Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution

High-speed railways extensively utilize longitudinally continuous slab tracks, which are susceptible to significant structural damage caused by temperature change. This study emphasizes the impact of complex temperature distribution characteristics of the tracks on track damage including interfacial...

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Main Authors: Yang Li, Kailin Cao, Jinjie Chen, Haiyan Li, Zhihao Yang, Guocui Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-01-01
Series:Alexandria Engineering Journal
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1110016824011979
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author Yang Li
Kailin Cao
Jinjie Chen
Haiyan Li
Zhihao Yang
Guocui Wang
author_facet Yang Li
Kailin Cao
Jinjie Chen
Haiyan Li
Zhihao Yang
Guocui Wang
author_sort Yang Li
collection DOAJ
description High-speed railways extensively utilize longitudinally continuous slab tracks, which are susceptible to significant structural damage caused by temperature change. This study emphasizes the impact of complex temperature distribution characteristics of the tracks on track damage including interfacial debonding, slab end arching and concrete joint failure. Firstly, the nonlinear temperature distribution in track structures was characterized using field measurement data. Secondly, a numerical model of the longitudinally continuous slab track model was tailored and validated. Next, the numerical model was used to investigate the damage evolution of the track caused by its complex nonlinear temperature distribution. Finally, the study thoroughly examined the effects of variations of temperature distribution characteristics on the track's mechanical performance. Results show that: (1) Considering a vertical nonlinearity of 0.3 and a lateral gradient of 10 ℃/m can improve the maximum vertical displacement by 31.6 %. (2) The critical air temperature for interface damage initiation can be approximately 5 ℃ lower when the vertical nonlinearity and the lateral gradient are not considered than when they are considered. The distribution of damage on the interface between track slabs and mortar layers also varies depending on the temperature assumptions. (3) The maximum compression damage of the pre-damaged T-shaped concrete joint decreases with increasing vertical nonlinearity and lateral gradient. These new findings are of significant theoretical importance as they emphasize the need to consider temperature distribution characteristics that have been overlooked in previous studies. Additionally, the insights from this study have practical value as they provide track engineers with a state-of-the-art recommendation for incorporating realistic temperature distribution in the evaluation of longitudinally continuous slab tracks' performance.
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institution Kabale University
issn 1110-0168
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publishDate 2025-01-01
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spelling doaj-art-c1335094a4754336978034ef8743fb3a2025-01-09T06:13:25ZengElsevierAlexandria Engineering Journal1110-01682025-01-01110479489Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distributionYang Li0Kailin Cao1Jinjie Chen2Haiyan Li3Zhihao Yang4Guocui Wang5State Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and System Safety of Traffic Engineering Structures, Shijiazhuang Tiedao University, Shijiazhuang 050043, China; Key Laboratory of Roads and Railway Engineering Safety Control (Shijiazhuang Tiedao University), Ministry of Education, Shijiazhuang 050043, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and System Safety of Traffic Engineering Structures, Shijiazhuang Tiedao University, Shijiazhuang 050043, China; Key Laboratory of Roads and Railway Engineering Safety Control (Shijiazhuang Tiedao University), Ministry of Education, Shijiazhuang 050043, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and System Safety of Traffic Engineering Structures, Shijiazhuang Tiedao University, Shijiazhuang 050043, China; Key Laboratory of Roads and Railway Engineering Safety Control (Shijiazhuang Tiedao University), Ministry of Education, Shijiazhuang 050043, ChinaDepartment of Traffic, Shijiazhuang Institute of Railway Technology, Shijiazhuang 050041, China; Corresponding author.State Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and System Safety of Traffic Engineering Structures, Shijiazhuang Tiedao University, Shijiazhuang 050043, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Mechanical Behavior and System Safety of Traffic Engineering Structures, Shijiazhuang Tiedao University, Shijiazhuang 050043, China; Key Laboratory of Roads and Railway Engineering Safety Control (Shijiazhuang Tiedao University), Ministry of Education, Shijiazhuang 050043, ChinaHigh-speed railways extensively utilize longitudinally continuous slab tracks, which are susceptible to significant structural damage caused by temperature change. This study emphasizes the impact of complex temperature distribution characteristics of the tracks on track damage including interfacial debonding, slab end arching and concrete joint failure. Firstly, the nonlinear temperature distribution in track structures was characterized using field measurement data. Secondly, a numerical model of the longitudinally continuous slab track model was tailored and validated. Next, the numerical model was used to investigate the damage evolution of the track caused by its complex nonlinear temperature distribution. Finally, the study thoroughly examined the effects of variations of temperature distribution characteristics on the track's mechanical performance. Results show that: (1) Considering a vertical nonlinearity of 0.3 and a lateral gradient of 10 ℃/m can improve the maximum vertical displacement by 31.6 %. (2) The critical air temperature for interface damage initiation can be approximately 5 ℃ lower when the vertical nonlinearity and the lateral gradient are not considered than when they are considered. The distribution of damage on the interface between track slabs and mortar layers also varies depending on the temperature assumptions. (3) The maximum compression damage of the pre-damaged T-shaped concrete joint decreases with increasing vertical nonlinearity and lateral gradient. These new findings are of significant theoretical importance as they emphasize the need to consider temperature distribution characteristics that have been overlooked in previous studies. Additionally, the insights from this study have practical value as they provide track engineers with a state-of-the-art recommendation for incorporating realistic temperature distribution in the evaluation of longitudinally continuous slab tracks' performance.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1110016824011979Longitudinally continuous slab trackFinite element modelTemperature distributionStructural damageTemperature gradient
spellingShingle Yang Li
Kailin Cao
Jinjie Chen
Haiyan Li
Zhihao Yang
Guocui Wang
Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
Alexandria Engineering Journal
Longitudinally continuous slab track
Finite element model
Temperature distribution
Structural damage
Temperature gradient
title Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
title_full Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
title_fullStr Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
title_full_unstemmed Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
title_short Damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
title_sort damage evolution of slab tracks with complex temperature distribution
topic Longitudinally continuous slab track
Finite element model
Temperature distribution
Structural damage
Temperature gradient
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1110016824011979
work_keys_str_mv AT yangli damageevolutionofslabtrackswithcomplextemperaturedistribution
AT kailincao damageevolutionofslabtrackswithcomplextemperaturedistribution
AT jinjiechen damageevolutionofslabtrackswithcomplextemperaturedistribution
AT haiyanli damageevolutionofslabtrackswithcomplextemperaturedistribution
AT zhihaoyang damageevolutionofslabtrackswithcomplextemperaturedistribution
AT guocuiwang damageevolutionofslabtrackswithcomplextemperaturedistribution