Modelling Experimental Measurements of Fluid Flow through Railway Ballast

Abstract

The flooding of railway ballasts can cause extensive damage. This process has been the subject of several experimental investigations. In the present work, a relatively easy to implement approach to modelling this fluid flow is presented. It is shown that good agreement with the experimental results is obtained. The fluid flow is modelled by Darcy’s law, which we extend to the free fluid flowing above the ballast. The main complexity is in determining the free surface position, which is accomplished using an iterative procedure. The equations are solved using the finite element method. The method is illustrated by careful numerical calculations that are carefully compared with the experimental results reported in the literature. The method is then extended to realistic railway ballast, including the effects of ballast fouling. It is shown that when the flow begins to overtop the ballast, the free surface shifts to greatly increase the chance of ballast scouring.

Keywords

• railway ballast
• free surface
• Darcy’s law
• finite element method
• iterative algorithm