Study on the noise radiation mechanism and distribution characteristics of the vehicle-steel bridge-noise barrier system

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With the rapid development of rail transit in China, elevated bridge lines have been widely adopted due to their high space utilization efficiency. However, the associated environmental noise issues have become increasingly prominent. Particularly in steel box girder bridges, the noise from the track system and the structure-borne noise from the bridge exhibit high similarity in both spectral characteristics and sound pressure levels, with comprehensive sound levels reaching 80–90 dB or above. This makes traditional single-method noise control strategies less effective. This paper focuses on the ‘Vehicle-steel bridge-noise barrier’ coupled system. Using an integrated approach of field tests, theoretical modelling, and numerical simulation, it systematically investigates the system’s noise radiation mechanisms, energy transfer paths, and spatial distribution characteristics. A vehicle-track-bridge coupled dynamics model and a statistical energy analysis (SEA) noise prediction model were established and validated. The results indicate that bridge structure-borne noise plays a dominant role in the overall noise emission, and the noise barrier provides significant insertion loss of 16–20 dB, particularly in the mid-to-high frequency range. The findings of this study can serve as a theoretical basis for noise prediction and the optimized design of noise barriers in rail transit steel bridge applications.