A maglev train prototype using the high-temperature superconducting (HTS) maglev technology is unveiled in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, January 13, 2021. /CFP
China rolled out a maglev train prototype with a designed speed of 620 km/h on Wednesday, which is the world's first vehicle using the high-temperature superconducting (HTS) maglev technology, according to its developers.
The domestically developed prototype and a 165-meter maglev test track were unveiled by researchers at Southwest Jiaotong University in Chengdu, Sichuan Province.
At the launch ceremony, the 21-meter-long silver-and-black locomotive was seen floating slowly along the track. Experts hailed it as a "zero to one" breakthrough in the country's development of HTS technology.
"Although the theory sounds good, everyone saw it (HTS maglev technology) as a lab toy in the past, without tests in a real situation," said Deng Zigang, deputy director of the university's research center for super-high-speed maglev transport in low-pressure tubes.
The aerial photo shows a maglev train prototype on the test line during a launch ceremony in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, January 13, 2021. /Xinhua
China has been a world leader in the construction of high-speed railway. By the end of 2020, the country had 37,900 km of high-speed rail lines in service, the longest in the world, according to China's railway operator.
Maglev trains, levitated from the tracks and propelled by powerful magnets to avoid wheel-rail friction, are designed to break the speed bottlenecks facing high-speed trains.
The country's first commercial maglev system was put into operation in 2003 in Shanghai. The 30-km stretch between downtown and the city's Pudong airport is based on German maglev technology of electromagnetic suspension (EMS).
China's first medium-and-low speed maglev line fully supported by the country's own EMS technology started operations in May 2016 in Changsha, Hunan Province. It has a design speed of 100 km/h.
The interior of the maglev train prototype in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, January 13, 2021. /CFP
With an investment of 60 million yuan ($9.3 million), the HTS maglev project was jointly developed by Southwest Jiaotong University, China Railway Group Limited and CRRC Corporation Limited.
Compared with other maglev technologies, HTS tech is more suitable for the futuristic concept of super-fast transportation in vacuum tubes, where trains could hit speeds of over 1,000 km/h, according to Deng.
"The HTS technology can make the train float without electricity, and it can be moved with just one hand," said Deng.
At the site, a reporter succeeded in moving the 12-tonne levitated locomotive with one finger.
Wu Zili, a senior engineer with the Southwest Jiaotong University, said the cost of the (HTS) maglev system is estimated to be slightly higher than the high-speed rail, but the cost is expected to go down further if mass production of main components is achieved.
Read more: China's 600 km/h high-speed maglev prototype completes successful trial run
(With input from Xinhua)