Magnetic monitoring of the fatigue process of the rim material of railway wheel sets

Materials diagnostic by NDT is an important element of manufacture and service. The classic methods of technical diagnostic do not provide extensive knowledge of the technical condition of all of the elements. Constructional elements built of iron alloy can be characterised by magnetic properties, hence it may be inspected by magnetic methods and the recognition of material technical condition becomes more comprehensive. The paper presents the influence of fatigue processes on the magnetic parameters of the material. The results of the monitoring procedures of the wheel set tread surface in practise are also given.