Rolling contact fatigue

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Cracks caused by RCF along the driving edge on a high speed line .

Rolling contact fatigue , English Rolling Contact Fatigue , abbreviated RCF , damage to designated railway tracks and railway wheels by repeated shear stresses in the contact zone between wheel and rail. Initially, the phenomenon could only be observed on heavy-duty railways with axle loads higher than 25 tonnes, but it also occurs on high-speed routes , as well as on S-Bahn and U-Bahn systems.

The rail defects occur with large radii on the outer rail and on straight lines alternately on the opposite rails. These are head checks , squats , corrugation , Belgrospis , transverse defects , as well as cracks and breakouts on the driving edge. In extreme cases, the breaking of the running edge can break the rails , which can lead to derailment. The Hatfield railway accident in 2000 was believed to have been caused by a broken rail caused by RCF. In the US, there were around 100 derailments in 2011 that were triggered by RCF.

Tread cracks occurring transversely to the rolling direction, as well as crumbling and chipping on the treads occur on the wheels .

Damage caused by rolling contact fatigue can be avoided by regularly treating the rail heads with the grinding carriage and preventive over-turning of the wheels.

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