Significant dynamic loads on aircraft wheel rims during takeoff and landing have compelled aircraft wheel manufacturers to introduce mandatory non-destructive testing of aircraft wheels for maintenance and repair companies.
Applications
Rails are one of the most important and, at the same time, most stressed elements of the railroad transport and metropolitan, since they are particularly exposed to the loading caused by the rolling stock as well as the dynamic loading. Due to the increased speed of the trains for the last years, and the increment loading of the freight cars, the development of service, fatigue-type defects in the place of contact of the train wheel with the rail head surface may occur. These are so-called “Rolling contact fatigue” (RCF) defects.
This article is dedicated to:
- what kinds of surface defects are the most frequent in rails and can lead to their breakage;
- which testing techniques are applied for detection of the same; analysis of effectiveness;
- what kind of NDT equipment allows to most accurately detect the described rail defects.
Nowadays, the scores of continuous rails testing technologies are represented on the European, American, Australian and other markets – portable single- and dual-rail line trolleys, locomobiles and detector-cars. In most of them traditional sounding schemes are implemented that allow to test the rail head and the rail central cross-section
Both the manufacture defects – the ones that appear in the process of production – and in-service defects of fatigue type may develop (fig.1) in various metal products. The cracks may develop at different angles to the surface growing to considerable depths thus causing the threat of a product breaking when in service.
About OKOndt GROUP
"OKOndt GROUP" represents a group of companies with more than 30-year experience in research, development and manufacture of NDT products for industrial clients all over the world, who endeavor to ensure high-level operational safety, quality, and reliability.
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