Influence of friction modifiers on improving adhesion and surface damage of wheel/rail under low adhesion conditions

•Water, oil and leaves are easy to cause low adhesion of wheel/rail interface.•The presence of sanding, alumina particle and abrasive block can improve the adhesion coefficient.•The sanding significantly aggravates the wear and surface damage.•The alumina particles are more suitable for improving adhesion.

The objective of this study is to investigate the influence of friction modifiers on improving adhesion and surface damage of wheel/rail under low adhesion conditions. The results indicate that water, oil and leaves are very easy to bring low adhesion phenomena. Sand, alumina particle and abrasive block can improve adhesion coefficient under various low adhesion conditions. Sanding significantly aggravates wear and surface damage of wheel/rail materials. It is proposed that alumina particles are more suitable for improving adhesion of wheel/rail interface based on a comprehensive analysis of experimental results.