Ballast mats for the reduction of railway traffic vibrations. Numerical study

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2012

Authors

Alves Costa, PA (Author) FEUP; Calcada, R (Author) FEUP; Silva Cardoso, AS (Author) FEUP

Journal

Title: Soil Dynamics and Earthquake Engineering

Vol. 42

Pages: 137-150

ISSN: 0267-7261

Publisher: Elsevier

Indexing

ISI Proceedings

ISI Web of Knowledge - 109 Citations

Scopus - 133 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Engineering and technology > Environmental engineering

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-002-49A

DOI: 10.1016/j.soildyn.2012.06.014

Abstract (EN): This paper presents a numerical study developed in order to understand the dynamic behavior of ballasted tracks with mats including the train-track-ground interaction. In order to achieve that goal, a case study is modeled by a 2.5D FEM-BEM formulation. A comprehensive approach is presented and the effects of the mat stiffness and location in depth are discussed. The comparison between isolated and non-isolated scenarios allowed concluding that the ballast mat has a dual effect, focusing on the train-track dynamic behavior and on the reduction of high-frequency vibrations that are transmitted to the ground. Furthermore, it was found that global efficiency can be reached by placing the mat beneath the subballast instead of below the ballast layer.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 14