Structural Behavior of a Ballasted Small Railway Track Under Static and Dynamic Loadings

Abstract

The aim of this work is to see the structural behavior of ballasted small rail track system under static moving and dynamic loads. The ballasted rail track system is firstly modeled by solid hexahedral and tetrahedral finite elements representing the rails, sleepers and the ballast. Three simulations are then conducted in LISA; moving static loading, modal vibration and dynamic loading. Four locations are selected to simulate the moving static loading. The longitudinal displacement of the rails and the ballast can be captured on these four locations. The simulation results show that the ballast displaces more at locations where the sleepers are attached. The fluctuations depend on the moving wheels. The first two vibration modes are the cross swaying of the rails followed by two vertical motions and the fifth mode is the longitudinal motion. The velocity and acceleration responses show similar pattern with that static displacement  response. In future research, the results can be used for the optimization of the ballast foundation to improve the stability of the small rail.
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