INTRODUCTION TO RAILWAY ENGINEERING

SAGAR SHIWAKOTI KATHMANDU ENGINEERING COLLEGE 11, July, 2011

Contents
Introduction to railway Classification of railways (on the basis of gauge) Rolling stock (moving parts) Components of railway track (rails, sleeper, ballast)

Contents
Geometric design of railway track (cross section, gradient, super elevation) Maximum permissible speed Railway points and crossings Stations and yards Platforms

 Modes of transport

Air, rail, road, water, cable, pipeline, and space.

 Rail transport is where a train runs along a set of two parallel steel rails, known as a railway or railroad. The rails are anchored perpendicular to ties (or sleepers) of timber, concrete or steel, to maintain a consistent distance apart, or gauge. The rails and perpendicular beams are placed on a foundation made of concrete, or compressed earth and gravel in a bed of ballast.

Components of a railway track (Permanent Way)

Rails Sleepers (Ties)

Ballast

What are the advantages of rail transport?

It facilitate long distance travel and transport of bulky goods which are not easily transported through motor vehicles. It is a quick and more regular form of transport because it helps in the transportation of goods with speed and certainty. It helps in the industrialization process of a country by easy transportation of coal and raw-materials at a cheaper rate.

 It encourages mobility of labour ad thereby provides a great scope for employment. Railway is the safest form of transport. The chances of accidents and breakdown of railways are minimum as compared to other modes of transport. The carrying capacity of the railways is extremely large. It is the largest public undertaking in the country. Their charges are based on charge what the traffic can bear principles which helps the poor. In fact, it is a national necessity.

Disadvantages
The railway requires a large investment of capital. Another disadvantages of railway transport is its inflexibility. It routes and timings cannot be adjusted to individual requirements. Rail transport cannot provide door to door service as it is tied to a particular track. Intermediate loading or unloading involves greater cost, more wear and tear and wastage of time. The time cost of terminal operations are a great disadvantage of rail transport.

 Railway transport is unsuitable and uneconomical for short distances and small traffic of goods.

List of countries by rail transport network size

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 137 138 147 148 149 150 151 Country United States Russia China India Canada Nepal United Arab Emirates Western Sahara Laos Lesotho Monaco Vatican City World Railway length (km) 226,427 128,000 91,000 64,215 57,216 59 52 5 4 3 2 0.852 1,370,782 Date of information (2007) (2006) (2010) (2011) (2007) (2006) (2009) (2008) (2005) (1995) (2002) (2001) (2006)

Track gauge (Rail gauge)

The distance between the inner sides of the heads of the two load bearing rails that make up a single railway line.

Various gauges used worldwide

Various gauges used worldwide

Gauge Standard Gauge Broad Gauge (BG) Broad Gauge (Russian Gauge) Cape Gauge Meter Gauge (MG) Narrow Gauge Width (mm) 1435 1676 1670 1524 1067 1000 915 672 610 Used in England, USA, Canada, China, Australia India, Brazil, Argentina Spain, Portugal Russia, Finland Japan, Newzealand India, France Ireland India, Pakistan S. Africa

Which gauge is the best?

Historically .. the choice of gauge was partly arbitrary and partly a response to local conditions Narrow-gauges - cheaper to build and can negotiate sharper curves Broad-gauges - give greater stability and permit higher speeds.

Classification of Railways

Classification of Railways on the basis of speed

1. BG Routes
Group A B C D E Sanctioned Speed (Kmph) 160 or more 130 100-130 100 130

Classification of Railways on the basis of speed

2. MG Routes
Group Q Route R Route S Route Max permissible speed (Kmph) > 75 75 < 75

HIGH SPEED RAILS

Passenger rail transport that operates significantly faster than the normal speed of rail traffic. The U.S. Department of Transportation's reasonably expected to reach sustained speeds of more than 125 mph (201 km/h)

WORLD RECORD
The world record for conventional high-speed rail is held by the V150 of France, a specially configured and heavily modified train which clocked 574.8 km/h (357.2 mph) on a test run. Aerodynamic designs (to reduce drag, lift, and noise), air brakes, regenerative braking, stronger engines, dynamic weight shifting, etc High Speed train in France (> 574 Kmph)

Rolling Stock of Railway (Moving Parts)

Locomotives
Fire box and boiler Proper Engine Framework Tender

 Coaches Wagons

Timber Cattle Oil Petrol Hopper (ballast, minerals, coals) Well (bulky particles) Power Refrigerated wagons

RAILWAY POINTS AND CROSSINGS

POINTS AND CROSSINGS

To divert trains from one track to another, a special arrangement is made .so that the inside flange of the wheel can move on the diverted track. Such arrangement is called POINTS AND CROSSINGS

A Right Hand Diversion

 Points + crossings = TURNOUT

POINTS AND SWITCHES

A railroad switch or points is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another at a railway junction.

POINTS AND SWITCHES

Electric, Hydraulic or Manual

CROSSINGS
It is a special form of construction to provide flange way clearance between two rails to be crossed. To achieve this, a gap is provided from throat to nose of crossing over which the wheel jumps.

Throat

Components of CROSSING of a Right Hand Turnout

 How a railway frog point works Railway point switch changing Railway point switch changing

CROSSINGS
To ensure that the wheel negotiates the gap properly and doesn t strike the nose, the outer rail is guided with the help of CHECK RAILS.

Characteristics of a good crossing:

Should be rigid Frog and wing rails should be protected against damage so that the wheels do not bump into the gap. Frog should be of sufficient thickness.

Types of crossings
Acute angle (V-Crossing) Obtuse angle crossing Square Crossing

REQUIREMENTS OF A GOOD TRACK

Gauge should be correct and uniform Alignment of track should be correct Transition curves should provided wherever required Perfect cross levels between rails Gradient should be as gentle as possible Points and crossings (turnouts) should be designed and maintained properly

CAPACITY OF RAILWAY TRACK

Maximum number of trains that can run safely on any length of track per hour.

Maximum number of trains that can be handled in a yard TERMINAL CAPACITY.

Specification of Indian Railways

1. Sleeper density = no. of sleepers per rail length. Generally, 1 sleeper in every meter length. Depends on: axle load, speed, strength of sleeper, depth of ballast. Sleeper density = n+ x (x = 7 usually) n = length of each rail 2. Rails: 13 m long (for BG track)

 Example: If sleeper density is n + 6 for a BG track, calculate the number of sleepers in 960 m length of railway.
Length of each rail = 13 m Total no. of rails in 960 m = 960/13 = 74 No. of sleeper in each rail = 13 + 6 = 19 So, no. of sleeper in 74 rails = 74 x 19 = 1406

3. Materials required per KM length of track

1. No. of rails per km = (1000/13) x 2 = 154 2. Weight of rail per km = (154 x 13) x 60 = 120,120 kg (@ 60 kg/m) 3. No. of sleepers per km = (154/2) x (13 + 7) = 1540 4. No. of fish plates per km = 77 x 2 = 154 5. No. of bolts per km = 154 x 4 = 606 6. No. of bearing plates per km = 1540 x 2 = 3080 7. No. of fasteners = (1540 x 12) 8. Quantity of ballast per km = (0.2 x 3.35 x 1000) cubic meter

FISH PLATE AND FISH BOLTS

BEARING PLATE (BENEATH THE SLEEPER)