Overturning stability of L-shaped rigid barriers subjected to rockfall impacts

Reinforced concrete barriers are commonly used as defence measures in hilly areas to contain falling boulders and landslide debris. These barriers are conventionally designed to satisfy the conditions of force and momentum equilibrium with a factor of safety. A major limitation of this approach is that the inertial resistance of the barrier is neglected such that the design could be over-conservative. This paper presents a novel displacement-based approach for the assessment of overturning stability of rigid L-shaped barriers subjected to rockfall impacts. Analytical solutions, which are derived based on conservation of momentum and energy, are used to take into account the contributions of the self-weight and, thus, the inertial resistance of the barrier in resisting an impact. The actual amount of energy transferred from the impacting boulder to the barrier is considered by including the coefficient of restitution between the two objects. The accuracy of the analytical solutions has been confirmed by laboratory impact experiments. Numerical assessments conducted using the new solutions indicate that a reasonably sized rigid barrier, due to its own inertial resistance, may adequately withstand the impact action of a heavy boulder rolling down a hillslope without relying on any anchorage to its support. A range of geometric design of the barriers with L-shaped cross sections also has been considered and analysed. The new approach presented in this paper is easy to apply in practice and will be useful for engineers designing concrete barriers as passive rockfall mitigation measures.     

Study on the snowdrift disaster influenced by w-beam barrier used in expressway北大核心CSCD

Snowdrift is one of the most typical snow disaster forms of road traffic in Xinjiang area. Its impact on road traffic is mainly reflected in reducing driving visibility and causing traffic interruption induced by a large amount of snow on the road surface. The snowdrift disaster along the road in Xinjiang area shows the characteristics as many points,long lines and wide spread occurring with uneven distribution in time and space. Snowdrift question involves wind field,snow distribution field,temperature field and humidity field coupling,which is a very complex scientific problem. At the same time,the prevention and control of snowdrift disasters is also a practical problem that needs to be solved urgently in the construction and operation of road traffic infrastructure in cold areas. For expressways in areas of frequent snowdrift occurring,its snowdrift disaster caused by the w-beam barrier is becoming more and more obviously. But there is still a lack of in-depth research on the w-beam barrier,which is one kind of auxiliary facilities of the highway deepening the snowdrift disaster. In view of the status mentioned above and in order to explore the causes and prevention methods to snowdrift disaster by w-beam barrier,on the background of Beijing-Urumqi Expressway（G7）engineering,the field model tests of the w-beam barrier,the cable barrier and the no barrier embankment were designed. The study also combined with numerical simulation and highway field investigation and other methods in order to verify each other. In the meantime,the influence of the w-beam barrier and cable barrier on the road snowdrift disaster of the highway is studied,and the distribution law of wind field and snow field on the embankment surface with w-beam barrier and cable barrier is obtained. The results show that the snowdrift velocity increases from the foot of the embankment on the upwind side till to the w-beam barrier installed at the shoulder of or the central divider of the road. Then it moves to the road surface through the gap in the lower part of the w-beam barrier. At this time the w-beam barrier disturbs the wind field near the ground,causing a weak wind area to appear behind the beam,resulting in a large number of snow particles deposited. Especially when the lower gap of the w-beam barrier is filled with snow,the road area behind the w-beam barrier covers the driving lane with snow,which seriously affects the road capacity. While the section without setting up a barrier or setting a cable barrier is conducive to the passage of snowdrift flow. Considering the uncertainty of future climate change,in order to better prevent the impact of snowdrift on traffic operation safety,it is proposed to replace the w-beam barrier in some areas with serious wind and snow disasters with cable barrier that meet the safety requirements of expressways. Moreover,other snowdrift protection measures such as snow fences,snow barriers and snow walls can also be adopted. The research results can provide useful reference for snow removal of the expressway and new expressway construction in the windy and snow areas of Xinjiang. © 2022 Science Press (China).     

Geophysical flows impacting a flexible barrier: effects of solid-fluid interaction

Flexible barriers undergo large deformation to extend the impact duration, and thereby reduce the impact load of geophysical flows. The performance of flexible barriers remains a crucial challenge because there currently lacks a comprehensive criterion for estimating impact load. In this study, a series of centrifuge tests were carried out to investigate different geophysical flow types impacting an instrumented flexible barrier. The geophysical flows modelled include covered in this study include flood, hyperconcentrated flow, debris flow, and dry debris avalanche. Results reveal that the relationship between the Froude number, Fr, and the pressure coefficient α strongly depends on the formation of static deposits called dead zones which induce static loads and whether a run-up or pile-up impact mechanism develops. Test results demonstrate that flexible barriers can attenuate peak impact loads of flood, hyperconcentrated flow, and debris flow by up to 50% compared to rigid barriers. Furthermore, flexible barriers attenuate the impact load of dry debris avalanche by enabling the dry debris to reach an active failure state through large deformation. Examination of the state of static debris deposits behind the barriers indicates that hyperconcentrated and debris flows are strongly influenced by whether excessive pore water pressures regulate the depositional process of particles during the impact process. This results in significant particle rearrangement and similar state of static debris behind rigid barrier and the deformed full-retention flexible barrier, and thus the static loads on both barriers converge.     

SAGD开发中突破夹层技术对策研究

开发实践表明,稠油油藏内部发育的夹层影响蒸汽辅助重力泄油(SAGD)开发效果。实际SAGD开发应当充分考虑夹层对SAGD生产效果的影响,寻找突破夹层的有效对策,以期提高SAGD产量。以国内某超稠油油藏地质特征为基础,结合夹层岩石力学参数测试结果,利用耦合岩石力学数值模拟技术确定了不同参数(岩石力学参数、物性参数、操作参数)对岩石变形量、SAGD产量的敏感性。研究结果表明,夹层的渗透率和SAGD注汽压力是影响SAGD产量的主要因素。进一步地,针对夹层特征,结合实际操作可行性,提出了提高注汽压力和直井辅助两种突破夹层技术对策,并给出了相应的技术界限及突破效果,该研究结果可用于指导稠油油藏双水平井SAGD经济高效开发     

Velocity attenuation of debris flows and a new momentum-based load model for rigid barriers

Effective design of mitigation measures against debris flow hazards remains a challenging geotechnical problem. At present, a pseudo-static approach is commonly used for the calculation of impact load acting on a rigid debris-resisting barrier. The impact load is normally calculated based on the maximum velocity observed in the transportation zone under free-field conditions without considering debris-barrier interaction. In reality, the impact load acting on a barrier varies with the change of debris momentum flux but this is seldom considered in barrier design. To provide a scientific basis for assessing debris momentum flux during impact, this paper presents results from a study of debris-barrier interaction using physical flume modelling. This study showed that, following the first stage of impact, the accumulated debris behind a barrier formed a stationary zone and caused the remaining debris to slow down in a run-up process. In the experiments, the peak debris momentum was 30 % lower compared to that observed under free-field conditions. A new momentum-based model was developed to take into account attenuation of momentum flux for predicting debris impact load on rigid barriers. The new rationalised model was assessed using data from the notable Yu Tung Road debris flow in Hong Kong. The assessment showed that the design bending moment at the base of the barrier wall could be reduced more than 30 % using the proposed model, compared with the current design approach. The adoption of the proposed model could offer a new opportunity for practitioners to optimise the design of rigid barriers.     

宝兴县两河口山体崩塌应急治理方案设计

“4.20”四川芦山地震诱发了大量次生地质灾害,导致宝兴县两河口崩塌危岩体发育,威胁进出地震灾区的生命线工程省道S210,威胁周边企事业单位及居民人数超过500人,严重影响了抗震救灾和灾后的恢复重建。在充分考虑治理区自然情况的基础上,采取预应力锚索锚杆支护,桩板拦石墙与钢轨障桩联合治理,解除了在暴雨作用下,治理区危岩体顶部、崩坡积层和下部坡面上存在的危石灾害,解决了被动网立柱抗弯能力较弱的问题,形成障桩起保护作用。为宝兴县灾后重建赢得了时间。     

Dynamic response of flexible rockfall barriers under different loading geometries

Flexible steel barriers are commonly constructed on steep hillsides to mitigate rockfall. The evaluation of the dynamic response of proprietary flexible barriers is conventionally performed using full-scale field tests by dropping a weight onto the barriers in accordance with the European test standard ETAG 27. The weight typically has a spherical or polyhedral shape and cannot reproduce more complex rockfall scenarios encountered in the field. A rigid slab may load a barrier over a larger area and its effect has not been investigated. In this study, a calibrated three-dimensional finite-element model was developed to study the performance of vertically and horizontally orientated rockfall barriers under concentrated areal impact loads. A new bilinear force-displacement model was incorporated into the model to simulate the behavior of the energy-dissipating devices on the barriers. The effect of different weight geometries was studied by considering impacts by a rigid single spherical boulder and a rigid slab. Results reveal that areal loading induced by a rigid slab increases the loading on the barrier foundation by up to 40 % in both horizontally and vertically positioned barriers when compared to a concentrated load scenario with a single boulder. This indicates that barriers tested under the current test standard does not give the worst-case scenario in terms of foundation loads, and barrier designers should take into account the possible effect of increased foundation loads by reinforcing the barrier posts and/or increasing their spacing.     

Large-scale physical modeling study on the interaction between rockfall and flexible barrier

Flexible barriers have been widely applied in rockfall mitigation in recent years. However, the behavior of flexible barriers under the impact of boulders is still not fully understood. To investigate the interaction between a flexible barrier and a falling boulder, a large-scale physical modeling device has been constructed at a site in Hong Kong. Using this device, large-scale impact tests using boulders with different diameters were conducted. Test results are presented and analyzed in this paper. The motion of the boulder during impact is traced and analyzed. The impact forces on the flexible ring net and the supporting structures are measured and compared. From the comparison, the impact reduction rates (IRR) of boulders with different diameters are calculated. Moreover, a simple approach for estimating the impact loading of a boulder on a flexible barrier is proposed in this study. This approach is calibrated and verified using measured impact forces in the tests.     

基于崩塌滚石运动特征的防护网动态响应规律

为获取被动柔性防护网在不同崩塌滚石运动特征下的动态响应规律,以鲁甸803地震震后崩塌滚石造成防护网损坏现场为例,通过无人机倾斜摄影技术实现地质调查,采用Rockyfor3D获取研究区落石的运动特征,并通过被动柔性防护网有限元模型,对不同落石冲击形式下防护网的动态响应规律进行研究.研究显示区内落石弹跳高度普遍在1~2 m,优势路径上的落石会形成稍高速低弹跳的范围冲击.在范围落石冲击下,防护网绳索最大拉力增加可达123.7%;在低弹跳落石冲击下,绳索最大拉力增加可达181.2%.范围落石冲击会导致防护网网面耗能的降低,并导致上拉锚绳拉力的增大.防护网下一级支撑绳对不同落石弹跳高度的响应较为敏感,部分高弹跳落石会对上拉锚绳和上一级支撑绳产生影响.      

New impact equation using barrier Froude number for the design of dual rigid barriers against debris flows

Landslides - In the design of multiple rigid barriers, the height of the first barrier governs the impact dynamics of debris flow on the next barrier in a channel. However, current design...     

土工织物加固软土路堤的有限元分析

采用有限元方法对土工织物加固软弱地基路堤的力学机理进行了研究.通过比较路基加筋和未加筋两种情况研究了土工织物的加固机理,结果表明土工织物对于提高路堤填筑高度、减少路堤侧向位移、均化路堤沉降以及加速超孔隙水压力消散有显著的效果.加筋路堤中土工织物的轴力受填筑高度、超孔压消散速度和接触面系数等因素的影响,路堤填筑高度和施工进度的控制有利于土工织物抗拉强度的发挥.对路堤安全系数的研究分析表明传统的极限平衡法验算路堤稳定性偏于保守,采用有限元方法能较好地反映土工织物的加筋作用,可以优化工程设计.     

Perforation of Flexible Rockfall Barriers by Normal Block Impact

Flexible rockfall barriers are a common form of protection against falling blocks of rock and rock fragments (rockfall). These barriers consist of a system of cables, posts, and a mesh, and their capacity is typically quantified in terms of the threshold of impact (kinetic) energy at which the barrier fails. This threshold, referred to here as the “critical energy,” is often regarded as a constant. However, several studies have pointed out that there is no single representative value of critical energy for a given barrier. Instead, the critical energy decreases as the block size decreases, a phenomenon referred to as the “bullet effect.” In this paper, we present a simple analytical model for determining the critical energy of a flexible barrier. The model considers a block that impacts normally and centrally on the wire mesh, and rather than incorporate the structural details of the cables and posts explicitly, the supporting elements are replaced by springs of representative stiffness. The analysis reveals the dependence of the critical energy on the block size, as well as other relevant variables, and it provides physical insight into the impact problem. For example, it is shown that bending of the wire mesh during impact reduces the axial force that can be sustained within the wires, thus reducing the energy that can be absorbed. The formulas derived in the paper are straightforward to use, and the analytical predictions compare favorably with data available in the literature.     

Evaluation and analysis of traffic noise along bus rapid transit system corridor

Due to increasing motorization, construction of flyovers and growth in transport network, the noise level has exceeded the prescribed limits in many Indian cities. The health implications of high noise levels are being identified as hypertension, sleeplessness, mental stress, etc. Due to this adverse effect of noise level, it is essential to assess the impact of traffic noise on residents and road users. This research is an effort to quantify and analyze the traffic noise emissions along bus rapid transit corridor in Delhi. Field measurements were carried out to understand and assess various aspects of the impact of bus rapid transit system corridor on land use and social lives of residents and road users. The present analysis presents the comparison between observed and predicted noise level at selected corridors and also describes the mitigatory measures to overcome such type of traffic noise pollution through design of noise barrier along the road and motivate people towards the use of public transport system.     

滑坡碎屑流冲击拦挡结构的离散元模拟

拦挡结构可以有效减小滑坡致灾范围、减弱致灾强度。文章以滑坡碎屑流为研究对象,通过对比模型试验和数值模拟结果,校正三维离散元模拟参数,进而研究不同坡脚角度和挡板高度对冲击力、最大水平运动距离的影响。研究结果表明:三个坡脚角度碎屑流冲击力的变化过程存在明显区别,坡脚角度为35°和45°时,冲击力时程曲线经历了两个显著的变化阶段:线性增大、线性减小。而坡脚角度为55°时,碎屑流冲击力时程曲线出现三个变化阶段:线性增加、恒力阶段、线性减小。挡板高度越高,恒力阶段的持续时间越短,冲击力线性减小阶段时间越长。小颗粒（2.5~10 mm）对挡板的冲击效应显著;中等颗粒（10~25 mm）随着挡板高度的增加,对挡板的冲击效应逐渐增大;而大颗粒（25~60 mm）作用在挡板上的冲击效应出现突变,与其他两种颗粒对比,整个运动过程冲击效应不显著。碎屑流的运程随着挡板高度的增加逐渐减小。对比三个坡脚角度下挡板的拦挡效果,坡脚角度α≤45°时,拦挡效果显著。     

Dynamic response of flexible rockfall barriers with different block shapes

Flexible rockfall barriers are commonly constructed on steep hillsides to mitigate rockfall. The evaluation of the dynamic response of proprietary flexible rockfall barriers is conventionally performed using full-scale field tests by dropping a block onto the barriers in accordance with the European test standard ETAG 027. The block typically has a spherical or polyhedral shape and cannot reproduce more complex rockfall scenarios encountered in the field. Little attention has been paid to the effects of the block shape on the impact force and structural response. This paper aims to quantitatively reveal the influence of the block shape on the dynamic response of flexible rockfall barriers. First, an ellipsoidal model is established to approximately simulate the block, and the sphericity is employed as the representative index of the block’s shape. A full-scale test on a typical flexible barrier system is carried out and then used to calibrate an advanced three-dimensional finite element model. Finally, the dynamic responses of flexible rockfall barriers are analyzed and discussed, focusing on the effects of the block’s shape. The numerical results show that the sphericity will obviously influence the maximum elongation of flexible barriers, the peak impact force, the peak force of the upslope anchor cable, the peak force of the lower main support cable, the axial peak force of the post, and the peak shear force at the post foundation. The assumption of spherical or polyhedral blocks in the test standard could lead to the defensive failure of flexible rockfall barriers in some impact scenarios.

     

Classification of paraglacial barrier systems: coastal New England, USA

The New England coast harbours a wide variety of barrier forms, which we organize into six barrier-coastline types. The barriers develop in response to the relative importance of several spatially and temporally variable parameters, particularly antecedent topography and geology, sediment abundance and size, exposure to wave and tidal energy and sea-level history. The six coastline types can also be identified in other paraglacial regions. Existing barrier-coastline classification schemes do not allow consistent subdivision of paraglacial barrier coasts. This paper presents a new scheme that is applicable to paraglacial and non-paraglacial barrier coasts alike. Aside from hydrodynamic regime, which forms the basis of the barrier classification most commonly used to date, it includes a compartmentalization factor. Sediment-starved ‘isolated’ (‘type 1’) barrier coastlines are characterized by short, widely spaced barriers. Small, localized updrift and offshore sources have provided sediment for short barriers along ‘clustered headland-separated’ (‘type 2’) barrier coastlines. Various amounts of sediment from larger updrift and offshore glaciofluvial deposits or directly from rivers have formed the longer barriers along ‘wave-dominated mainland-segmented’ (‘type 3a’), ‘mixed-energy mainland-segmented’ (‘type 3b’), ‘wave-dominated inlet-segmented’ (‘type 4a’) and ‘mixed-energy inlet-segmented’ (‘type 4b’) barrier coastlines. Geomorphic form, grain size and stratigraphy can be used to characterize individual barriers along barrier coastlines. Most paraglacial barriers form as spits, but many are transformed subsequently. Welded barriers are common along ‘type 1’ and ‘type 2’ coasts. Baymouth barriers are characteristic of ‘type 3’ coasts, and barrier islands occur exclusively along ‘type 4’ coasts. The coarsest grained barriers are located along ‘type 1’ and ‘type 2’ coasts. Progradational barrier sections are concentrated along ‘type 3’ and ‘type 4’ coasts with abundant sediment supply, but are also present along ‘type 2’ coasts. Temporary increases in sediment supply, common in paraglacial regions, result in transitions between retrogradational and progradational barrier behaviour, which may be recognized on shore-perpendicular stratigraphic cross-sections.     

Dynamical evolution properties of debris flows controlled by different mesh-sized flexible net barriers

Because the flexible net barrier is a gradually developed open-type debris-flow counter-measure, there are still uncertainties in its design criterion. By using several small-scale experimental flume model tests, the dynamical evolution properties of debris flows controlled by large and small mesh-sized (equal to D₉₀ and D₅₀, respectively) flexible net barriers are studied, including the debris flow behaviors, segregation, and permeability of sediments, as well as the energy absorption rates and potential overtopping occurring when debris flows impact the small mesh-sized one. Experimental results reveal that (a) two sediment deposition patterns are observed depending on variations in debris flow textures and mesh sizes; (b) the aggregation against flexible net barriers is dominated by flow dynamics; (c) the segregation and permeable functions of the barrier are determined by the mesh size, concentration, and flow dynamics; and (d) the smaller mesh-sized flexible net barrier tends to be more efficient in restraining more turbulent debris flows and can absorb greater rate of kinematic energy, and finally, the great kinematic energy dissipation that occurs when secondary debris flows interact with the post-deposits in front of the small mesh-sized flexible net barrier is believed to cause the failure of overtopping phenomenon. The mesh size is concluded to be the decisive parameter that should be associated with debris flow textures to design the control functions of flexible net barriers.     

环胶州湾高等级公路某特大桥桩基工程方案优选

同一地层条件下的建筑桩基设计及桩型选择的合理与否对单桩承载力水平的最大发挥有明显差异。在环胶洲湾高等级公路某特大桥桩基工程实践中,分析桩端持力层的岩性条件,对该大桥桩基在基岩地层中采用摩擦桩设计提出设计变更建议,当由摩擦桩改为蚨岩桩设计后,由于桩端地层端阻力发挥,设计的超长摩擦桩可大幅度减短。不仅节约工程造价,更由于减少了在硬岩地层中大直径超长桩施工的技术难度而缩短工程周期。特大桥梁建成通车多年运营安全稳定,实践证明桩基方案设计变更技术合理、经济、安全。     

A unified CFD‐DEM approach for modeling of debris flow impacts on flexible barriers

This paper presents a unified modeling framework to investigate the impacts of debris flow on flexible barriers, based on coupled computational fluid dynamics and discrete element method (CFD‐DEM). We consider a debris flow as a mixture of fluid and particles where the fluid and particle phases are modeled by the CFD and the DEM, respectively. The fluid‐particle coupling is considered by the exchange of interaction forces between CFD and DEM calculations. The flexible barrier is simulated by the DEM as a network of bonded particles with remote interactions. The proposed coupled CFD‐DEM approach enables us to conveniently handle the complicated three‐way interactions among the fluid, the particles, and the flexible barrier structure for debris flow impact simulations. The proposed approach is first used to investigate the influences of channel inclination and the volumetric solid fraction in a debris mixture on the impact force, the resultant deformation, and the retained mass in a flexible barrier. The predictions agree well with existing experimental and numerical studies. We further examine the possible failure modes of a flexible barrier under debris flow impact and their underlying mechanisms. The performance of different components in a flexible barrier system, including single wires, double twists and cables, and their load sharing mechanisms, are carefully evaluated. The proposed unified framework offers a novel, promising pathway towards physically based, quantitative analysis and design of flexible barriers for debris flow mitigation.     

Three-dimensional numerical modelling of falling rock protection barriers

This paper presents a new numerical strategy for the design and verification of flexible falling rock barriers: passive protection measures for risk mitigation of potentially unstable rock slopes. The key point of the proposed approach is that notwithstanding the complexity of the simulated phenomenon, the resulting highly non-linear, dynamic model is simple and produces an accurate prediction of all the relevant parameters for barrier design, such as anchorage forces, net panel elongations and residual heights.The modelling procedure has been assessed using detailed experimental data obtained from a set of full-scale tests on three barrier prototypes with various energy absorption capacities (5000 kJ, 3000 kJ and 500 kJ). By comparison with the experimental results, the numerical model has shown to be reliable in capturing very accurately the barrier response to a block impact. Consequently, this method can be extended to investigate the behaviour of flexible falling rock protection barriers under conditions different from those encountered in full-scale tests. Therefore, the numerical procedure can be regarded as an effective tool used for designing and testing these structures.