FLANGE BEARING FROG TESTING TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF TRAIN SPEED, RAMP SHAPE, FROG MATERIALS AND FROG FOUNDATIONS

摘要

Since implementation of flange bearing frogs began on freight railways more than 15 years ago, much has been learned about how they perform, what their limitations are, and where they should be deployed to best advantage. This paper describes recent findings from testing under heavy axle loads at the High Tonnage Loop (HTL) of the Facility for Accelerated Service Testing at the Transportation Technology Center near Pueblo, CO. A flange bearing track panel was installed on the HTL to evaluate the effects of train speed, ramp shape, running surface shape, foundation stiffness/damping, and cross grooves on vehicle track performance. Additionally, the testing evaluated candidate steels for flange bearing. Results show that significant performance improvement is possible over the first designs used.