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Fatigue Behavior of AAR Class A Railroad Wheel Steel at Ambient and Elevated Temperatures
This report documents a test program to determine the material properties (chemical composition, tensile, and fatigue) at ambient and elevated temperatures of a Class A wheel steel as designated by the Association of American Railroads. The 3 temperatures examined included ambient room temperature...Impact Performance of Draft Gears in 263,000 Pound Gross Rail Load and 286,000 Pound Gross Rail Load Tank Car Service
This project quantified the impact performance of draft gears on tank cars for both the 263,000 and 286,000 gross rail load (GRL) conditions and the corresponding effect on the structural integrity of stub sills. Full-scale physical impact testing with an instrumented tank car for the 263,000 GRL...Application of Ultrasonic Phased Arrays for Rail Flaw Inspection
The average number of Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) reportable broken rail-related derailments between 1995 and 2005 was approximately 28 annually. The annual property damage resulting from the accidents was approximately $35 million. Programs cosponsored by FRA and the Association of...Design and Evaluation of Advanced Systems for Locomotive Crew Emergency Egress
This report presents the results of the second phase of a program to develop innovative concepts for locomotive crew egress following a crash that damages the cab. The roof-mounted hatch system was fabricated as a working prototype and installed in a full-scale mockup of a toppled locomotive....Work Schedules and Sleep Patterns of Railroad Signalmen
This report presents the results of a research study designed to characterize the work schedules and sleep patterns of U.S. railroad signalmen and to examine the relationship between these schedules and level of alertness of the individuals working the schedules. The study methodology was a...Development of Conventional Cab Car End Structure Designs for Full Scale Testing - Rail Passenger Equipment Impact Tests
The Volpe Center is supporting the Federal Railroad Administration’s full-scale testingprogram to understand and improve rail vehicle crashworthiness. The objective of one of the sets of tests in this programis determining thebehavior of cab car end structures in simulated grade crossing...Validation and Calibration of a Fatigue Assessment Tool for Railroad Work Schedules - Summary Report
This report summarizes the results of a project to demonstrate a method to validate and calibrate a fatigue model. The project examined 30-day work histories of locomotive crews prior to 400 human factors accidents and 1000 nonhuman factors accidents. A biomathematical fatigue model estimated crew...Environmental Impact Statement for Pennsylvania Maglev Proposal
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