Why the tram never slips and brakes well, even on ice
- June 22, 2023
- 0
It is difficult to surprise with a tram, because each of us has been watching it since childhood. However, this all-weather public transport has its own little secret:
It is difficult to surprise with a tram, because each of us has been watching it since childhood. However, this all-weather public transport has its own little secret: why, despite the surface of both polished and glass, does a steel wheel on a steel rail not slip in rain or snow? That would be such “openness” for a car. Details of the man-made miracle are on the AvtoVzglyad portal.
The tram is one of the most popular forms of public transport and still indispensable. By the way, it is also extremely environmentally friendly, which is increasingly extending its life cycle in various cities of the world. Hundreds of flights with dozens of stops per day. For years, wheel sets have polished the rails hour after hour to a perfectly smooth surface. After all, does it make sense that on the slopes and at the stops, where the path is particularly slippery, the wheel slips? Especially – in the snow, ice or during heavy rain! However, this does not happen, for which there is a simple explanation.
The metro runs “on dry land”, but the tram, like the trains of the railway line, was destined to work “in the open air”. Of course, the question immediately arose about the need to deal with wheel slip: a heavy train could not go uphill in summer, and especially in winter.
In addition, the rails were polished very quickly by contact with the wheelset, so that they became smoother by the day. These were the times before the beginning of the era of electronic control units, so the whole burden fell on mechanics and human ingenuity. And the tandem provided a solution that is still used today.
There is a beautiful myth that this story began with the king. Well, how else? In Russia there is no other way. So far we note. Basically, the tsar was riding a train, and then there was an obstacle of insurmountable force rumbling to the ground, inside which local comrades randomly painted the rails with paint.
As a result, the train could not overcome the rise until a simple left-handed driver got out and scattered ashes from the locomotive boiler onto the slippery track. And the train moved on as if nothing had happened. The story is a lie, but there is a hint in it: under the powered wheel sets of trains and trams it is necessary to apply a certain composition that increases the coefficient of adhesion of the wheels to the rails. The best option is plain dry sand.
Since then, trams and other traction equipment have been equipped with special containers in which dry sand is stored, which ends up in the sand supply line when necessary. This container, of course, is called a sandbox, from which, through a system of pipes, the “consumable” comes directly to the address: under the wheel of a tram or locomotive. And no slip! If only one of the automakers guessed to equip their SUV with such a device, they would have become famous in an instant.
Photo from social networks.
The tram is one of the most popular forms of public transport and still indispensable. By the way, it is also extremely environmentally friendly, which is increasingly extending its life cycle in various cities of the world. Hundreds of flights with dozens of stops per day. For years, wheel sets have polished the rails hour after hour to a perfectly smooth surface. After all, does it make sense that on the slopes and at the stops, where the path is particularly slippery, the wheel slips? Especially – in the snow, ice or during heavy rain! However, this does not happen, for which there is a simple explanation.
The metro runs “on dry land”, but the tram, like the trains of the railway line, was destined to work “in the open air”. Of course, the question immediately arose about the need to deal with wheel slip: a heavy train could not go uphill in summer, and especially in winter.
In addition, the rails were polished very quickly by contact with the wheelset, so that they became smoother by the day. These were the times before the beginning of the era of electronic control units, so the whole burden fell on mechanics and human ingenuity. And the tandem provided a solution that is still used today.
There is a beautiful myth that this story began with the king. Well, how else? In Russia there is no other way. So far we note. Basically, the tsar was riding a train, and then there was an obstacle of insurmountable force rumbling to the ground, inside which local comrades randomly painted the rails with paint.
As a result, the train could not overcome the rise until a simple left-handed driver got out and scattered ashes from the locomotive boiler onto the slippery track. And the train moved on as if nothing had happened. The story is a lie, but there is a hint in it: under the powered wheel sets of trains and trams it is necessary to apply a certain composition that increases the coefficient of adhesion of the wheels to the rails. The best option is plain dry sand.
Since then, trams and other traction equipment have been equipped with special containers in which dry sand is stored, which ends up in the sand supply line when necessary. This container, of course, is called a sandbox, from which, through a system of pipes, the “consumable” comes directly to the address: under the wheel of a tram or locomotive. And no slip! If only one of the automakers guessed to equip their SUV with such a device, they would have become famous in an instant.
Source: Avto Vzglyad
Donald Salinas is an experienced automobile journalist and writer for Div Bracket. He brings his readers the latest news and developments from the world of automobiles, offering a unique and knowledgeable perspective on the latest trends and innovations in the automotive industry.
