Interface - The Journal of Wheel/Rail Interaction

RAIL GRINDING & RE-PROFILING

Wheel Re-Profiling and Rail Grinding Strategies on Wiener Linien (continued)

Experience has shown that rail on tangent track and very large radius curves on the U3 line must be regularly ground and re-profiled to avoid two-point contact and ensure uniform contact on the running band in the center of the rail. Areas with tight gauge must be ground to provide a more favorable gauge clearance. Curves of up to 300 m must be asymmetrically ground to generate "pure" rolling motion (see Figure 6). Tangent and curved track must be regularly ground to keep the rail free of corrugation and surface defects.

The plan for tramways is to re-profile the running edges for radii of up to 12 mm in tangent track in order to ensure a uniformly spread rolling motion and reduce the surface pressure at the running edge. This will also help reduce material flow toward the outside of the rail. While the findings for curved track are not yet complete, the goal is to enable vehicles with independently rotating wheels to negotiate without the need for any gauge widening in curves.

Further Steps
Wiener Linien will conduct a pilot program to test its findings and change to the desired target profiles on the U3 line during the fourth quarter of 2007. The results of the pilot test will be incorporated into the tender document for future rail grinding programs on the entire metro system. This, along with the ongoing analysis of the performance of independently rotating wheels in tramway service, will enable Wiener Linien to establish specifications for rail profile grinding services for the metro and tramway systems.

Effective management of these programs, together with the ongoing automation of decision-making in mechanized track maintenance, will complete the changeover to electronic automated condition monitoring for all aspects of vehicle and track maintenance. The use of automated tools, including an LCC/RAMS-based maintenance strategy to determine component life-cycle costs, will enable Wiener Linien to evaluate its maintenance strategy at any time. This, in turn, will allow managers to better monitor efficiency, control costs, and manage wheel / rail interaction.

Edgar Fischmeister, Dipl.-Ing, is Head of the Track Maintenance and Construction Department, Wiener Linien; Markus Ossberger, Dipl.-Ing. Dr., is former Maintenance Process Manager for Light Rail Systems, now Department of Construction and Subway-Planning, Wiener Linien; Paul Mittermayr, Dipl.-Ing. Dr., is Director of BAMM, research consultant to Wiener Linien and the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB); Roman Pongracz, Dipl.-Ing, is a former Manager of Wiener Linien, and Vehicle Consultant.

References
Grassie, S., Kalousek, J., "Rail Corrugation: Causes and Cures," International Railway Journal http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQQ , July 2000 http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0BQQ/is_7_40 .

Hartleben, D., "Schienenschleifen als Maßnahme der Lärmvorsorge und Lärmsanierung." EI – Der Eisenbahningenieur, 54(8), 22–28, 2003. (Rail grinding as method for noise prevention and restoration.)

Iwnicki, S. (Ed.), Handbook of Railway Vehicle Dynamics, Boca Raton London New York: CRC Taylor & Francis 2006.

Ossberger, M., Mittermayr, P., "Messstrategien für den Oberbau im urbanen Bereich." EI – Der Eisenbahningenieur, 56(9), 12–16, 2005. (Measuring strategies for the track system in the urban area.)

Pongracz, R., "Radverschleißaspekte im Schienennahverkehr." Special ETR Austria, 2, 729–737, 2005. (Aspects of wheel wear in the urban traffic.)

Schoech, W., "The European Approach to Quality Control in Rail Grinding," Interface – The Journal of Wheel/Rail Interaction, August 2004.

TCRP Transit Cooperative Research Program, Report 57: Track Design Handbook for Light Rail Transit. Transportation Research Board, National Research Coun–cil. Washington, D.C., National Academy Press 2000.

Tuzik, B., "Specialized Rail Profile Grinding on MBTA," Interface – The Journal of Wheel/Rail Interaction, April 2005.

Zarembski, A., The Art and Science of Rail Grinding. Omaha, NE, Simmons-Boardman Books, Inc., 2005.

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