Chinese Maglev Makes Fundamental Advance, Sets New World Record
July 5—A Chinese magnetic levitation train, using a 1.1 ton test sled, and employing an electromagnetic propulsion system, accelerated to a speed of 650 km per hour (404 mph) after travelling just 600 meters—the fastest speed ever achieved by a maglev—and then braked to a crawl within 220 meters. This happened at the Donghu Laboratory High-Speed Magnetic Propulsion Technology Center in Hubei province, on June 19, and was apparently first reported on June 29.
The June 29 Spanish newspaper El Adelanto reports that the Chinese technicians that are running the maglev plan to go beyond this level. “Researchers [at the Donghu Laboratory] say their current magnets can handle 800 km/h, though they must lengthen the test track. A 30-km segment outside Wuhan is scheduled to open in 2027, at which point the team hopes to flirt with four-digit speeds—1,000km/h—once power electronics, cooling and passenger safety hurdles fall.”
The Donghu Laboratory system operates using a system of electromagnetic propulsion. The magnetized coil running along the guideway repels the large magnets that are emplaced on the train’s undercarriage, allowing the train to elevate between 1 and 10 cm above the guideway. Once the train is levitated, power is supplied to the coils within the guideway walls to create a system of magnetic fields—the electromagnets underneath the front of the train, and the guideway just in front of the train have opposite polarities, so the train set is attracted and is pulled forward; at the rear of the train, the electromagnets at the back of the train, and the guideway at the rear have the same polarities, so the train is repelled and the train set is pushed/thrust forward. The train set never touches the track, but floats above it; the only resistance it encounters is air resistance.
A future 50-car maglev cruising at 650 km/h could connect Shanghai to Wuhan (810km) in 90 minutes, faster than flying, once security and boarding are factored in; it would be powered by electricity, not jet fuel, provided by advanced nuclear reactors.. Simultaneously, China is working on development of a freight maglev system that is capable of carrying 30,000 tons in a single haul.