Guidelines for the rail grade selection
M. Tomicic-Torlakovic, University of Belgrade, Faculty of Civil Engineering, Belgrade, Serbia Over the years the rail steel manufacturing process and quality of material produced have improved significantly through alloy design and/or head treatment procedure. The objective of this paper is to give the recommendations for the application of the available rail steel grades in accordance with the accessible investigations. The main source are the results of the Innotrack project in correlation with Euronorm prEN 13674-1. The conclusion for the Serbian Railway is made.
Anti-corrosion coatings for protection of steel railway structures exposed to atmospheric environments: A review
Abstract This review aims to provide a general view on anti-corrosion coatings for the protection of steel railway structures exposed to atmospheric environments. The article describes the specific features of the operation of railway structures with steel elements, including culverts and bridge structures (bridges, viaducts, flyovers, overpasses), track and catenary. The structural, metallurgical and environmental factors influencing the nature and corrosion rate of these structures are summarized and discussed. The mechanisms of electrochemical processes of atmospheric corrosion of steels, corrosion products and layers are analyzed. The types of the most widely used anti-corrosion coatings for steel railway structures, their main components, and characteristics are depicted. The protective mechanisms of such coatings, as well as the processes leading to their degradation and destruction, are investigated. In conclusion, the article highlights key bottlenecks and areas for further research in this area in the context of increasing environmental compliance requirements, lower operating costs, and improved performance of anti-corrosion coatings for steel railway structures.
DEVELOPMENT OF WEAR RESISTANT AND ANTI-SHELLING HIGH STRENGTH RAILS
Recently Japanese rail manufacturers have been expected to develop two kinds of new rails: Wear resistant rails for foreign heavy load railways and anti-shelling rails for high speed railways, Shinkansen in Japan. As to the former ones, laboratory works and field tests have proved that high tensile rails with fine pearlitic structure are exceedingly wear resistant. Alloy or slack quenched rails meet this demand and are being manufactured in quantities. Concerning the latter, the first field test is being carried out on four new types of rails, manufactured and laid in Shinkansen for trial. On the other hand, rolling contact fatigue test has shown that steels with higher carbon content and fine pearlitic structure are also excellent in anti-shelling property. A newly developed head-hardened rail possessing fine pearlitic structure is expected to meet these demands. We are now making efforts to improve the weldability of this rail by small addition of alloying elements.