Abstract

On railway lines, train passage results in the generation of vibration. This vibration initially occurs at the wheel-rail contact area, before propagating through the track structure, the supporting soil and into nearby buildings. From a numerical simulation viewpoint, it is challenging to model an unbounded domain, over a wide frequency range, spanning from the source to receiver. Therefore this talk presents a variety of numerical approaches that can be combined to investigate such problems. Firstly, the models are used to analyse the interaction between train and track, and the effect of train speed on track dynamics. In particular, the ‘critical speed’ phenomena is addressed which is becoming increasingly important for high-speed lines. Secondly, the models are used to investigate the propagation of vibration energy in the far-field where it may interact with nearby buildings. Some topics discussed include the development of fast-running scoping models and the effect of localised defects on far-field vibrations.