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Corrosion Causes Rail Accident Intertek UK Brentwood, United Kingdom
A
production.assurance@intertek.com
railway signal post corroded at the base, collapsed and fell,
corrosion, the susceptibility of the post to corrosion and whether any
obstructing one rail track and partially obstructing another (Fig. 1).
coatings had been applied to it in the past.
A train travelling at 110mph (177 km/h) struck the top of the collapsed signal on the partially obstructed track (Fig. 2). The train car sustained
The Solution
exterior damage and did not derail. No human injuries were reported.
Intertek performed laboratory analyses on the relevant sections of the
Intertek was commissioned to evaluate the cause of corrosion with the
damaged post and submitted a report of its findings. Visual analysis,
findings published in a report by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch
hardness testing, optical and scanning electron microscopy, energy
(RAIB, ref. Opening photo).
dispersive analysis of X-rays and chemical analysis were all performed on the corroded post section.
The Challenge Intertek’s corrosion services were sought by the RAIB to ascertain
The Result
which failure mechanism caused damage to the signal post, the rate of
The findings consisted of several key points, which are included in the
© Network Rail
Opening photo: A train travelling at 110 mph (177 km/h) struck the top of a signal which had collapsed and fallen across the railway line.
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