Abstract

Higher speeds and higher capacity will cause the Swedish rail network to be exposed to disturbing dynamic effects. Higher speeds cause higher vertical acceleration levels of the bridge deck. In this thesis, a numerical analysis of a three span end-frame bridge subjected to train induced vibrations is performed. The aim is to identify which structural components and boundary conditions that affect the dynamic behavior of the bridge. Furthermore, the influence of soil structure interaction (SSI) will be investigated as it may have contribution to the stiffness and damping of the structural system.  In order to capture the dynamic response of the bridge, an analysis in the frequency domain was preformed where frequency response functions (FRF) and acceleration envelopes were obtained. For this purpose, a detailed FE-model in 3D was created. Three different cases were studied, model subjected to ballast, model subjected to soil and model subjected to both ballast and soil in coherence. A high speed load model (HSLM) was used to create simulation of train passages at different speeds and applied to all cases so that the bridge deck accelerations could be studied. A simplified 2D-model with impedance functions representing the soil-structure interaction was created to validate the results from the detailed 3D-model and for practical design purposes.  The result of this numerical analysis showed that the vertical accelerations were within acceptable levels of the maximum allowed limits given in governing publications. Considering the surrounding soil, the results revealed an increase of the dynamic response in the midspan at resonant frequency. However, it was identified that this behavior is not explained by the influence of soil structure interaction but rather the change in boundary conditions of the end-shields. The same dynamic behavior was identified for the simplified 2D-model, with a slight underestimation of the vertical accelerations at resonance.

Abstract

The increasing need for High-Speed Railway (HSR) to reduce the travelling time requires increasing research within this field. Bridges are main components of any railway network, including HSR networks, and the optimization of their design for this purpose would contribute to a faster and more cost effective development of the HSR network. The initial investment, the running and maintenance costs of the bridges can be decreased through better understanding of the their dynamic behaviour. This thesis studies the dynamic behaviour of end-shield railway bridges under HSR operation. 2D beam analysis is used to study the effect of the distribution of the train’s axle load. Relatively accurate 3D FE-models are developed to study the effect of Soil-Structure Interaction (SSI) and the dynamic response of the bridges. Modelling alternatives are studied to develop an accurate model. A full scale test of a simply supported Bridge with end-shields using load-controlled forced excitation was performed and the results were used to verify the theoretical models. A manual model updating process of the material properties of the 3D FE-model is performed using FRFs from the field measurements. A Simple 2D model is also developed, where a spring/dashpot system is implemented to simplify SSI, and updated to reproduce the field measured responses. The conclusions of the project emphasize the importance of SSI effects in the dynamic analysis of end-shield bridges for predicting their dynamic behaviour. The conclusions also show that the modelling of the surrounding soil and the assumption of the soil material parameters have significant effect on the dynamic response. Even the boundary conditions, bedrock level and the ballast on the railway track affects the response. The results also show that the bridge’s concrete section behaves as uncracked section under the studied dynamic loading. "p"QC 20170403