Factors Affecting the Dynamic Rail Canting of the Railway Track
D. V. Ovchinnikov, Vladimir Pokatsky, Damir I. Gallyamov
Abstract
The article discusses the change in the canting of the rail track under the influence of vertical and horizontal forces transmitted from the wheel to the rails and further to the underlying elements of the track. A quantitative assessment of the change in the canting with deviations from the maintenance regulations of rail fastenings was made and with various options for wheel-rail contact. The calculations were carried out in a finite element modeling environment using three-dimensional models that are completely identical to the actual structure operating on the network of Russian Railways. The physical-mechanical parameters of the elements when modeling various types of materials of the upper and lower track superstructure completely repeat the properties of real materials, including bulk ones used on the road network of Russian Railways. The developed models are capable to evaluate the change of the rail canting – a deviation from the initial position, for any combination of loads and deviations from the maintenance regulations. The results of the study are quantitative values of the change in the position of the rail relative to the initial state at axial loads from 20 to 30 tons, lateral force up to 10 tons, and when the position of the wheels of the rolling stock on the rails changes. Numerical modeling made it possible to identify the factors that adversely affect the rail canting, which subsequently can lead to a broadening of the rail track, as well as a significant increase in contact stresses in the wheel-rail system.