11/21/2020

CE-3501 References
Transportation Engineering-I  Class Lectures and Lecture Notes
 Railway Engineering
Satish Chandra, M.M. Agarwal
 Practical Railway Engineering
Lecture 1: Train Resistance and Tractive Power Clifford F Bonnett
 Railway Track Engineering
J S Mundrey
Md. Rakibul Islam  Book Composed by
Assistant Professor Prof. Dr. Md. Shamsul Hoque
Department of Civil Engineering Professor, Department of Civil Engineering
Dhaka University of Engineering & Technology, Gazipur Bangladesh University of Engineering & Technology (BUET)
 Research Articles and Online sources
Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
1 2
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd

Train Resistance Resistance due to Friction

When a train is moving along the rails, various forces offer resistance to the movement
The resistance is composed of the following:
of the train.
 Internal Friction: is dependent on type and condition of bearing, lubricant used,
These train resistances are as follows:
temperature, etc.
 Resistance due to friction
 Internal resistance caused due to moving parts of locomotive and wagons
 Resistance due to wave action, irregularities in the track
 Rolling Resistance on account of movement of steel wheel on a steel rail due to rail-
 Resistance due to wind
wheel interaction.
 Resistance due to gradients
 Resistance due to curves
Total frictional resistance, which is independent of speed, is given by the following
The tractive force developed by the locomotive should be sufficient: empirical formula,
 To overcome such train resistances and R1 = 0.0016W; where R1 = the frictional resistance independent of speed
 To haul the train along the track at the desired speed.
W = the weight of train in tonnes
Locomotive: rail transport vehicle that provides the motive power for a train.
Tractive force: the pulling or pushing capability of a locomotive
Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
3 4
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd
 11/21/2020

Resistance due to Wave Action, Track Irregularity, and Speed Resistance due to Wind
When a vehicle moves at a speed, certain resistance is caused as the vehicle has to penetrate
When a train is moving at a speed, certain resistance is caused due to: and move forward in the ocean of wind.
 Wave action of the train. Wind resistance depends upon:
 Track irregularities such as longitudinal unevenness, difference in cross level etc.  Exposed area of the train.
 Velocity of the train.
These resistance are different for different speeds.  Direction of wind.
To calculate these resistance precisely the following empirical formula has been evolved:
R2 = 0.00008WV; where Formula to calculate wind resistance:
R2 = the resistance due to wave action and track irregularities on account of the R3 = 0.000017AV2; where
speed of the train A = the exposed area of vehicle (m2)
W = the weight of train in tonnes V = Velocity of wind in kmph
V = speed of train in kmph

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
5 6
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd

Resistance due to Wind (Contd.) Resistance due to Gradient

When a train moves on rising gradient, extra effort is required to move against the gravity
V = Velocity of wind at an angle θ
due to rising gradient.
Assuming that a wheel of weight W is moving a rising gradient on a track OA. The
following forces are acting on the wheel:
 Weight of the wheel (W) acting downward.
 Normal pressure N on the rail, which acts perpendicular to OA
 Resistance due to rising gradient (R4), which acts parallel to OA.

These three forces meet at a common point Q and the

The horizontal component of the wind Vcosθ opposes the movement of train triangle QCD can be taken as a triangle of forces. It can
Alternative Formula: also be geometrically proved that the two triangles QCD
R3 = 0.0000006WV2; where and AOB are similar.
R3 is the wind resistance in tonnes, V is the velocity of the train in km/h, and W is the From D QCD,
weight of the train in tonnes.
Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd
7 R = W sin q Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd
8
 11/21/2020

Resistance due to Gradient (Contd.) Resistance due to Curvature

When a train negotiates a horizontal curve, extra
effort is required to overcome the resistance
offered by the curvature of the track.

R4 = W * (AB/OB)
= W * (1/rate of slope )
= W/g

Resistance due to gradient = W * (1/gradient)

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
9 10
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd

Compensated gradient for curvature Summary

Curve resistance is quite often compensated or offset by a reduction in the gradient.

In this way, the effect of curve resistance is translated in terms of resistance due to
gradient. The compensation is 0.04% on BG, 0.03% on MG, and 0.02% on NG lines
for every 1 o of the curve. This will be clear through the solved example given below.

Calculate the compensated gradient on a BG track with a

4deg curvature on a ruling gradient of 1 in 200.

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
11 12
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd
 11/21/2020

Tractive Effort of a Locomotive Hauling Power of a Locomotive

 The tractive effort of a locomotive is the force that the locomotive can generate for  The hauling power of a locomotive depends upon the weight exerted on the driving
hauling the load. wheels and the friction between the driving wheel and the rail.

 The tractive effort of a locomotive should be enough for it to haul a train at the maximum  The coefficient of friction depends upon the speed of the locomotive and the condition of
permissible speed. the rail surface.

 Tractive effort is generally equal to or a little greater than the hauling capacity of the  The higher the speed of the locomotive, the lower the coefficient of friction, which is
locomotive. about 0.1 for high speeds and 0.2 for low speeds.

 If the tractive effort is much greater than what is required to haul the train, the wheels of
the locomotive may slip.

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
13 14
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd

Example 1:
Calculate the maximum permissible load that a BG Steam locomotive with three pairs of driving wheels
bearing an axle load of 22 tonnes each can pull on a straight level track at a speed of 80 km/h. Also calculate
the reduction in speed if the train has to run on a rising gradient of 1 in 200. What would be the further
reduction in speed if the train has to negotiate a 4 degree curve on the rising gradient? Assume the coefficient of
friction to be 0.2.

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
15 16
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd
 11/21/2020

Example 2: Compute the steepest gradient that a train of 20 wagons and a locomotive can negotiate given the
following data: weight of each wagon = 20 t, weight of locomotive = 150 t, tractive effort of locomotive = 15 t,
rolling resistance of locomotive = 3 kg/t, rolling resistance of wagon = 2.5 kg/t, speed of the train = 60 km/h.

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
17 18
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd

Example 3 Calculate the maximum permissible train load that can be pulled by a
locomotive with four pairs of driving wheels with an axle load of 28.42 t each on a BG
track with a ruling gradient of 1 in 200 and a maximum curvature of 3 degree , travelling
at a speed of 48.3 km/h. Take the coefficient of friction to be 0.2.

Do by Yourself
Ans:
Hauling capacity of locomotive = 22.736 t
the maximum weight of the train is =1740 t

Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. , Md. Rakibul Islam, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Civil Engg. ,
19 20
DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd DUET. Mail: rakibul10@duet.ac.bd