A New Wheel Profile Design Method for High-Speed Vehicle

Abstract

The high maintenance cost of high-speed wheels due to wear and rolling contact fatigue becomes a main problem in the commercial operation of high-speed trains in China. In order to understand the wear behaviour of high-speed wheels and its influence on the motion stability of high-speed trains, the worn profiles and the work-hardening of the wheels of the CRH3 high-speed trains operating on Wuhan-Guangzhou line were monitored in different periods during service, and the influence of the wheel hollow wear on the lateral acceleration of the bearing-box was investigated in detail. A new wheel profile design method was suggested to reduce the hollow wear by seeking an optimization match of the wheel profiles, the vehicle suspension systems, and the wear behaviour of the wheels in service. The feasibility of the method was verified by numerical simulation using the operation conditions of CRH3 high-speed trains on Wuhan-Guangzhou line. A new wheel profile was designed using this method. The wheel/rail contact performance and the vehicle dynamic behaviour of the designed new wheel were investigated in detail and compared with those of the original wheel. The wear behaviour of the designed new wheel profile was predicted based on the measured wear data of the original wheel. The results show that, compared with the original wheel profile, the designed new wheel profile can improve the wheel/rail contact state, reduce the contact stress level, and lower the friction power of wheel and rail. The hollow wear on the new wheel decreases greatly and the vehicle has improved dynamic behaviour when wheelsets with the designed new profile are used. Thus, the period of re-profiling can be effectively extended.