Prediction of Ground Vibrations Induced by Urban Railway Traffic: An Analysis of the Coupling Assumptions Between Vehicle, Track, Soil, and Buildings

Kouroussis, Georges; Parys, Laurent Van; Conti, C.; Verlinden, Olivier

doi:10.20855/ijav.2013.18.4330

Cited by 29 publications

(23 citation statements)

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“…These irregularities are most often encountered in traditional tracks, and more typically in urban environments (Figure 18(a)). Taking into account the wheel curvature (Figure 18(b)), analytical functions can be deduced in order to accurately present the legitimate raising of a wheel's contact point [127]. For more modern use, particularly where higher speeds are required, the lengths of the rail may be welded together to form continuous welded rails (CWR).…”

Section: Singular Rail Surface Defectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Railway-induced ground vibrations – a review of vehicle effects

Kouroussis

Connolly

Verlinden

2014

International Journal of Rail Transportation

256

133

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This paper is a review of the effect of vehicle characteristics on ground-and track borne-vibrations from railways. It combines traditional theory with modern thinking and uses a range of numerical analysis and experimental results to provide a broad analysis of the subject area. First, the effect of different train types on vibration propagation is investigated. Then, despite not being the focus of this work, numerical approaches to vibration propagation modelling within the track and soil are briefly touched upon. Next an in-depth discussion is presented related to the evolution of numerical models, with analysis of the suitability of various modelling approaches for analysing vehicle effects. The differences between quasi-static and dynamic characteristics are also discussed with insights into defects such as wheel/rail irregularities. Additionally, as an appendix, a modest database of train types are presented along with detailed information related to their physical attributes. It is hoped that this information may provide assistance to future researchers attempting to simulate railway vehicle vibrations. It is concluded that train type and the contact conditions at the wheel/rail interface can be influential in the generation of vibration. Therefore, where possible, when using numerical approach, the vehicle should be modelled in detail. Additionally, it was found that there are a wide variety of modelling approaches capable of simulating train types effects. If non-linear behaviour needs to be included in the model, then time domain simulations are preferable, however if the system can be assumed linear then frequency domain simulations are suitable due to their reduced computational demand.

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Section: Singular Rail Surface Defectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Railway-induced ground vibrations – a review of vehicle effects

Kouroussis

Connolly

Verlinden

2014

International Journal of Rail Transportation

256

133

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“…Furthermore, on other types of line (e.g. tram [25] and freight [26]), it has been shown that it is more important to model the vehicle with increased degrees of freedom. [27] Ground vibrations generated by railways have different propagation characteristics depending on the track, soil and vehicle characteristics.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Railway ground vibrations induced by wheel and rail singular defects

Kouroussis

Connolly

Alexandrou

et al. 2015

Vehicle System Dynamics

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Railway local irregularities are a growing source of ground-borne vibration and can cause negative environmental impacts, particularly in urban areas. Therefore, this paper analyses the effect of railway track singular defects (discontinuities) on ground vibration generation and propagation. A vehicle/track/soil numerical railway model is presented, capable of accurately predicting vibration levels. The prediction model is composed of a multibody vehicle model, a flexible track model and a finite/infinite element soil model. Firstly, analysis is undertaken to assess the ability of wheel/rail contact models to accurately simulate the force generation at the wheel/rail contact, in the presence of a singular defect. It is found that, although linear contact models are sufficient for modelling ground vibration on smooth tracks, when singular defects are present higher accuracy wheel/rail models are required. Furthermore, it is found that the variation in wheel/rail force during the singular defect contact depends on the track flexibility, and thus requires a fully coupled vehicle/track/foundation model. Next, a parametric study of ground vibrations generated by singular rail and wheel defects is undertaken. Six shapes of discontinuity are modelled, representing various defect types such as transition zones, switches, crossings, rail joints and wheel flats. The vehicle is modelled as an AM96 train set and it is found that ground vibration levels are highly sensitive to defect height, length and shape.

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“…The latter is defined as a flexible beam (Young modulus E r , geometrical moment of inertia I r , section A r and density ρ r ) discretely supported by the sleepers (of mass m and with spacing d), including viscoelastic elements for the ballast (stiffness k b and damping coefficient d b ) and the railpads (stiffness k p and damping coefficient d p ). To take into account the dynamic behaviour of the foundation, which plays an important role at low frequencies, a coupled lumped mass (CLM) model is added to the track model, with interconnection elements for the foundation-to-foundation coupling [22]. A C++ object-oriented program was developed, using the in-house EasyDyn library [23].…”

Section: Numerical Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

Railway-Induced Ground Vibrations in the Presence of Local Track Irregularities and Wheel Flats

Kouroussis¹,

Alexandrou²,

Connolly³

et al. 2015

Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Computational Methods in Structural Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering (COM

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Rapid growth in railway infrastructure has led to numerous environmental technical challenges. This includes ground-borne vibration, which is becoming an increasing problem, particularly in urban environments. A common source of this vibration is local defects (e.g. rail joints, switches and crossings) which cause large amplitude excitations at isolated locations. Modelling this type of excitation mechanism using typical linear frequency domain analysis is challenging and therefore non-linear time domain methods are required. Therefore, in this study a validated and comprehensive time domain, three-dimensional ground vibration prediction model is used to investigate the vibrations generated at the wheel/rail contact due to local rail and wheel surface defects. Different types of rail and wheel defect are mathematically modelled, including rail joints, switches, crossings and wheel flats. The track is modelled as a typical ballasted track, using a two-step approach where the vehicle/track dynamics and ground wave propagation are simulated separately. The first step models the effect of railway vehicles (using a multibody approach with many degrees of freedom) on the dynamic excitation of the track and incorporates a non-linear Hertzian contact law at the wheel/rail interface. The second step applies these track-vehicle model forces to a finite/infinite element model to accurately generate vibration time histories for required ground-borne vibration assessment. This work focuses on the AM96 trainset, largely used in the Brussels Region (Belgium). The geometries of a variety of local defect types are analysed and a sensitivity analysis is undertaken based on the defect size and train speed. It is found that defect type and geometry have a significant influence on vibration levels, and that only selected geometry types are effected by train speed. 26 G. Kouroussis et al.

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Prediction of Ground Vibrations Induced by Urban Railway Traffic: An Analysis of the Coupling Assumptions Between Vehicle, Track, Soil, and Buildings

Cited by 29 publications

References 0 publications

Railway-induced ground vibrations – a review of vehicle effects

Railway-induced ground vibrations – a review of vehicle effects

Railway ground vibrations induced by wheel and rail singular defects

Railway-Induced Ground Vibrations in the Presence of Local Track Irregularities and Wheel Flats

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