Effect of the Rail Support Stiffness on the Occurrence Propensity of Rail Corrugation Based on the Self-excited Vibration of a Wheel-Rail System

Abstract

From the viewpoint of friction-induced vibration, a self-excited vibration of a railway wheel-rail system is found to easily occur when the creep force between the wheel and rail is saturated. This self-excited vibration is probably responsible for rail corrugation. In this paper, a self-excited vibration model is established, which consists of a wheel, a rail and a series of sleepers. The model is used to study the effect of the rail support stiffness on the occurrence propensity of rail corrugation. Results show that the occurrence propensity of rail corrugation decreases with increasing rail support stiffness.