In late 2020 and early 2021, MxV Rail (formerly TTCI) collaborated with Hill Engineering to investigate residual strains and stresses in thermite welds using two different techniques—the hole drilling (HD) method and the contour method. As a part of the investigation on how ultrasonic impact treatment (UIT) assists in extending the life of thermite welds, MxV Rail did residual stress estimation in three different thermite welds: 1) a UIT treated new weld, 2) a UIT treated weld removed from the track after 165 million gross tons (MGT), and 3) an untreated new thermite weld. BACKGROUND Historically, standard thermite welds in revenue service have been a weak spot in track and typically have a shorter life span than the rail surrounding the weld, particularly on the high rail of a curve. However, thermite welding remains the most common method of field welding due to the portability of its equipment and the…
"*" indicates required fields