A Robust and Cost-Efficient Design of Lightweight Rockfall Catch Fences for Railways

Al-Budairi, H. and Gao, Z. (2016) A Robust and Cost-Efficient Design of Lightweight Rockfall Catch Fences for Railways. KTP Associates Conference, Coventry, UK, 26 May 2016. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

Trains and railway infrastructure are subjected to serious potential hazards from detached falling rock(s) in mountain regions worldwide. This can lead to severe damages, casualties and significant delays. In 2011, a rockfall event at Stromeferry bypass in Scotland caused 4 month railway closure that led to a negative impact on local businesses and the repair work cost was £3.2 million. Rock catch fences are widely used in protecting roads, railways and infrastructure from rockfall hazards. A typical design comprises of a high tensile strength wire mesh that is anchored to the ground by rigid posts and strengthened to the lateral and upslope sides by anchoring tension cables. These systems are categorised by the ability to dissipate the kinetic energy of falling rock(s). Due to the lack of a practical design code, these systems are designed primarily by experience and engineering judgement, which makes the design either dangerous or highly conservative. Indeed, engineers found that the current design tend to be highly conservative which makes the costs for materials and construction too high. There is an urgent need to improve the current design based on extensive experimental tests and advanced finite element modelling. This study presents the development of a lightweight rock catch fence design.

Item Type:Conference or Workshop Item
Status:Unpublished
Refereed:No
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Gao, Dr Zhiwei and Al-Budairi, Dr Hassan
Authors: Al-Budairi, H., and Gao, Z.
Subjects:T Technology > TA Engineering (General). Civil engineering (General)
T Technology > TF Railroad engineering and operation
T Technology > TJ Mechanical engineering and machinery
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Engineering > Infrastructure and Environment
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2016 The Authors

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