Comparison study of Heavy Haul loComotive WHeels’ running surfaCes Wearing

lokomotyW dużej moCy The service life of railway wheels can differ significantly depending on their installed position, operating conditions, re-profiling characteristics, etc. This paper compares the wheels on two selected locomotives on the Iron Ore Line in northern Sweden to explore some of these differences. It proposes integrating reliability assessment data with both degradation data and re-profiling performance data. The following conclusions are drawn. First, by considering an exponential degradation path and given opera-tion condition, the Weibull frailty model can be used to undertake reliability studies; second, among re-profiling work orders, rolling contact fatigue (RCF) is the principal reason; and third, by analysing re-profiling parameters, both the wear rate and the re-profiling loss can be monitored and investigated, a finding which could be applied in optimisation of maintenance activities