Impact of railway dynamics on wheel-rail interaction: modeling, sensitivity analysis and experimental validation

Details

Supervisors

Docquier, Nicolas ; Fisette, Paul

Faculty

Ecole polytechnique de Louvain

Degree label

Master [120] : ingénieur civil mécanicien, à finalité spécialisée

Abstract

The maintenance of switch and crossing devices requires the precise measurement of their geometry. A technique employed by Infrabel for this task involves the use of a measuring train. Nevertheless, the dynamic loads due to the passage of the vehicle may have an impact on specific dimensions. The objective of this project is to develop a numerical model to analyse the interaction between the measuring train and the railway infrastructure. The work is based on a model provided by Quandyga Engineering, it was then adapted to the particular vehicle studied. A key consideration in the implementation of a model is the validation process. It is essential in order to ensure that the results produced are representative of the reality. Consequently, this master's thesis was also involved in several experimental campaigns from which data was recovered to be compared with the simulation results. A sensitivity analysis was also performed to assess the impact of potential approximation errors on certain unknown parameters. The final part concerns the use of the developed model. It compares the wheel-rail contact forces obtained in different situations that may be encountered when measuring the geometry of a track. These situations include, among others, the impact of cant on the track, the radius of curvature of the track and the speed of the vehicle.