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Rail squeal is a screeching train-track friction sound, commonly occurring on sharp curves.
Squeal is presumably caused by the lateral sticking and slipping of the wheels across top of the 
Lubricating the rails has limited success. Speed reduction also appears to reduce noise levels.
The sticking of the rim of the wheel causes the wheel to ring like a bell, so rubber dampers or tuned absorbers are a possible solution to lower the volume. The MBTA Green Line, for example, suffers from severe rail squeal on the sharp curves within the central subway. Flange stick graphite lubricators have been installed on trains to attempt to mitigate the rail squeal issue.
The mechanism that causes the squealing also is the cause of wear and tear that is happening in the wheel–rail interface.
railroad track
A railway track (British English and UIC terminology) or railroad track (American English), also known as permanent way or simply track, is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, railroad ties (sleepers, ...
. This results in vibrations in the wheel that increase until a stable amplitude is reached.
Lubricating the rails has limited success. Speed reduction also appears to reduce noise levels.
The sticking of the rim of the wheel causes the wheel to ring like a bell, so rubber dampers or tuned absorbers are a possible solution to lower the volume. The MBTA Green Line, for example, suffers from severe rail squeal on the sharp curves within the central subway. Flange stick graphite lubricators have been installed on trains to attempt to mitigate the rail squeal issue.
The mechanism that causes the squealing also is the cause of wear and tear that is happening in the wheel–rail interface.
Factors
Factors include: * Accelerating, coasting or braking *Diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid f ...
of wheel
* Powered or unpowered wheels
* Radius of curve
* Rail lubrication
* Slant of rail (typically 1 in 20)
* Superelevation or cant
* Type of train
* Weather (rails wet or dry) (slippery rail
Slippery rail, or low railhead adhesion, is a condition of railways (railroads) where contamination of the railhead reduces the traction between the wheel and the rail. This can lead to wheelslip when the train is taking power, and wheelslide ...
)
* Wheelbase
In both road and rail vehicles, the wheelbase is the horizontal distance between the centers of the front and rear wheels. For road vehicles with more than two axles (e.g. some trucks), the wheelbase is the distance between the steering (fron ...
* Worn profile of wheel
* Worn profile of rail
See also
*Adhesion railway
An adhesion railway relies on adhesion traction to move the train. Adhesion traction is the friction between the drive wheels and the steel rail. The term "adhesion railway" is used only when it is necessary to distinguish adhesion railways from ...
* Brake squeal
* Train noise
References
{{Rail-transport-stub Permanent way