Why can the rail withstand thousands of tons of pressure? How is it made?

Why do the steel rails look so soft, like noodles? Recently, a video of railway track laying went viral on the Internet and caused a heated discussion. In the video, workers use an oversized machine to lay the tracks, but the train tracks look soft and collapsed, like noodles.

How can such a soft rail withstand the pressure of a thousand-ton train?

steel rails installation

People have the impression that it is made of iron, but what will happen if the rails are made of iron alone? The rails made of iron can’t bear the weight of the train at all. This is because iron is a relatively brittle material. The most important point is that it will rust. If pure iron is used, it will rust after a long time. . Therefore, the materials for making the rails are basically just steel. The rails are not only simple to withstand the weight, but also include various vertical, horizontal, and vertical competitions and changes in dynamic loads.

And the rail will also bring huge stress and deformation under the action of the train, so its toughness must pass the test. We all know that as a result, different types of terrain will be encountered when laying, and the long-term operation of the train on it will bring countless vibrations and shocks, and the connection between the rails will be affected.

and other factors. Trains are not smooth when they are running. What if the rails are not resilient? Under these impacts, the rails may break directly, just like ceramics, and pits will also be formed on the rails. However, there will be continuous trains passing by, which will cause more and more pits, and the consequence is that the whole steel rails are all broken, and you can imagine how dangerous it is. In addition, the rail has to maintain its own hardness, which is also to better withstand the weight of the train and the vibration, impact, friction, standing, etc. caused by it during operation.

Production of rails

The steel of the rail is naturally not ordinary steel but is specially made for the rail. The chemical composition of the steel is also very special, and it is also necessary to test the mechanical properties, drop weight experiments, etc. How are the rails just made? It must first be smelted at high temperatures.

The temperature is as high as 1600 degrees Celsius, and it will slowly turn into molten steel at this time. Then people add carbon, manganese, silicon, copper, and other elements to the molten steel. The purpose is to make the produced steel more durable, for later maintenance and repair work A certain burden and cost are reduced.

The steel rail will also be processed by the rolling mill, and the steel will be softened by heating it in a high-temperature environment for five to seven hours, and then the guide rail will be used to straighten it. It is freshly baked, so its toughness is also very strong. It can be seen that the rails are also very long. Under the influence of gravity, you will find that the rails are a little bent. The rails look so soft, what about their own hardness? When the rails are laid, they are clamped by mechanical claws and placed in a fixed position. They are constantly pulled around, giving people the soft texture of noodles. This is because the rails have just been produced, and their flexibility is also the same at this time. The highest, and the strength of machine is also very strong, the fake rails are like noodles, but the hardness of the steel itself is still very strong, which can support the smooth operation of the train.