Computer Simulation of a Welding Process by Aluminothermy in Railway Rails

Abstract

The evaluation of railway rails includes aspects such as the evaluation of their resistance against wear, the determination of rolling contact fatigue, an analysis of structural integrity and the fractomechanical behavior. In the event of a failure, before carrying out an integral evaluation of it and addressing its repair, it is necessary to know the residual stress state that could have been reached at the time of its installation, as a result of the construction process, in addition to considering possible deformations of it. In the usual practice in railways, there are two situations where welding between sections of rails is necessary, one for replacement due to its breakage and the other when a new line is installed. In both cases there are two welding procedures, the most widely used being called Aluminothermic Welding. In this paper, a finite element computational model is presented to simulate the described process and determine, considering the support of both parts of the rail, the distribution of temperatures, deformations and residual stresses that are reached from the result of said process, which will allow taking decisions at the time of carrying out the repair or construction of the same