Applications of power electronics in railway systems

Power system interface with electrified railways (ER), auxiliary power, hybrid trains, electromagnetic interface (EMI) and traction are reviewed in this paper for diesel electric trains and ERs. Auxiliary power supply is a low voltage AC/DC power supply for onboard devices with an important consideration for safety equipment. In diesel electric railways because of variable train speed, a sort of compromise is taking place between traction and auxiliary power which usually affects auxiliary equipment performance. Hybrid train’s energy storage unit can compensate this deficiency. Other challenges in railways are their compatibility with power and communication systems.