Investigation and Analysis of the Occurrence of Rail Head Checks Ying JIN/Fusayoshi AOKI/Makoto ISHIDA/Akira Namura
International Journal of Railway, vol. 2, no. 2, pp.43-49, 2009
Abstract : Wear and rolling contact fatigue (RCF) defects are most important causes of rail damage, and often interaction competitive
at present railway track. Head check is one of rolling contact fatigue (RCF) defects, and generally occurs in mild
circular curves and transition curves that are set at both ends of sharp circular curves. Wear tends to limit the crack
growth of head checks by removing the material from the RCF surface. In order to clarify the conditions of the
occurrence and growth of head checks, the authors measured the interacting forces between wheels and rails and the
angle of attack of wheelset, and carried out contact analyses using the actual profile data of wheels and rails. The effects
of the lateral force, the contact geometry, and the wear rate at rail gauge corner on the formation of head checks were
also analyzed by using the worn profiles of actual wheels and rails and the data obtained by a track inspection car. Some
specific range of wear rate at the gauge corner was identified as having close relation with occurrence of head checks.
Keyword :
Rolling contact fatigue (RCF) defects, Head check, Rail gauge face wear, Wheel flange wear, Lateral force,
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