Study of Slide Ablation Characteristics During Pantograph Lowering Based on Simulation and Arc Voltage Measurements

The process of pantograph-lowering in electric locomotives generates intense transient arcing, which significantly influences the service life of the pantograph-catenary (PC) contact pair. This paper investigates slide ablation during pantograph-lowering by incorporating heat dissipation from material evaporation, a factor not addressed in prior studies. First, a high-precision arc voltage acquisition system was developed and implemented under real railway conditions. This system served as the basis for validating the proposed Multiphysics-coupled transient arcing model. Subsequently, an ablation model was established to account for the effect of material evaporation on surface temperature evolution under transient arcing. Then, numerical simulations were conducted to reveal the temperature field distribution on the slide surface. Finally, the effects of pantograph-lowering voltages, pantograph-lowering speeds, and ambient wind speeds on the slide ablation were systematically analyzed. The results indicate that reducing the pantograph-lowering voltage and increasing the pantograph-lowering speed can effectively mitigate slide surface ablation. Furthermore, the transient arcing produces an arc-shaped ablation pit on the slide surface, with the peak temperature stabilizing at approximately 4000 K, close to the carbon sublimation point.