 L (120 imp gal; 140 US gal), 630 L (140 imp gal; 170 US gal) DLW
Water cap22 L (4.8 imp gal; 5.8 US gal), 28 L (6.2 imp gal; 7.4 US gal) DLW
Prime moverALCO 251-D
RPM range400-1100
Engine typeInline, 6-cylinder, diesel
AspirationTurbo-supercharged
Displacement267 mm
GeneratorDC
Traction motors6 DC
Cylinders6
TransmissionDiesel-electric transmission
MU working2
Loco brake28LV-1, Air brake for Locomotive using SA-9 brake handle
Train brakesOriginally vacuum, or air, but some modified to dual
Performance figures
Maximum speed71 km/h (44 mph)
Power outputMax:1,400 hp (1,000 kW)
Site rated:1,300 hp (970 kW)
Tractive effort34.000 t (33 long tons; 37 short tons) maximum 16.050 t (16 long tons; 18 short tons) continuous
Career
OperatorsIndian Railways
LocaleAll over Indian Railways, also leased and sold to some private- and public-sector industrial concerns
Current ownerIndian Railways, private industries
DispositionActive

History

This class was designed in 1975 to address the need for a powerful shunting locomotive with the ability to haul 20- to 24-coach rakes. The previous WDS-4 class was found to be grossly underpowered for this kind of operation. A WDS-6 locomotive basically consists of a YDM-4 powerpack (a 6-cylinder, 4-stroke, inline, turbo-supercharged ALCo engine) mounted on a WDM-2 body frame. Beginning in 1975, these were initially manufactured solely by BLW, Varanasi, but later, the Parel Workshop started building them using CKD (completely-knocked-down) kits provided by DLW. WDS-6 units can be easily recognized by their low short hoods (with two cab windows above these) and flat-ended cabs on the long-hood end. Many of them were sold and transferred to private industrial concerns and public sector undertakings (PSUs) in huge numbers, but still display their IR road numbers.

Locomotive sheds
ZoneNameShed CodeQuantity
Central RailwayPunePA1
KurlaCLA50
Eastern RailwayHowrahHWH18
Beliaghata SealdahBGA27
BardhamanBWN2
AndalUDL6
JamalpurJMP2
East Central RailwayPatratuPTRU5
Pt. DD Upadhyaya JunctionDDU13
East Coast RailwayVisakhapatnamVSKP10
Northern RailwayTughlakabadTKD11
ShakurbastiSSB21
LudhianaLDH3
LucknowLKO4
North Central RailwayJhansiJHS13
North Eastern RailwayGondaGD4
IzzatnagarIZN1
Northeast Frontier RailwayGuwahatiNGC12
Southern RailwayErodeED6
ErnakulamERS1
Golden RockGOC1
TondiarpetTNP12
South Central RailwayKazipetKZJ1
GuntakalGTL3
VijayawadaBZA5
South Eastern RailwayKharagpurKGP17
BondamundaBNDM8
Bokaro Steel CityBKSC10
South East Central RailwayRaipurR20
South Western RailwayKrishnarajapuramKJM3
Western RailwayRatlamRTM5
VatvaVTA19
GandhidhamGIMB4
Bandra Marshalling YardBAMY24
West Central RailwayItarsiET17
New Katni JunctionKTE3
Unknown13
Total Locomotives in Service till July 2020[1]375

Technical specifications

[2]

Manufacturers DLW, Parel Workshop
Engine Alco 251-D, Inline-6, 1,400 hp (1,000 kW) (1,300 hp or 970 kW site rating) with Alco turbocharged engine. 1,100 rpm max, 400 rpm idle; 228 mm × 267 mm (8.98 in × 10.51 in) bore x stroke; compression ratio 12.5:1.
Transmission Electric, DC-DC (DC Generator and DC Traction motor)
Traction motors GE for original Alco and MLW models, BHEL for DLW
Axle load 21 t (21 long tons; 23 short tons)
total weight 113 t (111 long tons; 125 short tons)
Bogies Alco design cast frame trimount (Co-Co) bogies
Starting TE 34 t (33 long tons; 37 short tons), at adhesion 27%
Length over buffer beams 17,370 mm (56 ft 11 7⁄8 in)
Distance between bogies 10,516 mm (34 ft 6 in)

See also

Bibliography
  • Hughes, Hugh (1996). Indian Locomotives: Part 4 – 1941–1990. Harrow, Middlesex: The Continental Railway Circle. ISBN 0-9521655-1-1.

References
  1. "IRFCA".
  2. "[IRFCA] Indian Railways FAQ: Locomotives -- Specific classes : AC Electric". www.irfca.org.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.