Rail Flaw Detection Technologies for Maintaining the Stable Transport of Railway

Abstract

The rail is an important element for maintaining the safety operation of train. The construction of continuous welded rails (CWR) has been promoted in order to improve riding comfort and reduce the maintenance costs of tracks. However, the CWR has the disadvantage that cracks and defects may occur in the rail including its welds. Therefore, rails including their welds are inspected by a non-destructive inspection method such as ultrasonic flaw detection in order to estimate their soundness. When cracks and defects are detected in rails including their welds, they should be properly treated according to the criteria to prevent failures. This report describes the outline of the nondestructive inspection technology for rails including their welds.