Pressure distribution investigation on interaction between rail-wheel

Pressure distributions on interaction between wheel-rail caused slip and adhesion area at contact patch. The present paper proposes analytical study on pressure distributions which cause wear and temperature rises at contact area. Hertzian contact law was modified to determined pressure distributions. Normal and tangential load was taken into account to predict depth of wear. Laplace one-dimensional continuum equation was used to determined contact temperature. This prediction has been validated using pin-on-disc experimental technique using normal load of 100 N. The results show pressure distributions can be used to predict wear rates and contact temperatures.