Rail Track Performance with Different Subballast Solutions: Traffic and Environmental Effects on Subgrade Service Life
Publication: Journal of Transportation Engineering
Volume 138, Issue 12
Abstract
This paper discusses the effect of using different subballast solutions in the overall performance of the substructure on the basis of a methodology suitable to account for the effects of rail traffic loading and environmental actions in the hydro-thermo-mechanical performance of the subgrade over its service life. The mechanistic design of the different railway track configurations is first analyzed through a three-dimensional finite-element (FE) model, accounting for the adequate modeling of the sleeper-ballast interface. Then, a two-dimensional FE hydro-thermic analysis is developed to assess the effect of the different solutions in the performance of railway trackbed layers resulting from environmental effects (atmospheric actions and phreatic level variations) when modeling superficial drainage systems that enable the runoff of excess rainwater. Results from the mechanistic and hydro-thermic analysis were combined to predict the long-term deformational behavior of the subgrade. The proposed solutions with bituminous layers showed a better performance than the granular-only design concerning the substructure predicted service life cycle.
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Acknowledgments
The authors would like to acknowledge the support of Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT), FCT project ref. PTDC/SEN-TRA/112975/2009. The authors would also like to thank the support of Prof. S. Olivella (UPC) and “Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya” 〈www.meteo.cat〉.
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Information
Published In
Journal of Transportation Engineering
Volume 138 • Issue 12 • December 2012
Pages: 1541 - 1550
Copyright
© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Feb 16, 2012
Accepted: Jun 13, 2012
Published online: Aug 22, 2012
Published in print: Dec 1, 2012
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