Statistical Energy Analysis of Subway Wheel/Track Noise

Dividing wheel-track system of subway into a series of sub-systems, the statistical energy analysis (SEA) model of wheel/track system is established. The factors affecting the wheel/track noise, such as modal density, damping loss factors, coupling loss factors, are gotten by theoretical analysis combined with experiments. The calculated results show that the track noise is about 4.5 dB(A) higher than the wheel noise at 160 km/h, and the wheel noise is reduced by 2.8 dB(A) at 160 km/h and by 2.3 dB(A) at 90 km/h by attaching damped layer plates to the wheels, but the total reduction is only 0.9 dB(A) at 160 km/h and 0.4 dB(A) at 90 km/h, so the attempts to reduce the total noise should exert noise control measures on the track, not on the wheel.