Influence of contact gaps on the conditions of vehicles supply and wear and tear of catenary wires in a 3 kV DC traction system

Short-term contact losses between a pantograph and a contact wire are not included in the standards nor are they taken into account in evaluating pantograph-contact wire interaction. These contact losses, however, accelerate wear and tear as well as disturb operation of vehicles’ drive systems. The article presents the effects of short-term contact breaks as well as an analysis of impact of contact breakages on a vehicle’s current at 3 kV DC power supply. Results of voltage and current oscillations measured in real conditions when pantograph of a DC driven chopper vehicle was running under isolators were presented. Then a simulation model of a vehicles with ac motors and voltage inverters was derived to undertake simulation experiments verifying operation of such a vehicle in condition similar to those measured in real condition.