A novel rail corrugation suppressor using synergistic mechanism of vibration absorption and damping

Abstract

Rail corrugation increases the intensity of interaction between the wheel and the rail, make the vehicle and track vibrate more strongly, and increase the rolling noise. Based on the fixed corrugation wavelength mechanism, this paper determines the required corrugation wavelength to be controlled using field investigations. A new type of corrugation suppressor is developed that combines a dynamic vibration absorber and a labyrinth damper. The purpose of the suppressor is to realize wide-band vibration resistance and energy consumption, and to control the vibrations in a specific frequency band. By analyzing the vibration transmission characteristics of a typical small-radius curved subway track, it is verified that the device can flatten the rail dynamic response function, suppress the pinned-pinned resonance of rail, and increase the transmission attenuation rate of rail vibrations. A coupled rigid-flexible model of vehicle and curved track is established. The rail vibration and corrugation growth rate before and after installing the suppressor are compared. The suppressor can reduce the 1000 Hz vibrations by 10.1 dB and decrease the medium and high frequency vibrations of the rail by 5.6 dB. At the same time, it can attenuate the rail corrugation growth rate near 500 Hz and between 700-1000 Hz. A field tracking test showed that the suppressor can effectively inhibit the initiation of 15-30 mm wavelength corrugation.