Analysis of contact fatigue crack growth using twin-disc tests and numerical evaluations

The contact fatigue damages on the rail surface, such as head check, squats are one of the growing problems. Fracture of rail can be prevented by removing the crack before it reaches the critical length. Therefore, the crack growth rate needs to be estimated precisely according to the conditions of the track and load. In this study, we have investigated the crack growth behavior on rail surface by using the twin-disc tests and the finite element analysis. We have verified the relationship between the crack growth rate and the variety of parameters as cracks grow from the initiation stage.