LETTER ON OCCURRENCE OF CRACKS IN RAIL ENDS

Results of a survey on inspection of rail joints with and without rail joint packing are presented. Table A includes those railways which report the development of fillet or bolt hole cracks where the packing has been used. Table B includes those railways which report no cracks. The Corrosion Research Laboratory of the Illinois Institute of Technology has been conducting tests with rail joint packing to determine whether stress corrosion cracks can be produced in accelerated laboratory tests in specimens of rail steel. These tests included both new packing and user packing removed from rail ends that had developed cracks. It has not been found possible to produce stress corrosion cracks with extracts from either the new or used packing in the accelerated laboratory tests. Accordingly, it has not been possible to determine that any chemical action of the joint packing is responsible for the cracks that have developed in service.

• Corporate Authors:

  Association of American Railroads

  59 East Van Buren Street
  Chicago, IL  United States  60605
• Authors:
  • Magee
• Publication Date: 1948-10-20

Media Info

• Features: Tables;
• Pagination: 3 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Bolts; Cracking; Defects; Failure; Holes; Rail joints; Railroad rails; Surveys; Technology
• Geographic Terms: United States
• Old TRIS Terms: Bolt holes; End breaks; Fissures (Rails); Rail failure
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Railroads;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00040251
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: e7191 File IV-3-C
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jul 8 1994 12:00AM