Comparative study on lateral vibration characteristics of the head and tail cars of high-speed trains under unsteady aerodynamic loadings

Abstract

With the increasing speed of high-speed trains, abnormal vibrations in the tail car pose a threat to its overall stability and running safety. In this study, the aerodynamic and multibody dynamics models for 3-car and 8-car trains are established. The flow field characteristics and dynamic performance around the head and tail cars under both steady and unsteady aerodynamic loadings at a speed of 400 km/h are compared. The results reveal that the surrounding flow field exhibits highly pronounced unsteady characteristics, directly leading to a significant impact of unsteady aerodynamic loadings on the train's dynamic response. Under unsteady loadings, the lateral stability indexes, displacement, velocity, and acceleration of the tail car are all worser compared to those of the head car. Additionally, the larger oscillation amplitudes and frequencies closer to the suspension modal frequencies under unsteady aerodynamic loadings contribute to more pronounced lateral displacements and accelerations, constituting a crucial factor in the observed ‘tail swing' phenomenon for the high-speed train.