1. Experimental study on aerodynamic forces acting on train passing through a tornado-like swirling flow
- Author
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Fumiya INUZUKA, Yu FENG, Nobuyuki OKURA, and Masahiro SUZUKI
- Subjects
railway ,train ,aerodynamic force ,tornado-like swirling flow ,tornado simulator ,moving model rig ,Mechanical engineering and machinery ,TJ1-1570 ,Engineering machinery, tools, and implements ,TA213-215 - Abstract
The aerodynamic forces acting on a train travelling in a tornado-like swirling flow were investigated using a tornado simulator and a moving model rig. Rectangular shaped vehicles in scale 1/40 and 1/67 and a round-roofed vehicle in scale 1/40 were used. Two types of tornado-like swirling flow, one-cell vortex and two-cell vortex, were generated by the tornado simulator. By changing the train speed and the train’s path, the model trains of 1 car composition and 3 car composition were passed through the swirling flow on a flat ground, and the aerodynamic forces acting on the vehicle were estimated. The main findings are as follows: 1) The aerodynamic forces acting on the leading car are greater than those of the other cars. 2) The aerodynamic forces of the leading car vary with the vehicle speed, but those of the middle vehicle show little dependence on the vehicle speed. 3) There is no significant difference in the aerodynamic forces acting on the train between a one-cell and a two-cell vortices. 4) The aerodynamic forces acting on the middle car increase when the train’s path is shifted by the core radius from the vortex center so that the flow becomes the headwind. 5) Rounding the roof of the vehicle may reduce the side force.
- Published
- 2022
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