Numerical Analysis of the Dynamic Behaviour of Railway Catenary Systems in Accordance with Norwegian Conditions

Abstract

The dynamic behaviour of the railway catenary system is of great importance as the speed of the train increases. The aim for this study was to make a numerical model of the catenary system in three dimensions to be able to investigate what should be done with existing catenary systems in Norway to increase the train speed. In Norway there is a high ratio of curves with small radius, thus it is very important to include three dimensions. Abaqus has been used to obtain the numerical model. Both static and dynamic analyses have been done on this model. The results from the analyses have been compared with measurements, and this has shown that the model is able to describe the dynamic behaviour of the catenary system with sufficient accuracy. In future work it is recommended to look especially into how the contact interaction between the contact wire and the pantograph is modelled.