Strengthening of CWR Track Stability by Utilising State-of-the-Art Track Bedding Optimisation Technologies

Severe vehicle-track dynamic responses with significant amplitude and high track displacement are evidenced being responsible for unwanted misalignment and buckling of the Continuous Welded Rails (CWR) track.In past 2 decades, multiple effective technologies were developed to strengthen track stiffness to mitigate severe vehicle-track dynamic responses, which include under sleeper pads (USP), elastomeric pads, and ballast glue for track stiffness optimization.In this study, these three technologies are investigated through a comparative analysis.The vehicle dynamics, track stability and interactions between vehicle and continuous welded rail (CWR) track are studied experimental and theoretically.The track stiffness is investigated analytically via developing an analytic mathematical model and its influences on vehicle dynamics are identified numerically by using finite element modelling and simulations.For comparison and validation, a series of in-field tests are conducted to assess the effectiveness of these technologies.The advantages and disadvantages of these three technologies are identified as main outcomes of this research.