United States Department of Transportation
i
Effect of Long-Term Inactivity on Railcar Bearings – Year 1
-
2024-09-30
-
[PDF-6.47 MB]
Details:
-
Creators:
-
Corporate Creators:
-
Corporate Contributors:
-
Subject/TRT Terms:
-
Publication/ Report Number:
-
Resource Type:
-
Geographical Coverage:
-
Edition:Project Report June 1, 2023 – August 31, 2024
-
Corporate Publisher:
-
Abstract:The performance of railroad bearings that sit idle in railyards, large industrial plants, or shipping ports has not been previously explored. Some of the bearings, with documented periods of inactivity exceeding 18 months, have been associated with major derailments. The aforementioned has led to concerns in whether the inactive periods contributed to early failure, possibly through degradation of the grease properties brought on by moisture intake or grease separation leading to uneven protection of the metal components. The work conducted in collaboration with CSX Transportation and MxV Rail, and in consultation with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), aims to answer the question of whether long-term inactivity has significant effect on bearing performance and service life, and whether these are tied to changes in the lubricant. The performed work consisted of (a) identification of installed bearings on cars that have not moved for periods of three months or longer, (b) removal of the bearings with minimum disruption to the lubricant, (c) pre-test inspection of the still-assembled bearings, (d) installation and service life testing on a laboratory test rig, with continuous performance monitoring of temperature rise, vibration spectra, and power consumption, (e) post-test inspection including disassembly, teardown, and visual inspection of all bearing components, and (f) analysis of the grease composition with specific focus on loss of oxidation inhibitors and evidence of lubricant separation.
-
Format:
-
Funding:
-
Collection(s):
-
Main Document Checksum:
-
Download URL:
-
File Type:
