The demand for lightweight and cost-effective materials in rail transportation is increasing. Low nickel nitrogen austenitic stainless steel is considered a promising alternative for stainless steel car body structures because of its excellent mechanical properties and corrosion resistance. Due to the complexity and large scale of such structures, the structural reliability of car bodies made from this material is regarded as a critical concern. This issue is also addressed in the present study. Finite element analysis (FEA) is employed using ABAQUS to evaluate the structural performance of a low nickel stainless steel car body under various operational conditions. Based on the material specifications outlined in GB/T 7928-2003 “Stainless Steel for Urban Rail Transit Vehicles,” the structural design requirements of EN 12663-2010 “Railway Applications - Structural Requirements of Railway Vehicle Bodies,” and the experimental requirements of TB/T 3502-2018 “Modal Test Method and Evaluation Standard for Railway Passenger Cars and EMUs,” finite element simulations of strength, stiffness, and modal characteristics were conducted on the train car body to assess its overall reliability. The results demonstrate that the car body meets the relevant standards in terms of both stiffness and static strength. Furthermore, the first-order vertical bending, torsional, and lateral bending mode frequencies of the car body all exceed the critical natural frequency threshold of 10.0 Hz. This confirms the structural integrity and reliability of the low-nickel stainless steel car body.
The feasibility of using low nickel stainless steel in rail vehicle manufacturing is validated in this study. A robust analytical framework is provided for the future optimization of lightweight and cost-effective car body designs.