Wheel/Track Dynamic Interaction: Track Substructure Perspective

SUMMARY There are two major issues discussed in this paper. The first is how the track substructure influences some parameters important to the analysis of dynamic wheel/track interaction. This includes the effects of track substructure on the track stiffness, on the track roughness, and on the dynamic wheel loads. The second is how the dynamic wheel loads affect the response and performance of the track substructure. This includes the effects of repeated loads on the ballast degradation, and on the plastic deformation of the ballast and subgrade. Some experimental and analytical results will be presented with regard to these two issues. Additionally, the role of a quasi-static model, GEOTRACK, is briefly discussed and compared with the roles of some dynamic wheel/track models.