Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant has certified four new types of railway rails for HSR
Rails up to 100 meters long are designed for high-speed highways on which trains can accelerate up to 400 km/h.
Photo: "Mechel".
Obtaining certificates is an important step in the development of the domestic rail base for high-speed highways and lines with heavy freight train traffic, said Igor Hafizov, CEO of Mechel PJSC.
"The expansion of the rail range will allow Russian Railways and concessionaires of infrastructure projects to obtain a comprehensive solution for any section of the railway network, from high-load highways to high-speed lines. Successful completion of certification tests confirms the readiness of our rails for the most difficult operating conditions. In the near future, the company plans to further develop the range of rail products, which will continue to meet the needs of our customers in high-quality and high-tech products in the future."The tests of the new rail products were carried out in accordance with the requirements of current standards and included a full range of laboratory and field studies. The specialists carried out a chemical analysis of the metal with control of the content of dissolved gases - oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, measured the geometric parameters and straightness of the profile, determined the hardness values, carried out metallographic studies of the internal structure, and tested the products for shock resistance at various temperatures. Representatives of Russian Railways, the main consumer of rail products, took part in the process. In their presence, the acceptance tests were successfully completed.
The quality of the products was checked in the company's own laboratories, as well as in external independent accredited centers. Full-scale operational tests at the specialized ring landfill of VNIIZHT, where the rails were exposed to real operating loads under controlled conditions, became a critical stage. The prototype rails successfully passed the test for rolling 150 million ton-kilometers of cargo at the experimental test site, which confirmed their durability and operational reliability. According to the results of the entire complex of tests, the products fully comply with the requirements of GOST.
In addition to the new types of mastered products, the Chelyabinsk Metallurgical Plant has successfully passed the recertification of the rails of the sharp-edged OR65 used in the design of switches.