Bridge-Rail Interaction for Continuous Welded Rail on Cable-Stayed Bridge Due to Temperature Change

Abstract

Continuous welded rail (CWR) has been used in high-speed railways in China. The bridge-rail interaction caused by temperature change when CWR is paved on cable-stayed bridges is studied in this paper. A bridge-rail interaction model is first established using the finite element method. Based on the formulated model, the variation pattern of the force and displacement of rail and bridge-rail relative displacement due to temperature change is studied. The additional temperature forces experienced by stay cables and main towers are obtained, and the influence of the stiffness and temperature change of stay cables and main towers on the additional temperature force of rail is studied. Two simplified algorithms are proposed to facilitate the analysis of bridge-rail interaction. Results show that the distribution patterns of the additional temperature force and displacement of rail on the cable-stayed bridge are the same as those on a common bridge, and the forces experienced by stay cables and main towers are within the safety limit of bridge components. The stiffness variation of stay cables has more influence on the bridge-rail interaction than that of main towers. The distribution patterns of the forces and displacements obtained by the simplified algorithms are similar with those obtained by the FEM. The simplified algorithms can be used for the design of CWR laid on cable-stayed bridges.