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U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

Modeling the Effects of Top-of-Rail Products on Creep Forces in the Wheel-Rail Interface

Document Series
Technical Reports
Author
Zing Lee, Roger Lewis, Gerald Trummer, Klaus Six
Report Number
DOT/FRA/ORD-24/42
Office
RDI-21
Subject Track
Keywords
Wheel/rail interface; friction management; top-of-rail products; friction measurement; friction modelling

The main aim of this project was to develop a wheel-rail creep force model that accounts for the effects of third-body layers resulting from the application of a range of top-of-rail (TOR) materials. Initially, researchers carried out experimental assessments of different types of TOR products to assess the pick-up, carry-on, and friction performance of each. They conducted these tests across several scales using a twin-disc simulation of the wheel/rail interface, a scaled wheel rig, and a full-scale rig. The data from the tests were used to inform the development of models for TOR product pick-up and consumption. The team created a graphical user interface (GUI) that allows easy use of the TOR product model and provides access to the main model variables. The GUI can be used to explore the model behavior with respect to field operation in a variety of ways. However, model predictions are extrapolations based on laboratory experiments from small-scale twin-disc tests and full-scale wheel-rail rig tests. The evolution of the friction conditions along the rail in the model predictions for the field are determined by two main processes: the pick-up of TOR product at the application site followed by a steady redistribution of TOR product between wheel and rail, and the consumption behavior of the TOR product as a result of the wheel/rail interaction.


Last updated: Friday, October 4, 2024