Looks like Falcon’s Flight has trains on the track (well, sorta)

Saw this on Twitter earlier and figured I’d share here. Still interesting that this actually got built. The question is though will it open and stay open…

I've discussed with someone involved with the project (take it as you will) that Qiddiya has hired a university to try to figure out the wheel cooling system. So at the time, they still did not have a solution in place for the wheel situation that will certainly be a problem. Supposedly, their testing has shown that they will have to completely replace the road wheels... every day.

Also, the loading station setup (dual load type deal) is primarily to allow the other train to sit and cool off a bit and likely have extended 'rest' periods to get the wheels as cold as possible before the next dispatch with whatever system is in place.

Maintenance should be fun on this one. Just think, Velocicoaster has had issues in Florida due to heat buildup and it's cycle stress is likely far lower than what this thing will see in terms of speed/duration. Heat wise, the rumor is the park is only open in "winter" and be closed in May-Oct give or take, so the high temps are comparable to what Florida and such would be anyway.

But yeah, this thing should be fun to see open and just how reliable and such it will be.

I realize that a laminated wheel is different from one with an air tire, but hasn't auto racing figure this out to some degree in terms of cooling? I assume their brakes have rotors, and they don't melt daily.

They have figured it out: they change the tires after so many laps.

Soooo..... Just change the trains then after so many laps. But seriously, They could just put 8-10 trains on the ride and stack them, creating a much longer dispatch interval per train, there is of course cost, but trains don't exactly cost all that much after initial expense.

They could also look at doing metal road wheels, ala wooden coasters, they would shed heat much faster, but they also introduce different engineering problems.

Bigger wheels, but don't know if this would help or not long term.

The core problem lies in how well polyurethane insulates, the middle of that road wheel will be liquid from heat and the insulation that exists around it from the wheel material. A different substance is a clear solution, but what substance?

What if a cooling loop was installed in each wheel, and then in the station they could be engaged with a pressure plate of sorts to run fluid through the cores of the wheels?

Honestly, I wonder how Formula Rossa dealt with it. While it may only sustain the top speed for a short time, it still had similar speeds.

Per this photo, Falcon Flight's wheels essentially have open spokes. I imagine this will help keep temperatures cool throughout the circuit, and provide better cooling with increased airflow during it's time on the brake run and station.

No idea if that will be sufficient, however.

cmwein:

Per this photo, Falcon Flight's wheels essentially have open spokes.

Wonder if they're designed to be a turbine, so they draw air in and through it rather than just spin and be hollow space.

TheMillenniumRider:

What if a cooling loop was installed in each wheel, and then in the station they could be engaged with a pressure plate of sorts to run fluid through the cores of the wheels?

I don't even know how to change the oil in my car, but this was along the lines of what I was thinking. They send cooling fluid though automobile engines, so why can't they figure out how to send coolant fluid though roller coaster wheels? Or pour liquid nitrogen on the wheels when they are in the station or something. It can't be as hard as they are making it, can it?

You need to get nitrogen back down to -196°C to return it to a liquid state. The power to do that is not trivial. In the desert.

LostKause:

Or pour liquid nitrogen on the wheels when they are in the station or something.

Tell me you've never seen Terminator 2 without telling me you've never seen Terminator 2.

LostKause:

It can't be as hard as they are making it, can it?

It has to be if they had to outsource R&D to a university in Germany to figure it out!

I mean, why have wheels at all, why not come up with a friction-less maglev type train? No wheels, no heat. lol

...or they could do what parks literally do today which is spray water on the wheels when they return back to the station.

PhantomTails:

...or they could do what parks literally do today which is spray water on the wheels when they return back to the station.

Yea. If we super chilled the water to juuuuust above the freezing point (think 35f) we could definitely gain some benefits. However, we would need extended park times to make it effective, as steam would just come pouring out.

We?

Also, I bet the idea of using water never entered the minds of the designers and engineers.

PhantomTails:

...or they could do what parks literally do today which is spray water on the wheels when they return back to the station.

It isn't about cooling the hubs so much as it is lowering the temperature of the composite materials. The hub can be nice and cool, but the heat migration out of the composites that provide the road wheel surfaces is limited and can cause rapid degradation of those materials.

Were they using regular water or the fancier wet water? Have to use the wet water or else it does no good.

They were using the dehydrated water, results were suboptimal.

That project is just insanely big!!!