| Summary: | The dynamic wheel–rail responses during the rolling contact process for high-speed trains were investigated using the explicit finite element code LS-DYNA 971. The influence of train speed on the wheel–rail contact forces (including the vertical, longitudinal, and lateral forces), von Mises equivalent stress, equivalent plastic strain, vertical acceleration of the axle, and the lateral displacement of the initial contact point on the tread, were examined and discussed. Simulation results show that the lateral and longitudinal wheel–rail contact forces are very smaller than the corresponding vertical contact forces, and they seem to be insensitive to train speed. The peak value of dynamic vertical wheel–rail contact force is approximately 2.66 times larger than the average quasi-static value. The elliptical wheel–rail contact patches have multiple stress extreme points due to the plastic deformation of the wheel tread and top surface of the rail. The vertical acceleration value of the axle in the steady condition is around ±5 m/s 2 for the perfected wheel–rail system with the running speed below 300 km/h.
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