What's the Problem Here ? - On the Right Track

It doesn't exactly look crushed, nor does it exactly look like it got melted; it looks a bit like both -- so I suspect a powerful but concentrated explosion. The surrounding ties and roadbed were undisturbed. Considering the radius, if it was an explosion it occurred just a couple feet above the track surface, driving something (?) down onto the track.

Interesting question, AussieBob.

Saying that, it makes me wonder: do they make the track or the wheels out of harder material? Intuitively, I would think the track. It needs to handle high stresses. And it would cost more, both in labor and materials, to replace the than the wheels. But that means that there would not be so much damage to the track as in the picture. Hmmm...

I wonder if PWSlack would know?

Lo Volt,

Spot on - I think you may have been a train driver at some time.

This is the wider view

The story goes that there were THREE locomotives coupled together. The crew "parked" the train for FOUR hours. They "tied down" the forward locomotive, somehow #2 and #3 locomotives were apparently still in gear, and in 4 hours, this is what happened to the rails. It is believed this particular event occurred in Canada. Although it is hard to believe, wheel damage like this is quiet after the first few seconds. As the temperature goes up from the friction, the wheel-rail interface starts to liquify to molten steel or iron. You can see the plastic deformation on the rail from the excessive heat. Molten iron is a very good lubricant! Once you build up somewhere around 1/32" of liquified iron, it's the same as pouring cutting oil between the wheel and rail. The wheel is still heating up the rail, but the awful grinding noise you would expect is not there. It is wheel slip, with all six axles spinning in place at about the same speed.

Alright, that is what I suspected. So why should I be any less accredited for being one f**king minute later on posting the same (post#3)!

All hostility aside however, of greater interest to me is the answer to my post (#12). Can you give an answer?

Mike

Not a train driver. Just have some sense of proportion regarding trains: massive size, immense weight, unstoppable momentum. And they're cool.

Mikerho, sorry to steal your thunder. I have to guess the wheels are much harder than the track. If you've ever seen track laying around, it twists (ahem) relatively easy. I've never seen track broken via a brittle break. Most often a break is from a work hardened, or welded joint.

EMD locomotives don't have gears. Normally all interconnected units are synced to one lead engine that controls all the traction motors. Sounds like something went wrong in the control system or coupling to one unit.

Interesting.....

....looks like there where the idea for movie "Unstoppable" 2010 came from...

that's a lot of heat and pressure to do that.

yes a locomotive will fit that discription, must have been a hell of a load...but if its just that one.........how did the other wheels pass?.......just a passing interest

Brakes on and drive wheels spinning in place? You would get melting and erosion.

I think a living one of these was on the tracks, and while attempting to push it out of the way they spun the wheels.

What happened was that a crew of tracklayers got some OT because the engineer failed to notice that at least one of his cars had failed to release its brakes. I don't imagine this did the bearings in the drive wheel any favors either.

You know the kids like to put coins on the tracks. Must been one of those counterfeit nickels that are going around that done it.

The loose spike caught a wheel flange?

I was the James Gang?

That appears to be a footprint of a Time Displacement Sphere.

You might be on the lookout for a large individual with a real bad disposition.

Railroad version of a "speed bump" for sleepy engineers?

Overuse of signal "torpedos"?

I love casual friday.

I refused to recognize casual Fridays, it would have meant extra thought and time in the morning, stepping outside my normal routine to figure out what to wear.

A squirrel on the track broke wind
Del

Sure, blame it on the squirrel. We're on to you feline types.

-Sam the Squirrel

Please manufacture better quality steel for railway track.

I think it was my son smoking the tires again

Steam engine.

Here is a shot of the system in action. Over wobbly hyper magnetic unobtanium discs. They are the cause of crop circles and used here as a test of strength. Only the strongest make it to the field.

What I said can be considered with quiet disregard.

WTFAYTA?

Hey, that has to be the most artistic and fitting comment to a post in a long while - worth a couple of GAs - and there's a GA from me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ROalKnVZfU

Cheers, Bob

Probably a fire located at the metal wheel area melted the track.

Dear Aussie Bob,

Is it Electric Traction, if so the Power supply system is not seen.

Pl. provide details about engine.

rajeswari

A littel late but yes, i know what happened here. It was a train with two haul engines (one front one rear. Inter-car communication broke down so one Engine tried to pull, while all the waggons (and the other engine) had their brakes engaged. By the time they realized the problem, the tracks looked as on the picture (6 wheel haul engines). not so surprising if you think about it...