Study on the interaction between frictional temperature rise and pulsed eddy current signals based on the Hertz contact theory and finite element model

Frictional temperature rise (FTR) can cause sharp temperature increase in the contact area between wheel and rail, then affects the pulsed eddy current (PEC) signal. The paper proposes a novel method based on classical Hertz contact theory and the multi-field coupling finite element (FE) model to study the interaction between FTR and PEC signal. The results show that the transient temperature field caused by FTR can lead to the confusion of surface defect and interior defect using PEC testing.