Three dimensional modeling of geocell using membrane elements by considering the actual curvature

Abstract

Railway Networks are popular world wide because of its ride quality and low cost. In order to meet the ever growing demand, the track operational efficiency has to be improved with minimal maintenance and infrastructure cost. By providing a three dimensional honey comb structure known as geocell on track substructure, the lateral deformation of the ballast and sub ballast can be effectively reduced and the overall stability is improved. The 3D modeling of geocell is complex as it involves interaction between geocell walls and the fill material inside. Different constitutive models were used for both geocell and infill material with suitable interaction properties. By using the membrane elements the hexagonal shape of geocell was simulated. In this paper, full 3-d finite element analyses were carried out using developed numerical model to study the lateral deflection of geocell reinforced subballast system. Also a comparison was made between 3D and 2D numerical models. © 2021 American Institute of Physics Inc.. All rights reserved.