Identification of the Primary Cause of Increasing Wear of Locomotive Wheel Flanges and Proposals for Its Reduction

The article analyzes the causes of the problem of increased wear of locomotive wheel ridges in railway transport, evaluates the impact of changes that occurred in the parameters and characteristics of the track, locomotive crews and operation in the second half of the last century. The evolution of the connection of wheel pairs with trolley frames is studied: from jaw-type ones on steam locomotives to modern, chain-type ones on diesel locomotives and electric locomotives. which led to the loss of accuracy and stability of the installation of wheel pairs in the trolley frame. It is hypothesized that this was the main reason for the increase in the wear of locomotive wheel ridges compared to previous years, when the carts had a jaw connection of the cart frames with the wheel pairs, which stabilized their position in the frames. When switching to an elastic leash connection of trolley frames with wheel pairs, they got a certain freedom of movement in the plane of the track. This allowed them to rotate against the direction of the track when moving along curved sections – under the action of the friction forces of the wheels on the rails, and increased the angles of the wheel flanges on the rails. The consequence of this was an increase in wear at the contact of the wheel flange with the side edge of the rail. We see the direction of solving this problem in the creation of a dog link, which stabilizes the location of the wheel pair in the bogie frame, primarily in the longitudinal direction, and also eliminates its angular rotations around the vertical axis. This does not allow it to turn against the direction of the curved section of the track under the action of the friction forces of the wheels on the rails, and eliminates the corresponding increase in the angles of the wheel flanges on the rails. The consequence of this will be a decrease in the wear of the flange and the side edge of the rail and gives real hope of reaching its level, which was with the «jaw» bogies.