Abstract
This works focuses on a series of experimental tests carried out to investigate overpressures in tunnels due to train crossings. Although the above-mentioned topic is well known and also defined in European standards, in the literature full-scale data are lacking, which are useful to validate the numerical codes required in the certification process and are used in train structural dimensioning. In this respect, an extensive full-scale experimental campaign was planned for observing as many test conditions as possible, such as single passages of different trains, two train crossing, different tests speed, and different tunnel characteristics. In detail, the understanding of the pressure wave generation and transmission is deeply enhanced by studying the pressure evolution both on board and at trackside, considering both single train passages or two trains crossings and having the possibility to compare aerodynamic loads on sealed and unsealed trains. Furthermore, the position of sensors, the speed of the train, and the initial conditions within the tunnel have been proven to be fundamental parameters for properly estimating the pressure loads on trains.
Highlights
In the last 40 years, railway transportation has changed considerably mainly thanks to the development of High-Speed (HS) lines and trains
Despite the fact that phenomenon of overpressures in tunnel is well defined in the European standards, as well as the test procedures required to certify a new train, some aspects need further investigation, as will be shown by experimental data presented in this work
The effect of the interaction between the pressure field that surrounds a running train and the air in a tunnel is the generation of pressure waves that propagate along the tunnel at sonic speed
Summary
In the last 40 years, railway transportation has changed considerably mainly thanks to the development of High-Speed (HS) lines and trains. Despite the fact that phenomenon of overpressures in tunnel is well defined in the European standards, as well as the test procedures required to certify a new train, some aspects need further investigation, as will be shown by experimental data presented in this work. Probably due to both organizational difficulties and high costs of full-scale tests, there is still a lack in the literature of full-scale data (some examples are reported in [18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25,26]) necessary to validate numerical codes that are required in the certification process and are used in train structural dimensioning In this respect, after investigating the effects of various parameters on the measured pressure, a one-dimensional (1-D). The research gave the opportunity to compare different physical phenomena producing aerodynamic loads on sealed and unsealed trains, increasing the understanding of the pressure wave generation and transmission
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