Analysis of Rail Fatigue Crack Initiation under Nonsteady State Loading of Wheel-rail

doi:10.3901/JME.2023.18.283

Abstract

Abstract: In order to analyse the relationship between wheel-rail unsteady state loading and rail fatigue crack initiation, a two-dimensional finite element model of nonsteady state wheel-rail rolling contact is established using the finite element method. The unsteady state rolling contact is simulated by moving the normal load with harmonic variation in time across the rail surface. The JIANG-SEHITOGLU cyclic plasticity constitutive model which can describe the cyclic strain ratcheting effect is implemented into the finite element model for calculating the residual stresses and strains under different wheel-rail cyclic rolling contact conditions. The multi-axial fatigue damage model is adopted to study the fatigue crack initiation life, location and direction in the rail. The results show that the nonsteady cyclic rolling contact loading causes a wavy plastic deformation of the contact surface of rail, the wavelength of which is consistent with that of the normal harmonic load. The residual stress and shear strain gradually increase at the crest and trough with an increasing number of rolling passes and stabilize after 40 rolling passes. The residual stress and shear strain at the trough are greater than those at the crest. The residual stress in the axial direction is greater than that in the longitudinal direction. The wheel-rail creepage has a small effect on the residual stresses in the axial and longitudinal directions and has a large effect on the residual shear strain. A single rolling pass seriously underestimates the residual stress and strain and fatigue life of the rail. When multiple rolling passes are considered, the fatigue crack initiation life of rail for full slip rolling contact is 4.5 times of that for pure rolling contact; the fatigue crack initiation life of rail near the trough of wavy surface deformation is 1.4 times of that near the crest.

Key words: nonsteady state loading, wheel-rail stick-slip rolling, cyclic plasticity constitutive model, residual stress and strain, crack initiation life

CLC Number:

U213.42

LI Wei, ZHOU Zhijun, WEN Zefeng, YAO Xuedong, ZHAO Xin. Analysis of Rail Fatigue Crack Initiation under Nonsteady State Loading of Wheel-rail[J]. Journal of Mechanical Engineering, 2023, 59(18): 283-293.

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