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Preserved Porter Locomotive Company No. 3290 of 1923.

A fireless locomotive was a type of locomotive designed for use under conditions restricted by either the presence of flammable material (such as in mines) or the need for cleanliness. Thus a traditional steam locomotive is ruled out because of its open fire.

There are two types of fireless locomotive - compressed air locomotives and fireless steam locomotives.

A fireless steam locomotive is similar to a conventional steam locomotive but has a reservoir (known as a steam accumulator) instead of a boiler. This reservoir is part-filled with water and charged with steam from a stationary boiler. The locomotive can then work on the stored steam until the pressure has dropped to a minimum level, after which it must be re-charged. European fireless steam locomotives usually have the cylinders at the back but American ones often have the cylinders at the front, as in a conventional locomotive. Major builders of fireless steam locomotives in the UK included Andrew Barclay and W.G. Bagnall.

There have been several hybrid locomotives built that have either used a fire for part of the time (e.g. Fowler's Ghost of the Metropolitan Railway) or have used a fire to superheat stored steam, e.g. the Receiver Locomotives built by Sentinel Waggon Works. None has been a success.

The last commercially operated steam locomotive in UK industry was a fireless steam locomotive. It operated at the Glaxo factory in Ulverston, Cumbria. A few fireless steam locomotives are still at work in Germany.

Although a large proportion of fireless locomotives have been preserved, very few (possibly only one) have been operated. This is due to the low power of the locomotives, the long time need to charge a locomotive from cold and the low steam pressures available for charging.

Fireless steam locomotives might, possibly, make a comeback because of their ability to use steam generated by rubbish incinerators or solar collectors. See "Solar Steam Train" link below.

• http://www.nrhs.com/web_exclusives/fireless_cooker/
• Buckinghamshire Railway Centre
• Fireless Steam Locomotives in Germany
• Solar Steam Train

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