Research On The Reliability Technology And Maintenance Of Heavy Haul Wagon Retarder On The Hump

China Railway has carried out research on the related technologiesfor operating27t axle load freight trains on the existing lines to meetthe demand for heavy haul transportation and to increase the efficiencyof freight transportation. The key for the operation safety of27t axleload wagon in the shunting yard is the safe rolling on the hump. However,with the increase of axle load of wagon, the current specifications andstandards about hump equipment has to be updated accordingly to increasethe strength of equipment, braking performance and safety margin.Wagon retarder is the most important speeding controlling equipmenton the hump and its performance and reliability are crucial to shuntingsafety and operation efficiency, and further impact the safety andefficiency of the whole freight transportation system. During the rollingof27t axle load new wagon on the hump, it is important whether the newtype retarder can effectively brake and release the wagon, and controlthe rolling speed and distance between wagons, and finally let the wagonsbe safely coupled with the parking wagons with the speed slower than5km/h.This research intends to study the measures to increase theperformance and reliability of the existing equipments and themaintenance of retarders under heavy haul situations so as to provideexperiences for the design of wagon retarders for heavy haul wagons withthe axle load of27t and above. This research uses the method of FailureMode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) for retarder to do in-depth analysis onthe key technology for reliability and maintenance from the aspects likefoundation, control, transmission and key components of retarders. Theresults from the in-depth analysis on the reliability of retarder willbe helpful to the production and maintenance of retarders and thereliability of equipment shall be improved through constant improvements.