Evaluation of Fastening Modeling Approaches for Dynamic Assessment of Rail Based on Finite-Element Method
Publication: Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 148, Issue 9
Abstract
Fastening systems play a significant role in railroad track dynamics. In this paper, three approaches are investigated for rail fastenings modeling using FEM: (1) spring–damper pairs covering the areas representing the fastening connections; (2) a solid-load approach that explicitly models the solid baseplates and includes toe loads by applying external loads; and (3) a solid-spring approach that takes into account the coupling of rail with the ties by using prestressed springs. Experimental tests were carried out to evaluate the performance of the FEM models. The mode shapes obtained from the FEM models and the experiments were used for the evaluation. A measurement quantifying the similarity of the mode shapes was proposed, which considers both shape similarity and distance similarity. The results showed that the rail foot’s mode shapes obtained from the model using the spring–damper approach demonstrated the most similarity with the ones obtained from the experiments.
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Data Availability Statement
All data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.
Acknowledgments
This work has been supported under Grant No. 693JJ619C000005 awarded by the Federal Railroad Administration of the US Department of Transportation. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the FRA.
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Information & Authors
Information
Published In
Journal of Engineering Mechanics
Volume 148 • Issue 9 • September 2022
Copyright
© 2022 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jan 5, 2022
Accepted: May 2, 2022
Published online: Jul 4, 2022
Published in print: Sep 1, 2022
Discussion open until: Dec 4, 2022
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Connections (structural)
- Construction engineering
- Construction methods
- Design (by type)
- Dynamic models
- Engineering fundamentals
- Fastening
- Finite element method
- Infrastructure
- Load factors
- Methodology (by type)
- Models (by type)
- Numerical methods
- Rail transportation
- Railroad tracks
- Structural design
- Structural engineering
- Structural members
- Structural systems
- Three-dimensional models
- Transportation engineering
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Cited by
- Chi Yang, Korkut Kaynardag, Salvatore Salamone, Investigation of wave propagation and attenuation in periodic supported rails using wave finite element method, Acta Mechanica, 10.1007/s00707-023-03484-8, (2023).