Volume-surface hardening of railroad transport parts by a high-speed water stream

Abstract

Large production volumes of rolling stock and track structure require the introduction of effective strengthening methods at a minimum expenditure. This stimulates a search for ways of increasing the service life of parts of railroad transport. Volume-surface hardening is an efficient method of thermal strengthening. The method consists in through or deep furnace or induction heating of parts before hardening and subsequent intense cooling. The hardenability of the steel used is consistent with the thickness of the strengthened layer, which creates a hardness gradient over the thickness of the parts, i.e., a high surface hardness and a ductile core. In turn, this creates a favorable distribution of internal stresses and provides a high cyclic endurance of the parts in operation. The possibility of using volume-surface hardening to strength railroad transport parts is considered with allowance for the special features of their production and operation.