Results in Engineering (Sep 2024)
Prediction of icicles on lining surface in high-speed railway tunnel in severe cold region based on the characteristics of daily temperature fluctuation
Abstract
：Icicles in high-speed railway tunnels in cold regions pose a serious threat to operational safety. Tunnels with long lengths and large sizes require manual inspection, generating considerable work and expense for operation management. To reduce the workload of icicle inspection and guide manual deicing, a growth and development model of tunnel icicles was developed based on a tunnel icicle simulation system, and a tunnel lining icicle prediction and warning system was established, that provides guidance for deicing by predicting the range and development degree of tunnel icicles. The icicle simulation test shows that there is an obvious division of icing and non-icing area in the tunnel, and the boundary of the division is −5 °C. There is an optimum temperature range for the growth and development of icicle in tunnels. Under daily temperature fluctuations, the icicles grow back after being removed. A model for degree of icicle development was established. The degree of icicle development is affected by leakage flow, daily fluctuation amplitude of temperature, and daily average temperature. The smaller the daily temperature fluctuation and the closer the daily average temperature to the optimum temperature for icicle growth, the better the development of icicle. Based on the icicle development model, a prediction and warning method for icicles in tunnel was developed. Based on the network of instruments measuring and reporting temperature, the real-time temperature distribution of the tunnel was obtained, combined with the leakage distribution and volume in the tunnel, the icicles section and the icicles severity of the tunnel were obtained by analyzing the icicle growth model embedded in the system, providing guidance for the inspection of icicles in the tunnel. A comparison shows that the icicle prediction and warning system can reduce the walking inspection workloads by half.
