PSI - Issue 81

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ScienceDirect

Procedia Structural Integrity 81 (2026) 264–268

© 2026 The Authors. Copy from the contract: Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) Peer-review under responsibility of DMDP 2025 organizers Abstract The axlebox assembly is one of the critical components of a wagon for ensuring overall reliability. According to long-term statistical data, it ranks second, after the braking system, in terms of the number of failures during operation. This directly affects the actual need for unscheduled uncoupling and repairs of freight wagons. To assess the actual reliability of axleboxes, the ‘failure tree’ method was proposed. Failure analysis consists of sequences and combinations of undesirable events. Thus, the ‘failure tree’ is a multi -level graph of causal relationships obtained by tracing dangerous situations in reverse order to identify possible causes of their occurrence. Based on the study results, the structural function of the axlebox assembly in operation was determined, and reliability indicators were calculated using a mathematical model. According to calculations, the actual service life of axleboxes on freight wagons (operating time to failure) is no more than 3 years. This requires adjusting the maintenance and repair schedules for the axleboxes of operating freight wagons. 1. Introduction The axlebox assembly is one of the critical components of a railway wagon in terms of ensuring its overall reliability. According to long-term statistical data, it ranks second after braking equipment as a cause of railway wagon failure and the actual need for unscheduled uncoupling and subsequent repair. Thus, D. Voloshyn et al. considered the features of determining the reliability indicators of axleboxes (2004), and M. Entezami et al. (2019) examined the prospects for monitoring the condition of railway axlebox bearings, and Y. Hou et al. (2024), C. Liu et al. considered methods for processing vibration signals to improve the accuracy of detecting defects in the outer and inner races of the bearing (2024), J. Konecny et al. systematised approaches to predictive diagnostics for axlebox bearings (2026), O. Yasniy et al. (2013) details a probabilistic analysis for predicting the remaining life of railway axles with initial surface cracks , P. Biel et al. (2024)recommended methodology for analyzing damage to the bearing of rail vehicle wheel sets, etc. The reliability of an axlebox as a technical system mainly depends on the condition of the bearing assembly, which is the main structural element. The reliability of bearings, in turn, is influenced by a large number of factors: external operating conditions, VIII International Conference “In - service Damage of Materials: Diagnostics and Prediction“ (DMDP 2025) Reliability assurance features of modern railway axlebox assemblies Dmytro Voloshyn , *, Liudmyla Voloshyna, Oleksandr Pleskach, Ivan Pleskach Department of Wagon Engineering and Product Quality, Ukrainian State University оf Railway Transport, 7, Oboronny Val Square, Kharkiv, 61050, Ukraine Keywords: Freight wagon; axlebox assembly; roller bearing; failure tree; Weibull distribution; reliability indicators.

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +38-050-192-7811 E-mail address: dmivol777@gmail.com

2452-3216 © 2026 The Authors. Copy from the contract: Published by ELSEVIER B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) Peer-review under responsibility of DMDP 2025 organizers 10.1016/j.prostr.2026.03.046