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Lubricants
Volume 14
Issue 6
10.3390/lubricants14060214
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This is an early access version, the complete PDF, HTML, and XML versions will be available soon.
Article

Low Adhesion Due to the Wet-Rail Phenomenon: Influence of Particle–Fluid Interaction in Wheel–Rail Contact

by
Bettina Suhr
1,*,
Mohammad-Sadegh Salehi
1,
Simon Skurka
2,
Daniel Kvarda
2,
Radovan Galas
2,
Milan Omasta
2 and
Klaus Six
1
1
Virtual Vehicle Research GmbH, Inffeldgasse 21/A, 8010 Graz, Austria
2
Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Brno University of Technology, Technicka 2896/2, 616 69 Brno, Czech Republic
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Lubricants 2026, 14(6), 214; https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14060214
Submission received: 17 March 2026 / Revised: 11 May 2026 / Accepted: 20 May 2026 / Published: 22 May 2026
Versions Notes

Abstract

The wet-rail phenomenon can cause low adhesion, which negatively affects railway operation. It is believed to occur when small amounts of water mix with solid particles on wheel and rail surfaces, e.g., wear debris or iron oxides, forming a dense suspension in the wheel–rail contact, leading to sharp adhesion drops. Mini Traction Machine (MTM) tests using water-based suspensions with different particles also show adhesion drops during water evaporation, which can be linked to the wet-rail phenomenon. While the physical mechanisms underlying the adhesion drop are unclear, it is hypothesised that rapid loading raises fluid pressure in the suspension, separating wheel and rail surfaces, reducing force transfer through particle contact, thereby reducing the suspension’s shear strength. For verification, a coupled Discrete Element Method and fluid dynamics model is used to simulate a simplified MTM setting and steps towards full scale wheel–rail contact. During simulation of rapid loading, fluid pressure rises but remains negligible compared to applied contact stresses in all considered cases. Thus, it is unlikely that hydrodynamic pressure build-up within the suspension contributes significantly to the low adhesion observed. Future research should investigate additional mechanisms, such as reduced shear strength of deformed or crushed wet particles under high normal loading conditions.
Keywords: low adhesion; wheel–rail contact; dense suspension; Mini Traction Machine tests; Discrete Element Method; fluid dynamics; pore-scale finite volume method low adhesion; wheel–rail contact; dense suspension; Mini Traction Machine tests; Discrete Element Method; fluid dynamics; pore-scale finite volume method

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MDPI and ACS Style

Suhr, B.; Salehi, M.-S.; Skurka, S.; Kvarda, D.; Galas, R.; Omasta, M.; Six, K. Low Adhesion Due to the Wet-Rail Phenomenon: Influence of Particle–Fluid Interaction in Wheel–Rail Contact. Lubricants 2026, 14, 214. https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14060214

AMA Style

Suhr B, Salehi M-S, Skurka S, Kvarda D, Galas R, Omasta M, Six K. Low Adhesion Due to the Wet-Rail Phenomenon: Influence of Particle–Fluid Interaction in Wheel–Rail Contact. Lubricants. 2026; 14(6):214. https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14060214

Chicago/Turabian Style

Suhr, Bettina, Mohammad-Sadegh Salehi, Simon Skurka, Daniel Kvarda, Radovan Galas, Milan Omasta, and Klaus Six. 2026. "Low Adhesion Due to the Wet-Rail Phenomenon: Influence of Particle–Fluid Interaction in Wheel–Rail Contact" Lubricants 14, no. 6: 214. https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14060214

APA Style

Suhr, B., Salehi, M.-S., Skurka, S., Kvarda, D., Galas, R., Omasta, M., & Six, K. (2026). Low Adhesion Due to the Wet-Rail Phenomenon: Influence of Particle–Fluid Interaction in Wheel–Rail Contact. Lubricants, 14(6), 214. https://doi.org/10.3390/lubricants14060214

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