Title Influence of laser cladding in railway maintenance: preliminary results
Author Fasihi, P
Abrahams, R
Kendall, O
Lai, Q
Qiu, C
Mutton, P
Yan, W
Affiliation Monash University
Publication Date 2021
Conference CORE 2021: Collaborating to Master Complexity: Conference on Railway Excellence, 21-23 June 2021, Perth, WA, Australia
Abstract Railway transportation is a vital and sustainable mode of transport for passengers, export and freight. With the increasing demands on rail systems, improved performance is required. The increasing rates of railhead wear and degradation, decrease the life of the rail and thus increase maintenance costs. To prolong the life of rails, preventative maintenance methods can be employed that increase the strength of the rails or reduce the frictional forces between the wheel-rail interfaces. In comparison to the more well-known rail maintenance strategies, laser cladding is a promising surface repair technique in the railway industry. This additive manufacturing-based technique can deposit materials with improved properties for the application at the wheelrail interface, and hence improve wear and rolling contact fatigue resistance. Therefore, the application of laser cladding provides potential new opportunities for enhancement of new rails or maintenance of worn and damaged rails, crossings and turnouts. The properties of the cladding materials are dictated by the rail grades, process parameters, and post weld heat treatments. Having a sensibly selected set of process parameters while taking the characteristics of the parent substrate into consideration, minimizes the property mismatch between the cladding layers, heat affected zones and the substrate. The authors’ group are currently investigating the development and application of laser cladding alloys on the premium hypereutectoid rail grades commonly used in Australian heavy haul applications. In this paper, the development of laser cladding in railway applications, including the research work in the authors’ own group, is thoroughly reviewed against industry requirements. Furthermore, gaps in the current technology and the economic impact of laser cladding as a maintenance technique are also identified and emphasised.
File - click thumbnail to download
CORE 2021_Fasihi
Physical Description 6p. ; PDF
Subjects Laser
Railway track
Sustainability
Wear
Preventive maintenance
Heavy haul
Maintenance
Location ARRB library
Category Rail Knowledge Bank Index Infrastructure Track Track maintenance