Lubrication reduces wheel rail wear, wheel squeal noise, energy consumption and fuel costs resulting in improvement of reliability, safety and efficiency of rail operation. The American Association of Railroads (AAR) estimated that the wear and friction occurring at the wheel/rail interface of trains due to ineffective lubrication costs American Railways in excess of US Dollar 2 billion each year. Currently, the largest expenditure faced by the railroad industry is the rail maintenance and replacement. Application of lubricants at the wheel rail interface dramatically reduces the rail track degradation and fuel consumption. Rail life has been increased by factor of two and wheel life by factor of five (Queensland Rail, Australia) using appropriate lubrication. Cost models can analyse risks, costs and benefits of various lubrication strategies. This paper focuses on comparative evaluation of various rial-wheel lubrication strategies. Way side, on board, top of rail applicators, grease and biodegradable lubricant, continuous and stop/start application are compared using conceptual cost models. Cost effective lubrication strategies can be developed using these models. Field and experimental data are used for illustration.
Comparative evaluation of various rail-wheel lubrication strategies
Vergleichende Evaluierung verschiedener Rad-Schiene Schmierungsstrategien
2004
10 Seiten, 2 Bilder, 4 Tabellen, 8 Quellen
Conference paper
English
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