The formation of hollow-worn wheels and their effect on wheel/rail interaction

The paper describes work to quantify the unwanted effects of wheels worn to a hollow shape, to determine if there is economic justification for removing them from service in North America. After summarizing the numbers of hollow-worn wheels in North American service, the paper describes dynamic modelling used to quantify the effect of depth of hollow on wheelset angle-of-attack, lateral force, and rolling resistance. Full-scale tests in straight and curved track to support the modelling results are then described. Finally, the paper describes a possible mechanism for the formation of hollow-worn wheels.