Rail defects: an overview

Cannon, D. F.; Edel, Karl-Otto; Grassie, Stuart L.; Sawley, K

doi:10.1046/j.1460-2695.2003.00693.x

Cited by 372 publications

(255 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…Despite the fact that improved safety standards are constantly being introduced, the forces acting on a rail track -due to wheel-rail contact stresses (WRCS) -are quite large and frequently repeated and -combined with the high speeds of modern trainscan result in the quick evolution of small defects and cracks (which constitute Rolling Contact Fatigue or RCF) into partial or complete rail track failure, which can cause catastrophic accidents such as train derailments [1,2]. Therefore, it is essential to be able to detect RCF in its early stages and observe the time evolution of it (before the cracks increase in number and/or grow in size and the rail track breaks), in order to apply the correct maintenance/replacement strategy [1,3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A new cracks detection device for magnetic steels

Manios

Pissas

2014

EPJ Web of Conferences

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Abstract. A portable detecting device was developed for the magnetic detection of cracks existing in railway tracks. The device is equipped with permanent magnets, which produce a uniform magnetic field inside and near the surface of the magnetically soft steel of a railway track, and GMR sensors. Due to the high sensitivity of the GMR sensors (in variations of the tangential component of the magnetic field which is parallel to the direction of motion) the device is capable of producing voltage peaks or dips, for quite small deviations of the near-surface magnetic field from the uniform field of the magnets. Finite element numerical simulations showed that the tangential component of the magnetic field exhibits sharp peaks above cracks, due to the stray magnetic field produced by them. Laboratory measurements, made on pieces of railway tracks with cracks, reproduced qualitatively the results of simulations. They showed that the sensors (moving near cracks) produce sharp voltage peaks with magnitude that depends on the size of the cracks. Based on these measurements, we conclude that the developed device can successfully detect cracks and defects in railway tracks and give information on their size. The method can be generalised for detection of cracks in all magnetic steels.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A new cracks detection device for magnetic steels

Manios

Pissas

2014

EPJ Web of Conferences

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“…1,2 On-site inspection methods, originally based almost exclusively on visual inspection, have been developed over the years. They use various non-destructive inspection techniques such as eddy current testing, 3 electromagnetic tomography, 4 axle box acceleration measurements, 5 vision systems, and/or laser stripes mounted on trains to detect rail conditions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A novel optical apparatus for the study of rolling contact wear/fatigue based on a high-speed camera and multiple-source laser illumination

Bodini

Sansoni

Lancini

et al. 2016

Review of Scientific Instruments

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Real-time lock-in imaging by a newly developed high-speed image-processing charge coupled device video camera Rev. Sci. Instrum. 74, 1393 (2003) Rolling contact wear/fatigue tests on wheel/rail specimens are important to produce wheels and rails of new materials for improved lifetime and performance, which are able to operate in harsh environments and at high rolling speeds. This paper presents a novel non-invasive, all-optical system, based on a high-speed video camera and multiple laser illumination sources, which is able to continuously monitor the dynamics of the specimens used to test wheel and rail materials, in a laboratory test bench. 3D macro-topography and angular position of the specimen are simultaneously performed, together with the acquisition of surface micro-topography, at speeds up to 500 rpm, making use of a fast camera and image processing algorithms. Synthetic indexes for surface micro-topography classification are defined, the 3D macro-topography is measured with a standard uncertainty down to 0.019 mm, and the angular position is measured on a purposely developed analog encoder with a standard uncertainty of 2.9 • . The very small camera exposure time enables to obtain blur-free images with excellent definition. The system will be described with the aid of end-cycle specimens, as well as of in-test specimens. Published by AIP Publishing. [http://dx

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“…Alternating Current Field Measurement (ACFM) have a good potential to detect RCF cracks with maximum operating lift-off , but is not sensitive for sub surface defect and it is also difficult to identify multi-cracks [7].Electromagnetic acoustic transducers (EMATs) can generate the surface wave to detect the RCF in rail at a small standoff distance, which is a non-contact technique with high speed potential but lift-off is the limitation [8].Other noteworthy innovation include the development of low frequency eddy current (LFEC) techniques, designed to locate deep defects. This technique has the ability to penetrate the rail, along with the feature that LFEC waves are immune to longitudinal defects but are interfered with by transverse defects and the data is generated indicating the presence of transverse anomaly hidden under a horizontal crack [9].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Eddy Current Thermography for Rail Inspection

Vaibhav¹,

Balasubramaniam²,

Thomas³

et al. 2016

Proceedings of the 2016 International Conference on Quantitative InfraRed Thermography

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With the tendency of the railway transportation into heavy haul, more frequent usage of rail tracks and increased axle load, the problem of surface damage and fatigue is dominant on rails. Rolling contact fatigue (RCF), which leads to crack formation in rail track heads, is becoming a growing concern in the transportation industry. It occurs on or very close to the rail head surface, and is a significant cause of rail failure. The detection of cracks in RAILS is a critical requirement in the Railway industry. Cracks, if undetected will lead to rail fractures and consequently may lead to catastrophic accidents. Thus with the development and operation of high speed trains, condition based maintenance and monitoring becomes an important approach for the improvement of reliability and safety of rail transportation. Eddy Current Thermography (ECT) is an emerging NDT method especially for conductive material like rails which combines the advantages of eddy current testing and IR Thermography. Due to electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity and high permeability of rails, ECT is very suitable for its damage detections. This technology describes an inspection methodology which utilizes scanning induction Thermography in which coil is excited by a high frequency alternating current and induced eddy current are generated in sample placed near the coil. The thermographic camera is arranged to capture data indicative of a thermal response resulting from the flow of electrical current through the copper coil which scans the rail track. A computer system is configured to process the data from the thermographic camera to generate an indication of a presence of a discontinuity in the rails.

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Rail defects: an overview

Cited by 372 publications

References 15 publications

A new cracks detection device for magnetic steels

A new cracks detection device for magnetic steels

A novel optical apparatus for the study of rolling contact wear/fatigue based on a high-speed camera and multiple-source laser illumination

Eddy Current Thermography for Rail Inspection

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