Modifying Friction

摘要

The squeaky wheel gets the grease, they say. In our industry, it's the squeaky rail that gets the friction modifier, which sounds much more classy. Rail lubrication is one of those areas that the general public just doesn't know about. They don't care, either, but that's another story. Even the most-hard-core railfans, those 'who can tell you the schedule of every passenger train in the nation and the location of the last set of wig-wag crossing warning systems in the world, rarely have the art and practicality of rail lubrication on their radar screens.rnRail lubrication is much more than putting some slippery/sticky fluid on the tracks and hoping for the best. It's one of many very-high-tech fields in our industry, with Ph.D eggheads providing lots of skull sweat to come up with the best material for a friction modifier or the most advantageous placement for rail lubricators. And the debate about whether to lubricate the rail from a waysidernsystem, a hi-rail vehicle or a piece of rolling stock is ongoing.