United States Department of Transportation
i
Evaluation of rail test frequencies using risk analysis
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2009-03-03
[PDF-196.63 KB]
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Abstract:Several industries now use risk analysis to develop
inspection programs to ensure acceptable mechanical integrity
and reliability. These industries include nuclear and electric
power generation, oil refining, gas processing, onshore and
offshore exploration and production, chemical processing, and
pipelines. Risk analysis may also be used as a decisionmaking
tool in the railroad industry to develop systematic
improvements in track maintenance and inspection strategies.
In the course of conducting research in support of the
Federal Railroad Administration, a Monte Carlo risk
assessment model has been developed to simulate certain
aspects of rail inspection (also referred to as rail testing) to
find and remove defects that may grow to sufficient size to
cause rail failures. In this paper, the model is used to examine
the relationship between the occurrence of rail failures and
various operational factors. These operational factors include
rail size, average axle loading, and inspection frequency. In
addition, the risk assessment model is used to evaluate an
alternative rail testing concept in which detector cars would
conduct inspections at speeds higher than those used in
current practice.
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