What steel are rails made of?
Jan 22, 2026
A steel rail is a precision-manufactured metal beam that serves as the primary contact surface for wheels while transmitting dynamic and static loads to sleepers and the track foundation. Its design combines a specialized cross-sectional profile with carefully engineered metallurgical properties to resist wear, fatigue, and deformation, ensuring stable, safe, and long-lasting operation for railway, industrial, and crane applications.
What steel are rails made of?
Railway rails are primarily made from high-carbon steel or alloy steel, chosen for hardness, strength, and wear resistance, often with added manganese, chromium, or vanadium, and frequently undergoing heat treatment like quenching and tempering for improved performance in demanding conditions. Standard rails balance carbon (around 0.7%) and manganese, while specialized ones use alloys or head-hardening for high-speed or heavy-haul lines.
- U71Mn: A manganese-alloyed carbon steel commonly used for industrial and crane rails. Its toughness and wear resistance make it suitable for heavy-duty and concentrated load applications.
- U75V: High-strength alloy steel designed for high-speed mainline rails, offering superior tensile strength, surface hardness, and fatigue resistance for heavy axle loads and frequent traffic.
- 50Mn: Medium-carbon manganese steel frequently applied in mining tracks and industrial sidings, providing a balance of hardness and ductility to resist wear and impact damage.
- Q235B: Structural carbon steel used in lighter rails or temporary tracks where heavy wear resistance is not critical. It is cost-effective for low-load applications.
- R260 / R350HT: Heat-treated European and Asian mainline steels with high fatigue and impact resistance, suitable for high-speed and heavy freight operations.
| Grade | Standard / Region | Typical Composition (wt%) | Key Features & Applications |
| R260 | EN 13674-1 (Europe) | C: 0.67–0.80, Mn: 0.90–1.20, Si: ≤0.50 | Base-grade rail; cold-rolled; widely used on medium-traffic lines. Good weldability and cost efficiency. |
| R350HT | EN 13674-1 (Europe) | C: 0.75–0.85, Mn: 0.80–1.20, Cr: 0.20–0.50 | Heat-treated (online/offline); UTS ≥1100 MPa; 30–50% longer life than R260. Standard for high-speed (TGV, ICE) and heavy-haul lines. |
| Grade 260 | AREMA (North America) | C: ~0.77, Mn: ~1.0–1.2, Si: ~0.2 | Equivalent to R260; used with rail sections like 115RE, 136RE. Common on Class I freight networks. |
| Grade 350 | AREMA + Mill Specs (USA/Canada) | C: 0.78–0.83, Mn: 0.90–1.20, Cr: 0.2–0.6, + V/Nb (microalloyed) | TMCP or heat-treated; UTS ~1180–1280 MPa. For demanding curves, heavy axle loads (>33 ton), and high-tonnage corridors. |
| BH Rail (Bainitic) | JIS E 1101 (Japan), adopted in EU/India | C: 0.65–0.80, Mn: 1.0–1.4, Cr/Mo/Ni (optional, mill-specific) | Bainitic microstructure; high strength (UTS ~1250–1350 MPa) + superior fracture toughness. Used on Shinkansen curves and high-wear segments. |
| U71Mn | GB/T 2585 (China) | C: 0.65–0.77, Mn: 1.10–1.40, Si: 0.15–0.35 | Work-hardening carbon-manganese rail; standard for 50kg/m, 60kg/m rails on Chinese mainlines. Comparable to R260/R350 in performance. |
| U75V | GB/T 2585 (China) | C: 0.67–0.77, Mn: 0.70–1.00, V: 0.04–0.12 | Vanadium-microalloyed; higher strength & fatigue resistance than U71Mn. For high-speed (e.g., Beijing–Shanghai HSR) and heavy-haul lines. |
Types of Steel Rail from GNEE RAIL
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.
| Standard | Sepc. | Material Typical Grade |
| UIC860 | UIC54 | 700,900A,900B |
| UIC60 | ||
| EN13674.1 | 5.00E+02 | R200,R350HT,R260Mn,R35LHT,R320Cr,R370CrHT |
| 5.40E+02 | ||
| 6.00E+02 | ||
| 6.00E+03 | ||
| BS-11-1985 | BS80A | 700,900A,900B |
| BS90A | ||
| BS100A | ||
| AREMA | 115RE | SS,HH,LA,IH |
| 136RE | ||
| ASCE60 | U71Mn | |
| ASCE85 | U71Mn | |
| GB 2585-2007 | 50kg/m | U71Mn |
| 60kg/m | U75V | |
| 75kg/m | ||
| TB/T2344-2012 | 50kg/m | U71Mn,U75V,U77MnCr |
| 60kg/m | U78CrV | |
| 75kg/m | ||
| GB 11264-1989 | 8kg/m | Q235 |
| 12kg/m | Q235 | |
| 15kg/m | 55Q, Q235 | |
| 18kg/m | 55Q, Q235 | |
| 22kg/m | 55Q, Q235 | |
| 24kg/m | 55Q, Q235 | |
| 30kg/m | 55Q, Q235 | |
| 38kg/m | 50Mn, U71Mn | |
| 43kg/m | 50Mn, U71Mn | |
| GB Crane rails | QU70 | U71Mn |
| QU80 | U71Mn | |
| QU100 | U71Mn | |
| QU120 | U71Mn |
How are track rails manufactured?
Track rails are manufactured in heavy industrial plants through a process of steelmaking, continuous casting into billets, heating, rolling into the rail's I-shape, controlled cooling, straightening, and precise heat treatment (like quenching and tempering) to achieve specific hardness and toughness, followed by cutting and testing.
- Steelmaking & Casting: Molten steel (high-carbon alloy) is cast into large, semi-finished rectangular shapes called billets or blooms.
- Heating: Billets are reheated in a furnace to make them malleable for shaping.
- Rolling: The hot billet is passed through a series of rollers (a rolling mill) that progressively shape it into the characteristic rail profile (head, web, flange).
- Cooling & Straightening: Rails are cooled in a controlled manner, then straightened by multi-roll machines to ensure they are perfectly straight and dimensionally accurate.
- Heat Treatment (Optional but Common): For heavy-duty rails, quenching (rapid cooling) hardens the head, while tempering (reheating to a lower temp) reduces brittleness, balancing hardness with toughness.
- Finishing: Rails are cut to precise lengths, and surfaces are ground smooth.
- Testing: Ultrasonic testing confirms internal integrity before the rails are shipped for installation.
Since 2008, GNEE RAIL has been supplying steel rails of different grades for more than 18 years, steel rails from GNEE is highly recommened in China and abroad.Wtih cutting edge equipment, GNEE produces high quality steel rails that meet with requirements of most countries. Standard rail, head hardened rail, heavy rail,light rail,crane rail and other types are all available here, as one of the China main rail supplier, GNEE RAIL has been working on supplying economical green railway products all over the world.
