Ballast deterioration, under dynamic loads, remains an important issue on high-speed tracks that can lead to high maintenance costs. This ballast deterioration leads to settlements. Several studies have shown that these settlements were linked to high accelerations produced in the ballast by high-speed train (HST) passages. The solution with bituminous underlayment was used since 1980s in several countries like United States, Italy, Spain, especially on high-traffic and high-speed lines (HSL). In France, the interest in this technique is recent. Following the East European HSL satisfactory behavior, a layer of asphalt concrete was used under the ballast layer of the Bretagne-Pays de la Loire (BPL) HSL. It is intended, in addition to the schedule savings and the protection of the subgrade during the construction phase, to reduce acceleration amplitudes produced at the passage of HST, to ensure moisture stability in the subgrade and thereby to decrease the maintenance costs of the tracks. BPL HSL includes 105 km of innovative track with an asphalt concrete (GB) ballast sublayer, and 77 km with a granular layer under the ballast (UGM). Out of the instrumented sections of the BPL track, 3 sections are constructed with GB subballast layer and one with a layer of UGM as a subballast layer. A total of 127 sensors that includes accelerometers, anchored displacement sensors, temperature and humidity probes, and extensometers are used. Sensors are placed at various positions and depths in the track structures. Data were first acquired during a speed up test phase, under controlled conditions, with the same train passing at speeds ranging from 160 to 352 km/h. This paper presents the different sensors used for the instrumentation as well as the acquisition system installed to collect all measurements. Data treatment and processing is explained in details. Finally, results obtained for different speeds are presented, with a focus on accelerometer and anchored displacement sensor measurements, on two sections, allowing, among others, comparisons between the response of structures with and without asphalt concrete. The role of the GB, as a subballast layer, in damping the vertical displacement of the sub ballast structure and reducing the accelerations peaks in the ballast layer for ballasted tracks is demonstrated.
Influence of the bituminous layer on temperature and water infiltration in railway structures of the Bretagne -Pays de la Loire high-speed line.The phenomena of settlement and wear of the ballast under dynamic stresses lead to high frequencies and high maintenance costs on high speed railway lines.Studies have shown that these settlements are linked to high accelerations produced in the ballast by the passage of high-speed trains (HST). A layer of asphalt concrete (GB) was introduced under the ballast layer on the high-speed line Bretagne-Pays de Loire (BPL HSL). It is intended, among other things, to reduce the amplitude of accelerations produced at the passage of the HST, and thus improve the durability of the track.The BPL HSL spans 105 km with a sub-layer of asphalt concrete under the ballast, and 77 km with a granular sublayer (UGM). To evaluate the performance of the structures with bituminous sublayer, and to compare it with traditional structures, with granular sublayer, 4 track sections have been instrumented during construction. This article presents the different sensors of the instrumentation as well as the acquisition system installed to collect measurements. The focus, in this study, concerns the temperature, water content and vertical settlement measurements made on the instrumented sections. Temperature variations recorded during two years on the railway structure with bituminous sublayer were analysed and compared to those measured on a classical bituminous pavement.Influence of the bituminous layer on water infiltration and track settlements has also been studied.
The design and durability of high-speed railway lines is a major challenge in the field of railway transportation. In France, 40 years of feedback on the field behavior of ballasted tracks led to improvements in the design rules. However, the settlement and wear of ballast, caused by dynamic stresses at high frequencies, remains a major problem on high-speed tracks leading to high maintenance costs. Studies have shown that this settlement is linked to the high acceleration produced in the ballast layer by high-speed trains traveling on the track, disrupting the granular assembly. The “Bretagne–Pays de la Loire” high-speed line (BPL HSL), with its varied subgrade conditions, represents the first large-scale application of asphalt concrete (GB) as the ballast sublayer. This line includes 77 km of conventional track with a granular sublayer of unbound granular material (UGM) and 105 km of track with an asphalt concrete sublayer under the ballast. During construction, instruments such as accelerometers, anchored deflection sensors, and strain gages, among others, were installed on four sections of the track. This paper examines the instrumentation as well as the acquisition system installed on the track. The data processing is explained first, followed by a presentation of the ViscoRail software, developed for modeling railway tracks. The bituminous section’s behavior and response is modeled using a multilayer dynamic response model, implemented in the ViscoRail software. A good match between experimental and calculated results is highlighted.
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