The Paton Welding Journal, 2025, №08

2025 №08 (07)

2025 №08 (02)

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The Paton Welding Journal, 2025, #8, 3-18 pages

Urgent problems of welding railway rails under martial law in Ukraine

I.V. Ziakhor¹, Ye.V. Antipin¹, O.V. Didkovskyi¹, A.M. Levchuk¹, V.V. Kalyuzhny², V.V. Ozyumenko², P.M. Rudenko¹, Yu.A. Shylo¹

¹E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the NASU. 11 Kazymyr Malevych Str., 03150, Kyiv, Ukraine. E-mail: zyakhor2@ukr.net
²Branch “Center for Track Construction and Repair” of the JSC “Ukrainian Railways” 5B Zaliznychne Shosse, 01103, Kyiv, Ukraine

Abstract
Rail joining in stationary and field conditions is mainly performed by flash butt welding (FBW), which has been successfully used for many years on the railways of Ukraine and abroad. The article analyzes the critical challenges for ensuring the operability of the railway infrastructure under martial law in Ukraine. To solve urgent problems, the E.O. Paton Electric Welding Institute of the NAS of Ukraine (PWI) together with the Branch “Center for Track Construction and Repair” of the JSC “Ukrainian Railways” have developed a set of measures to ensure high-quality welding of rails in stationary and field conditions during the repair and construction of continuous welded rails in accordance with the requirements of acting regulatory documents. The results of works (research, technological, scientific and technical expertises) on the implementation of these measures for the period of 2022‒2025 are presented. In particular, the technical condition of rail welding machines was successfully audited, the technology was improved and technological modes of FBW of railway rails were practiced, the system of quality assurance of joints during FBW of railway rails was improved, new revisions of regulatory documents for FBW of railway rails were prepared, the works are being conducted to update the design of FBW machines, cooperation with companies is developed to renew the production of rail welding equipment in Ukraine.
Keywords: railway rails, welded joint, flash butt welding, railroad frog

Received: 16.05.2025
Received in revised form: 25.06.2025
Accepted: 30.07.2025

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Suggested Citation

I.V. Ziakhor, Ye.V. Antipin, O.V. Didkovskyi, A.M. Levchuk, V.V. Kalyuzhny, V.V. Ozyumenko, P.M. Rudenko, Yu.A. Shylo (2025) Urgent problems of welding railway rails under martial law in Ukraine. The Paton Welding J., 08, 3-18.

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