Factor of Adhesion

Shop deals on ebay
Advertise with us
shop deals on amazon
Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum

Help Support Amtrak Unlimited Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
C

CSXfoamer1997

OBS Chief
Joined
Dec 23, 2015
Messages
575
Factor of Adhesion is the weight of a locomotive (in lbs) divided by the tractive effort (in lbf). But that is on dry rail.

How much does adhesion typically decrease on oh say wet rail, snowy rail, and icy rail?

For instance, the GE AC6000CW has a factor of adhesion of 2.35 on dry rail.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
50% loss is easily possible.

Under extreme conditions up to 90% can be lost.

On modern software-controlled locomotives, the leading axle or truck can be controlled to slip slightly faster than the other axles so as to "clean" the surface of the rail, and thus partially restore adhesion.
 
cirdan said:
50% loss is easily possible.

Under extreme conditions up to 90% can be lost.

On modern software-controlled locomotives, the leading axle or truck can be controlled to slip slightly faster than the other axles so as to "clean" the surface of the rail, and thus partially restore adhesion.
Click to expand...
Hmm. That's interesting!

Btw, what is the difference between the Factor Of Adhesion and the Rail Coefficient? I was asking, because I read that the Dry Rail Coefficient can be as high as 0.78.
 
Not 100% sure here, but I think it's a question of definition.

Factor of adhesion is weight (well, I think mass actually?) divided by tractive effort.

Rail coefficient is the inverse, so tractive effort divided by weight
 
cirdan said:
Factor of adhesion is weight (well, I think mass actually?) divided by tractive effort.
Click to expand...
It is actually weight, not mass. Weight is just mass times acceleration (in this case gravity), so is just the force down. The mass itself is irrelevant when calculating the factor of adhesion or rail coefficient.
 
cpotisch said:
It is actually weight, not mass. Weight is just mass times acceleration (in this case gravity), so is just the force down. The mass itself is irrelevant when calculating the factor of adhesion or rail coefficient.
Click to expand...
Yes, of course. Obvious really, when I think about it.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top