Placa metálica elástica de asiento para sistema de sujeción de vía de ferrocarril

Abstract

Elastomeric materials have been traditionally employed in the manufacturing of rail pads intended for high-speed lines. The behaviour of the currently marketed pads based on these materials is seriously affected by both the railway environment and mechanical requirements, such as mechanical fatigue, thermal variations, UV rays, extreme rising of temperature, humidity and salinity, among others. This Thesis work deeply analyses the feasibility of developing an anti-vibration metallic cushion as an alternative to traditional rail pad materials. To this end, the design of a pad based on a stainless steel wired mesh cushion is proposed as a starting point for the future manufacturing of elastic metal cushion rail pads, whose mechanical performance is not only comparable to those made with elastomers, but also significantly prolonged in regards of the current working life standard of existing commercial products. The experimental result analysis concludes that the developed metal cushion material displays an excellent behaviour against mechanical and environmental aging processes with respect to elastomeric materials, being able to reach a stiffness in commercial ranges of current rail pads. Foremost manufacturing parameters of metal cushion pads are identified under a material design criterion which takes into account their influence over mechanical performance. Finally, the new material is characterized through a mathematical referenced model, with the aim of carrying out an analysis within the dynamic range in terms of stiffness and damping.