Investigation of wheel flange wear on the Santander FEVE rail — a case study

Abstract

For several years excessive wheel flange wear has been a serious problem on certain lines of the Santander FEVE rail urban transit and regional passenger-freight system. An onboard liquid lubrication system applied at the driving wheels of the electrical units was in use. Average flange thickness wear was excessive when compared with existing data from similar railways. The excessive flange wear was believed to be caused by inefficiencies in the lubrication system: (a) the viscosity of the lubricant was sensitive to climatic conditions; (b) the lubricant tended to migrate from the area of application to the top running surface of the rail. At the beginning of 1991 a new lubrication system developed by Century Oils using a solid lubricant was applied on a selected unit, with the objectives (a) to avoid the problem of contamination of the top of the rail, (b) to achieve and maintain steady state lubrication levels, in any weather, (c) to be effective only where it was desired, and (d) as a consequence to reduce flange friction wear and maintenance costs. The trials were conducted by FEVE and VIESA starting in January and continuing through June of 1991. The improvements achieved using the Century Oil Centrac solid lubrication have been so evident that other units have been equipped with the new system.