ABSTRACT
I. The Railway Track as a Dynamic System ...................................................................... 144
A. The Track and Its Components................................................................................ 144
B. Rails.......................................................................................................................... 145
C. Railpads .................................................................................................................... 145
D. Sleepers (or Crossties) ............................................................................................. 146
E. Ballast....................................................................................................................... 146
F. Subballast ................................................................................................................. 146
G. Geotextiles................................................................................................................ 146
H. Subgrade................................................................................................................... 146
II. Function of the Track....................................................................................................... 147
A. To Guide the Train................................................................................................... 147
B. To Carry the Load.................................................................................................... 147
III. Dynamic Properties of the Track..................................................................................... 147
A. Nonlinear Track ....................................................................................................... 149
B. Train Moving on Track-Excitation Sources of Train and Track Vibrations ........ 150
C. Excitation Frequencies............................................................................................. 151
D. Railhead Corrugation (Short Wavelength Periodic Irregularities) ......................... 151
1. Classification of Railhead Irregularities ........................................................... 152
2. Consequences of Rail Corrugation ................................................................... 152
3. Origin of Rail Corrugation................................................................................ 152
E. Long Wavelength Irregularities ............................................................................... 154
1. Sleeper Spacing ................................................................................................. 154
2. Wheel Out-of-Roundness .................................................................................. 154
3. Rail Manufacturing ........................................................................................... 154
4. Track Stiffness Irregularities ............................................................................. 154
5. Track Embankment Settlements ....................................................................... 155
F. Impact Loads............................................................................................................ 157
1. Wheel Flats........................................................................................................ 157
2. Measurements with Wheelset Having Wheel Flats.......................................... 157
3. Rail Joints .......................................................................................................... 157
4. Switches............................................................................................................. 158
G. Mathematical Modelling of Track Dynamics ......................................................... 159
1. Beam (Rail) on Continuous Elastic Foundation (Winkler Beam) ................... 159
2. Vehicle-Bridge Interaction (Moving Mass on Simply
Supported Beam)............................................................................................... 160
3. Beam (Rail) on Discrete Supports .................................................................... 161
4. Discretely Supported Track Including Ballast Mass ........................................ 162
5. Rails on Sleepers Embedded in Continuum.
