What is a steel rail?
Jan 14, 2026
What is a steel rail?
A steel rail is the primary load-bearing longitudinal component of a railway track system. It is a rolled steel section installed in parallel lines to guide, support, and transmit loads from railway wheels to the sleepers (ties) and then to the ballast or slab track structure. Steel rails provide a continuous, smooth running surface that ensures safe, stable, and low-resistance movement of trains.
From a structural standpoint, a modern steel rail typically consists of three parts: the rail head, which directly contacts the wheel and is designed to resist wear and rolling contact fatigue; the rail web, which connects the head and foot and transfers vertical and lateral forces; and the rail foot (base), which distributes loads to the fastening system and sleepers while providing lateral stability.
What is the material of rail?
steel rails are manufactured from high-carbon pearlitic steel to achieve a balance between hardness, strength, and toughness. Typical rail steel grades include UIC 860 R260, R350HT, and in China and many export markets, U71Mn. These steels offer high tensile strength and excellent wear resistance, making them suitable for heavy axle loads and high-speed operation. For special applications such as sharp curves, heavy-haul lines, and crane rails, heat-treated or alloy-enhanced grades are often selected to improve fatigue life and resistance to plastic deformation.
GNEE RAIL Commonly Used Steel Chemical Compositions:
| Steel Grade | C(%) | Si | Mn | Cr | V | P | S | Tensile Strength (Rm/MPa) |
| U71Mn | 0.65~0.76 | 0.15~0.58 | 0.70~1.40 | – | – | ≤0.035 | ≤0.030 | ≥880 |
| U75V | 0.71~0.80 | 0.50~0.80 | 0.75~1.05 | – | 0.04~0.12 | ≤0.035 | ≤0.030 | ≥980 |
| U78CrV | 0.72~0.82 | 0.50~0.80 | 0.70~1.05 | 0.30~0.50 | 0.04~0.12 | ≤0.035 | ≤0.030 | ≥1080 |
| U77MnCr | 0.72~0.82 | 0.10~0.50 | 0.80~1.10 | 0.25~0.40 | – | ≤0.035 | ≤0.025 | ≥980 |
| U76CrRE | 0.71~0.81 | 0.50~0.80 | 0.80~1.10 | 0.25~0.35 | 0.04~0.08 | ≤0.035 | ≤0.025 | ≥1080 |
What are the different types of steel rails?
Steel rails are classified in several ways, including by profile type (flat-bottom rails, bullhead rails, grooved rails for tramways, and special crane rails), by weight per meter (such as 50 kg/m, 60 kg/m, or heavy crane rail sections like QU70, QU80, QU100), and by application (mainline railway, metro, mining, port, and industrial crane tracks). Heavier rail sections are generally used where higher wheel loads and more frequent traffic are expected.
| Classification | Height(mm) | Head (mm) | Bottom (mm) | Thick(mm) | Weight (kg/m) | |
| Light Rail | 8 KG/M | 65 | 25 | 54 | 7 | 8.42 |
| 9 KG/M | 63.5 | 32.1 | 63.5 | 5.9 | 8.94 | |
| 12 KG/M | 69.85 | 38.1 | 69.85 | 7.54 | 12.2 | |
| 15 KG/M | 79.37 | 42.86 | 79.37 | 8.33 | 15.2 | |
| 18 KG/M | 80 | 40 | 80 | 10 | 18.06 | |
| 22 KG/M | 93.66 | 50.8 | 93.66 | 10.72 | 22.3 | |
| 24 KG/M | 107 | 51 | 90 | 10.9 | 24.46 | |
| 30 KG/M | 107.95 | 60.33 | 107.95 | 12.3 | 30.1 | |
| Heavy Rail | 38 KG/M | 134 | 68 | 114 | 13 | 38.733 |
| 43 KG/M | 140 | 70 | 114 | 14.5 | 44.653 | |
| 45 KG/M | 145 | 67 | 126 | 14.5 | 45.546 | |
| 50 KG/M | 152 | 70 | 132 | 15.5 | 51.514 | |
| 60 KG/M | 176 | 73 | 150 | 16.5 | 60.64 | |
| Crane Rail | QU 70 | 120 | 70 | 120 | 28 | 52.8 |
| QU 80 | 130 | 80 | 130 | 32 | 63.69 | |
| QU 100 | 150 | 100 | 150 | 38 | 88.96 | |
| QU 120 | 170 | 120 | 170 | 44 | 118.1 | |
As a professional rail fastener supplier, GNEE RAIL can provide different standard steel rail such as GB,American, BS, UIC, DIN, JIS, Australian and South Africa which used in railway lines, cranes and coal mining.
