Full-scale multi-functional test platform for investigating mechanical performance of track–subgrade systems of high-speed railways

Motivated by the huge practical engineering demand for the fundamental understanding of mechanical characteristics of high-speed railway infrastructure,a fullscale multi-functional test platform for high-speed railway track–subgrade system is developed in this paper,and its main functions for investigating the mechanical performance of track–subgrade systems are elaborated with three typical experimental examples.Comprising the full-scale subgrade structure and all the five types of track structures adopted in Chinese high-speed railways,namely the CRTS I,the CRTS II and the CRTS III ballastless tracks,the double-block ballastless track and the ballasted track,the test platform is established strictly according to the construction standard of Chinese high-speed railways.Three kinds of effective loading methods are employed,including the real bogie loading,multi-point loading and the impact loading.Various types of sensors are adopted in different components of the five types of track–subgrade systems to measure the displacement,acceleration,pressure,structural strain and deformation,etc.Utilizing this test platform,both dynamic characteristics and long-term performance evolution of high-speed railway track–subgrade systems can be investigated,being able to satisfy the actual demand for large-scale operation of Chinese high-speed railways.As examples,three typical experimental studies are presented to elucidate the comprehensive functionalities of the full-scale multi-functional test platform for exploring the dynamic performance and its long-term evolution of ballastless track systems and for studying the long-term accumulative settlement of the ballasted track–subgrade system in high-speed railways.Some interesting phenomena and meaningful results are captured by the developed test platform,which provide a useful guidance for the scientific operation and maintenance of high-speed railway infrastructure.

Stiffness Degradation Modeling for Composite Wind Turbine Blades Based on Full-Scale Fatigue Testing

In order to provide more insights into the damage propagation composite wind turbine blades(blade)under cyclic fatigue loading,a stiffness degradation model for blade is proposed based on the full-scale fatigue testing of a blade.A novel non-linear fatigue damage accumulation model is proposed using the damage assessment theories of composite laminates for the first time.Then,a stiffness degradation model is established based on the correlation of fatigue damage and residual stiffness of the composite laminates.Finally,a stiffness degradation model for the blade is presented based on the full-scale fatigue testing.The scientific rationale of the proposed stiffness model of blade is verified by using full-scale fatigue test data of blade with a total length of 52.5 m.The results indicate that the proposed stiffness degradation model of the blade agrees well with the fatigue testing results of this blade.This work provides a basis for evaluating the fatigue damage and lifetime of blade under cyclic fatigue loading.

Experimental and analytical study on design performance of full-scale viscoelastic dampers

Viscoelastic（VE） dampers, with their stiffness and energy dissipation capabilities, have been widely used in civil engineering for mitigating wind-induced vibration and seismic responses of structures, thus enhancing the comfort of residents and serviceability of equipment inside. In past relevant research, most analytical models for characterizing the mechanical behavior of VE dampers were verified by comparing their predictions with performance test results from small-scale specimens, which might not adequately or conservatively represent the actual behavior of full-scale dampers, especially with regard to the ambient temperature, temperature rise, and heat convection effects. Thus, in this study, by using a high-performance testing facility with a temperature control system, full-scale VE dampers were dynamically tested with different displacement amplitudes, excitation frequencies, and ambient temperatures. By comparing the analytical predictions with the experimental results, it is demonstrated that adopting the fractional derivative method together with considering the effects of excitation frequencies, ambient temperatures, temperature rises, softening, and hardening, can reproduce the design performance of full-scale VE dampers very well.

Mechanical performances of shield tunnel segments under asymmetric unloading induced by pit excavation

To explore the stress and deformation responses,as well as the failure characteristics of the shield tunnel segment of Hangzhou Metro under the influences of pit excavation and other surrounding projects,a self-developed“shield tunnel segment hydraulic loading system”was used to carry out full-scale loading tests on the three-ring staggered assembled segments.The structural performances and failure process of the tunnel segment under step-by-step asymmetric unloading were studied.A safety index was proposed to describe the bearing capacity of the segment.Next,a finite element model(FEM)was established to analyze the bearing capacity of segment using the test results.Finally,the effect of reinforcement with a steel plate on the deformation and bearing capacity of the segment was analyzed.The results showed that under asymmetric unloading,the peak value and amplitude of the bending moment on the near unloading side converged with a greater value than those on the far side.The concrete internal force exhibited a directional transformation at different load stages.Cracks first appeared at the 180inner arc surface of the bottom standard block and then expanded to both sides,while the rate of crack propagation of the outer arc surface was relatively lower.The bearing capacity of the segments can be evaluated by the combination of the factors,e.g.the residual bearing capacity coefficient,moment transfer coefficient,and characterization coefficient.The segments approaching failure can facilitate the increase in the residual bearing capacity coefficient by more than 50%.This can provide guidance for the service assessment of metro tunnel operations.

An Advanced Control Strategy for Dual-Actuator Driving System in Full-Scale Fatigue Test of Wind Turbine Blades

A new dual-actuator fatigue loading system of wind turbine blades was designed.Compared with the traditional pendulum loading mode,the masses in this system only moved linearly along the loading direction to increase the exciting force.However,the two actuators and the blade constituted a complicated non-linear energy transferring system,which led to the non-synchronization of actuators.On-site test results showed that the virtual spindle synchronous strategy commonly used in synchronous control was undesirable and caused the instability of the blade’s amplitude eventually.A cross-coupled control strategy based on the active disturbance rejection algorithm was proposed.Firstly,a control system model was built according to the synchronization error and tracking error.Furthermore,based on arranging the transition process,estimating the system state and error feedback,and compensating disturbance,an active disturbance rejection controller was designed by adopting the optimal control function.Finally,on-site test results showed that the cross-coupled control strategy based on the active disturbance rejection algorithm could ensure the synchronization of two actuators.The maximum speed synchronization error of the two motors was less than 16 RPM,the displacement synchronization error of the two actuators was less than 0.25 mm and approaching zero after 4 seconds,and the peak value of vibration of the blade was less than 5 mm,which satisfied the fatigue test requirement.

High-frequency interference waves in low strain dynamic testing of X-section concrete piles

Stress waves propagate along vertical,radial and circumferential directions when a non-uniformly distributed load is applied at one end of a three-dimensional shaft.As a result,the receiving signals are usually mixed with undesired interference components,often featuring as high-frequency fluctuations.Previous studies have revealed that sectional geometry(shape and size)greatly affects the high-frequency interference.In this study,low strain dynamic testing on full-scale X-section concrete is conducted in order to investigate the influences of high-frequency interference on velocity responses at the pile head.Emphasis is placed on the frequency and peak value of interference waves at various receiving points.Additionally,the effects of the geometrical,and mechanical properties of the pile shaft on high-frequency interference are elaborated on through the three-dimensional finite element method.The results show that the measured wave is obscured by interference waves superposed by two types of high-frequency components.The modulus and cross-sectional area are contributing factors to the frequency and peak value of the interference waves.On the other hand,the position with the least interference is determined,to some extent,by the accurate shape of the X-section.

Image-Aided Analysis of Ballast Particle Movement Along a High-Speed Railway

As a core infrastructure of high-speed railways,ballast layers constituted by graded crushed stones feature noteworthy particle movement compared with normal railways,which may cause excessive settlement and have detrimental effects on train operation.However,the movement behavior remains ambiguous due to a lack of effective measurement approaches and analytical methods.In this study,an image-aided technique was developed in a full-scale model test using digital cameras and a colorbased identification approach.A total of 1274 surface ballast particles were manually dyed by discernible colors to serve as tracers in the test.The movements of the surface ballast particles were tracked using the varied pixels displaying tracers in the photos that were intermittently taken during the test in the perpendicular direction.The movement behavior of ballast particles under different combinations of train speeds and axle loads was quantitatively evaluated.The obtained results indicated that the surface ballast particle movements were slight,mainly concentrated near sleepers under low-speed train loads and greatly amplified and extended to the whole surface when the train speed reached 360 km.h-1.Additionally,the development of ballast particle displacement statistically resembled its rotation.Track vibration contributed to the movements of ballast particles,which specifically were driven by vertical acceleration near the track center and horizontal acceleration at the track edge.Furthermore,the development trends of ballast particle movements and track settlement under long-term train loading were similar,and both stabilized at nearly the same time.The track performance,including the vibration characteristics,accumulated settlement,and sleeper support stiffness,was determined to be closely related to the direction and distribution of ballast particle flow,which partly deteriorated under high-speed train loads.

Lifetime Prediction of Wind Turbine Blade Based on Full-Scale Fatigue Testing

In order to predict the lifetime of products appropriately with long lifetime and high reliability,the accelerated degradation testing(ADT)has been proposed.Composite wind turbine blade is one of the most important components in wind turbine system.Its fatigue cycle is very long in practice.A full-scale fatigue testing is usually used to verify the design of a new blade.In general,the full-scale fatigue testing of blade is accelerated on the basis of the damage equivalent principle.During the full-scale fatigue test ing,blade is subjected to higher testing load than normal operat ing conditions;consequently,the performance degradation of the blade is hastened over time.The full-scale fatigue testing of blade is regarded as a special ADT.According to the fatigue failure criterion,we choose blade stiffness as the characteristic quantity of the blade performance,and propose an accelerated model(AM)for blade on the basis of the theories of ADT.Then,degradation path of the blade stiffness is modeled by using Gamma process.Finally,the lifet ime prediction of full-scale megawatt(MW)blade is conducted by combining the proposed AM and blade stiffness degradation model.The prediction results prove the reasonability and validity of this study.This can supply a new approach to predict the lifetime of the full-scale MW blade.

Novel sensing techniques for full-scale testing of civil structures

Performing full-scale structural testing is an important methodology for researchers and engineers in the civil engineering industry.Full scale testing helps the researchers understand civil infrastructures'loading scenarios,behaviors,and health conditions.It helps the engineers verify,polish,and simplify the structural design and analysis theories.To conduct a full-scale structural testing,sensors are used for data acquisitions.To help structural researchers and engineers get familiar with sensing technologies and select the most effective sensors,this study reviewed and categorized new sensing techniques for full-scale structural testing applications.The researchers of this study categorized sensors used for civil-infrastructure testing into traditional contact sensors and remote sensors based upon their application methodologies,and into cabled sensors and wireless sensors based upon their data communication strategies.The detailed descriptions of wireless sensors and remote sensing techniques and their on-site full-scale applications are presented.

特殊螺纹接头双主密封结构密封性能分析

针对油气井日益苛刻的环境,基于特殊螺纹密封机制,提出一种由锥面对锥面和柱面对球面组合的双主密封螺纹接头结构。采用有限元法对比分析双主密封、锥面对锥面密封、柱面对球面密封3种主密封结构在上扣、拉伸、压缩、拉伸和内压、拉伸和内外压5种工况下,密封面接触应力、接触长度的变化情况,得到3种主密封结构的密封能力随载荷的变化规律。分析结果表明,与单主密封接头相比,该双主密封接头在不同载荷下锥面和柱面上的接触应力分布更均匀,接触长度更长且接触应力峰值更小。全尺寸试验结果表明,该双主密封接头的密封性能达到了使用要求。

Dynamic behavior of new cutting subgrade structure of expensive soil under train loads coupling with service environment

Expansive soil is sensitive to dry and wet environment change. And the volume deformation and inflation pressure of expansive soil may induce to cause the deformation failure of roadbed or many other adverse effects. Aimed at a high-speed railway engineering practice in the newly built Yun-Gui high-speed railway expansive soil section in China, indoor vibration test on a full-scaled new cutting subgrade model is carried out. Based on the established track-subgrade-foundation of expansive soil system dynamic model test platform, dynamic behavior of new cutting subgrade structure under train loads coupling with extreme service environment(dry, raining, and groundwater level rising) is analyzed comparatively. The results show that the subgrade dynamic response is significantly influenced by service conditions and the dynamic response of subgrade gradually becomes stable with the increasing vibration times under various service environment conditions. The vertical dynamic soil stress is related with the depth in an approximate exponential function, and the curves of vertical dynamic soil stress present a "Z" shape distribution along transverse distance. The peak value of dynamic soil stress appears below the rail, and it increases more obviously near the roadbed surface. However, the peak value of dynamic soil stress is little affected outside 5.0 m of center line. The vibration velocity and acceleration are in a quadratic curve with an increase in depth, and the raining and groundwater level rising increase both the vibration velocity and the acceleration. The vertical deformations at different depths are differently affected by service environment in roadbed. The deformation of roadbed increases sharply when the water gets in the foundation of expansive soil, and more than 60% of the total deformation of roadbed occurs in expansive soil foundation. The laid waterproofing and drainage structure layer, which weakens the dynamic stress and improves the track regularity, presents a positive effect on the control deformation of roadbed surface. An improved empirical formula is then proposed to predict the dynamic stress of ballasted tracks subgrade of expansive soil.

Experimental study on the temperature evolution in the railway brake disc

Increasing operating speed of modern passenger railway vehicles leads to higher thermal load onthe braking system. Organic composite brake pads are poor thermal conductors, hence frictionalheat is absorbed mainly by the disc. In this study three brake pad types were tested on thedynamometer. Metallic fibres, steel and copper, were introduced to the formulation of twomaterials. The third was a non-metallic material - a reference case. Dynamometer test comprisedemergency brake applications to determine the frictional characteristics of the materials andconstant-power drag braking to analyse the effect of metal fibres on temperature evolution,measured by six thermocouples embedded in the brake disc. Mean friction coefficient is analysedand discussed. It is concluded that conductive fibre in the friction material formulation mayinfluence its tribological characteristics. Despite high thermal conductivity, metal fibres in theconcentration tested in this study, did not reduce temperature of the brake disc.

基于数值仿真的全箭动特性获取技术

and then in the absence of test data to establish the dynamic model.The issue was,how to accurately obtain the mode data of LM-8 with numerical simulations which directly affects the control reliability of flight.In this paper,various approaches to obtain the dynamic characteristics of LM-8 are described from the perspective of refined dynamic modeling and simulating,mode slope prediction,vertical modal test,etc.The numerical simulations were found to be in good agreement with the experimental data,and satisfied the requirements for the engineering application,which effectively supported the successful maiden flight mission of LM-8.

STRENGTH DESIGN OF PREMIUM THREADED CASING CONNECTION

Using premium casing connections instead of API ones is one of the mosteffective technique to prevent casing failure. The factors contribute to the strength of premiumcasing connections are studied with FEA and full-scale test. The criterions are presented thatensure the connection's strength higher than the pipe. At the same time, the method is given todecrease the peak stress of the connection so as to improve its anticorruption property. At last,full-scale tests are done to test the strength of the connections designed with the methoddescribed, the results show that the connection's strength is higher than the pipe. This indicatedthat the method described is effective in designing premium casing connection.

Horizontal Fire Spread in a Contemporary Apartment Based on a Real Fire

The apartment fire tests comprise a set of two full-scale fire experiments in a dwelling building made from pre-fabricated concrete elements in April 2013. Two apartments were nearly identically furnished and fully instrumented with thermocouples, video cameras and gas extraction probes. The apartments were ignited successively whereupon the fire in the second apartment developed freely to post-flashover conditions and got the main focus in this report. The apartment was completely furnished with contemporary furniture and objects, and had an average fire load density for residential occupancy. A full description of the fire load, ventilation conditions and instrumentation are provided. The focus of this report is primarily to obtain conclusions on the horizontal spread of smoke throughout the apartment during the fire growth period. Velocities of smoke spreading were measured to be in the range below 0.05 m/s which means that the smoke migrated over the longest distance throughout the apartment for about 3 to 4 minutes while the flame did not leave the initial fire room. The main aim of the experiments was to collect a comprehensive set of data from a realistic and contemporary fire scenario to validate numerical simulations.

Experimental and numerical investigation of the flexural performance of channel steel-bolt joint for prefabricated subway stations

Flexural performance of joints is critical for prefabricated structures.This study presents a novel channel steel-bolt(CB)joint for prefabricated subway stations.Full-scale tests are carried out to investigate the flexural behavior of the CB joint under the design loads of the test-case station.In addition,a three dimensional(3D)finite element(FE)model of the CB joint is established,incorporating viscous contact to simulate the bonding and detachment behaviors of the interface between channel steel and concrete.Based on the 3D FE model,the study examines the flexural bearing mechanism and influencing factors for the flexural performance of the CB joint.The results indicate that the flexural behavior of the CB joint exhibits significant nonlinear characteristics,which can be divided into four stages.To illustrate the piecewise linearity of the bending moment-rotational angle curve,a four-stage simplified model is proposed,which is easily applicable in engineering practice.The study reveals that axial force can enhance the flexural capacity of the CB joint,while the preload of the bolt has a negligible effect.The flexural capacity of the CB joint is approximate twice the value of the designed bending moment,demonstrating that the joint is suitable for the test-case station.

Faulty Feeder Identification in Resonant Grounding Distribution Networks Based on Deep Learning and Transfer Learning

Identification of faulty feeders in resonant grounding distribution networks remains a significant challenge dueto the weak fault current and complicated working conditions.In this paper, we present a deep learning-based multi-labelclassification framework to reliably distinguish the faulty feeder.Three different neural networks (NNs) including the multilayerperceptron, one-dimensional convolutional neural network (1DCNN), and 2D CNN are built. However, the labeled data maybe difficult to obtain in the actual environment. We use thesimplified simulation model based on a full-scale test field (FSTF)to obtain sufficient labeled source data. Being different frommost learning-based methods, assuming that the distribution ofsource domain and target domain is identical, we propose asamples-based transfer learning method to improve the domainadaptation by using samples in the source domain with properweights. The TrAdaBoost algorithm is adopted to update theweights of each sample. The recorded data obtained in the FSTFare utilized to test the domain adaptability. According to ourvalidation and testing, the validation accuracies are high whenthere is sufficient labeled data for training the proposed NNs.The proposed 2D CNN has the best domain adaptability. TheTrAdaBoost algorithm can help the NNs to train an efficientclassifier that has better domain adaptation. It has been thereforeconcluded that the proposed method, especially the 2D CNN, issuitable for actual distribution networks.

A destructive field study on the behavior of piles under tension and compression

This paper involves a series of destructive full-scale load tests on long bored piles instrumented with strain gauges along the shafts,including two compression and two tension loading tests.The load-displacement response,axial force,skin friction,and the thresholds of the slip displacement for fully mobilizing the skin resistances in different soils are discussed.Moreover,the theoretical solution for estimating the pile tip settlement under compression was adopted to analyze the test results.It was found that the measured skin frictions for the piles under compression were about 6% to 42% higher than the estimated values of the cone penetration tests(CPTs),whereas the measured skin frictions in the uplift cases were about 16% to 50% smaller than the estimated values.In addition,the average limited skin frictions for the tension piles were about 0.36 to 0.78 times the average ultimate skin frictions for the piles under compression.It also can be indicated that the skin friction along the pile depth approached the limited state,and decreased from a peak value with increasing loads.

Numerical analysis of tunnel segments strengthened by steel-concrete composites

In order to study the feasibility of strengthening of segmental tunnel linings by using steel-concrete composites(SCC),a three-dimensional(3D)finite element(FE)model is proposed in this paper.The nonlinear mechanical behavior of concrete is described by a plastic-damage model.The nonlinearity,resulting from the interface of the SCC and reinforced concrete(RC)segments,is simulated with the help of a system of springs.The analysis results are compared with those obtained from a full-scale test of a tunnel segment.Their agreement validates the usefulness of the 3D FE model.Numerical re-analysis of the test shows that the interfacial connectors govern both the strengthening effect of SCC and the failure pattern of the strengthened segments.Thus,the force-transmitting capacity of the interfacial connectors should be concerned in design activities.As regards the circular segments,the interfacial connectors refer to both the shearing and the stripping connectors.The composite effect of the SCC and RC segments increases with the increasing number of these connectors.The latter,therefore,results in the increases of the bearing capacities and stiffnesses of the strengthened segments.Those increases become insignificant as the number of these connectors is sufficient to ensure a perfect composite effect of the SCC and RC segments.In addition,the numerical simulations show that using high-performance steel shell(HPS)or/and ultra-high-performance concrete(UHPC)is an effective way to increase the strengthening effect of SCCs.