EFFECTS OF GEOCELL AND GEOGRID INCLUSION IN RAILWAY BALLAST STABILISATION

Geocells and geogrids are a potential alternative in providing reinforcement to the ballast and subballast, improving ballast stability and reducing stresses transmitted to the subgrade. In this study, a three-dimensional finite element (FE) model is developed within the explicit FE modelling framework using the FE program ABAQUS. The effects of geocell and geogrid reinforcement are studied over a range of practical conditions. A working train speed of 80 km/h was studied for N = 80,000 loading cycles where the train load varied according to a haversine load function with a frequency of 11 Hz (i.e., 11 cycles per second). Multibody contact was efficiently handled with realistic modelling of the rail, concrete sleepers and reinforcements. The model developed was validated against existing experimental results showing reasonable agreement. Further comparisons were performed with existing FE studies wherever possible. Models with and without reinforcement were studied to quantify the beneficial effect of the reinforcement.