• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.80 no.5
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• pp.491-501
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• 2021

A difference in subgrade settlement between two rails of a track manifests as lateral differential subgrade settlement. This settlement causes unsteadiness in the motion of trains passing through the corresponding area. To illustrate the effect of lateral differential subgrade settlement on the dynamic response of a vehicle-track coupling system, a three-dimensional vehicle-track-subgrade coupling model was formulated by combining the vehicle-track dynamics theory and the finite element method. The wheel/rail force, car body acceleration, and derailment factor are chosen as evaluation indices of the system dynamic response. The effects of the amplitude and wavelength of lateral differential subgrade settlement as well as the driving speed of the vehicle are analyzed. The study reveals the following: The dynamic responses of the vehicle-track system generally increase linearly with the driving speed when the train passes through a lateral subgrade settlement area. The wheel/rail force acting on a rail with a large settlement exceeds that on a rail with a small settlement. The dynamic responses of the vehicle-track system increase with the amplitude of the lateral differential subgrade settlement. For a 250-km/h train speed, the proposed maximum amplitude for a lateral differential settlement with a wavelength of 20 m is 10 mm. The dynamic responses of the vehicle-track system decrease with an increase in the wavelength of the lateral differential subgrade settlement. To achieve a good operation quality of a train at a 250-km/h driving speed, the wavelength of a lateral differential subgrade settlement with an amplitude of 20 mm should not be less than 15 m. Monitoring lateral differential settlements should be given more emphasis in routine high-speed railway maintenance and repairs.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.411-424
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• 2023

Reasonable estimates of tunnel lining dislocations in the operation stage, especially under longitudinal differential settlement, are important for the design of waterproof gaskets. In this paper, a modified shell-joint model is proposed to calculate shield tunnel dislocations under longitudinal differential settlement, with the ability to consider the nonlinear shear stiffness of the joint. In the case of shell elements in the model, an elastoplastic damage constitutive model was adopted to describe the nonlinear stress-strain relationship of concrete. After verifying its applicability and correctness against a full-scale tunnel test and a joint shear test, the proposed model was used to analyze the dislocation behaviors of a shield tunnel in Shanghai Metro Line 2 under longitudinal differential settlement. Based on the results, when the tunnel structure is solely subjected to water-earth load, circumferential and longitudinal joint dislocations are all less than 0.1 mm. When the tunnel suffers longitudinal differential settlement and the curvature radius of the differential settlement is less than 300 m, although maximum longitudinal joint dislocation is still less than 0.1 mm, the maximum circumferential joint dislocation is approximately 10.3 mm, which leads to leakage and damage of the tunnel structure. However, with concavo-convex tenons applied to circumferential joints, the maximum dislocation value reduces to 4.5 mm.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.87-96
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• 2023

There are a lot of difference between the surface settlement and the differential settlement measured at the Busan New Port, where the dredged and reclaimed clay layer exists and below the clay is originally thickly distributed. To find the cause and solution of this, the actual conditions of each differential settlement used for the soft ground improvement, characteristics, installation method, measurement frequency, measurement data management, and data analysis of each type were considered. In the deep soft ground improvement work where large deformation occurs, the bending deformation of the screw-type differential settlement gauge is less than that of other types of measuring instruments, so there is less risk of loss, and the reliability of data is relatively high as the instruments are installed by drilling for each stratum. Since the greater the amount of high-precision settlement measurement data, the higher the settlement analysis precision. It is necessary to manage with higher criteria than the measurement frequency suggested in the standard specification. For the data management of the differential settlement gauge, it is desirable to create graphs of the settlement and embankment height of the relevant section over time, such as surface, differential, and settlement of pore water pressure gauge for each point. In the case of multi-layered ground with different compression characteristics, it is more appropriate to perform settlement analysis by calculating the consolidation characteristics of each stratum using a differential settlement data.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.283-303
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• 2015

To research and analyze the differential settlements of foundations specifically, site investigations of existing railways and metro were firstly carried out. Then, the centrifugal test was used to observe differential settlements in different position between foundations on the basis of investigation. The theoretical model was established according to the stress diffusion method and Fourier method to establish an analytical solution of embankment differential settlement between different foundations. Finally, theoretical values and experimental values were analyzed comparatively. The research results show that both in horizontal and vertical directions, evident differential settlement exists in a limited area on both sides of the vertical interface between different foundations. The foundation with larger elastic modulus can transfer more additional stress and cause relatively less settlement. Differential settlement value decreases as the distance to vertical interface decreases. In the vertical direction of foundation, mass differential settlement also exists on both sides of the vertical interface and foundation with larger elastic modulus can transfer more additional stress. With the increase of relative modulus of different foundations, foundation with lower elastic modulus has larger settlement. Meanwhile, differential settlement is more obvious. The main error sources in theoretical and experimental values include: (a) different load form; (b) foundation characteristics differences; (c) modulus conversion; (d) effect of soil internal friction.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 1991.04a
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• pp.29-33
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• 1991

This paper reports the application study of the ground reinforement under a buried pipeline subjected to differential settlement via a finite element modelling. The Soil-reinforrement interaction helps to mimimize the differential settlement between the adjoining pipe segments. The settlement pattern and deformation slope of a pipeline have been evaluated for a boundary condition at the joint between a rigid structure and apipeline. The analysis results are compared for both non-reinforied and reinforced cases to measure the effectiveness of the soil reinforcement for restraining the settlement of the pipeline.

• Geotechnical Engineering
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.19-26
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• 1988

A stochastic numerical model for predictions of differential settlement of foundation Eoils is developed in this Paper. The differential settlement is highly dependent on the spatial variability of elastic modulus of soil. The Kriging method is used to account for the spatial variability of the elastic modulus. This technique provides the best linear unbiased estimator of a parameter and its minimum variance from a limited number of measured data. The stochastic finite element method, employing the first-order second-moment analysis for computations of error Propagation, is used to obtain the means, ariances, and covariances of nodal displacements. Finally, a reliability model of differential settlement is proposed by using the results of the stochastic FEM analysis. It is found that maximum differential settlement occurs when the distance between two foundations is approximately same It with the scale of fluctuation in horizontal direction, and the probability that differential settlement exceeds the allot.able vague might be significant.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.6 no.1
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• pp.83-89
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• 2017

Due to the time-dependent properties of materials, structures, and loads, accurate time-dependent effects analysis and precise construction controls are very significant for rational analysis and design and saving project cost. Elevation control is an important part of the time-dependent construction control in supertall structures. Since supertall structures have numerous floors, heavy loads, long construction times, demanding processes, and are typically located in the soft coastal soil areas, both the time-dependent features of superstructure and settlement are very obvious. By using the time-dependent coupling effect analysis method, this paper compares Shanghai Tower's vertical deformation calculation and elevation control scheme, considering foundation differential settlement. The results show that the foundation differential settlement cannot be ignored in vertical deformation calculations and elevation control for supertall structures. The impact of foundation differential settlement for elevation compensation and pre-adjustment length can be divided into direct and indirect effects. Meanwhile, in the engineering practice of elevation control for supertall structures, it is recommended to adopt the multi-level elevation control method with relative elevation control and design elevation control, without considering the overall settlement in the construction process.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.66 no.1
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• pp.15-25
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• 2018

Post-construction subgrade settlement especially differential settlement, has become a key issue in construction and operation of non-ballasted track on high-speed railway soil subgrade, which may also affect the dynamic performance of passing trains. To estimate the effect of differential subgrade settlement on the mechanical behaviors of the vehicle-slab track system, a detailed model considering nonlinear subgrade support and initial track state due to track self-weight is developed. Accordingly, analysis aiming at a typical high-speed vehicle coupled with a deteriorated slab track owing to differential subgrade settlement is carried out, in terms of two aspects: (i) determination of an initial mapping relationship between subgrade settlement and track deflections as well as contact state between track and subgrade based on a semi-analytical method; (ii) simulation of dynamic performance of the coupled system by employing a time integration approach. The investigation indicates that subgrade settlement results in additional track irregularity, and locally, the contact between the concrete track and the soil subgrade is prone to failure. Moreover, wheel-rail interaction is significantly exacerbated by the track degradation and abnormal responses occur as a result of the unsupported areas. Distributions of interlaminar contact forces in track system vary dramatically due to the combined effect of track deterioration and dynamic load. These may not only intensify the dynamic responses of the coupled system, but also have impacts on the long-term behavior of the track components.

• Journal of the Korean Geosynthetics Society
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.9-17
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• 2009

This research was intended to verify the stability of landfill final cover using SRSL(Self Recovering Sustainable Liner) with regard to differential settlements due to the degradation of waste and so on in a waste landfill. Numerical analysis was performed using FLAC 2D software program with input parameters based on soil characteristic tests and reference data after the blank was designed in order to represent the decomposition condition of waste. The maximum settlement of landfill cover was calculated to investigate the structural stability of landfill cover with the different condition of settlement width, settlement depth, and number of differential settlements. The allowable maximum deformation rate of SRSL, which was calculated using field permeability tests, was 6 mm. The analysis showed that SRSL was stable in case of a differential settlement width not exceeding 24.5% of total cover width.

• Proceedings of the KSR Conference
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• 2008.06a
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• pp.238-242
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• 2008

Transitional zones, one of the typical weak area of earthworks, require lasting a maintenance work due to a differential stiffness of substructures. It is very difficult problem that transition zone was perfectively prevented against a differential settlement. The transitional zone will deteriorate at an accelerate rate. This may lead to pumping ballast, swinging or hanging sleepers, permanent rail deformations, worn track components, and loss of surface and gauge. In this study, it is performed that settlement behavior in transitional zone was compared with small model test.