Skip to main content
Top

2006 | OriginalPaper | Chapter

The Wave Propagation in a Vertically Inhomogeneou Soil with a Random Dynamic Shear Modulus

Authors : Mattias Schevenels, Geert Lombaert, Geert Degrande, Daan Degrauwe, Brecht Schoors

Published in: III European Conference on Computational Mechanics

Publisher: Springer Netherlands

Activate our intelligent search to find suitable subject content or patents.

search-config
loading …

Vibrations induced by road and rail traffic are a common source of discomfort to people. Numerical models have been developed for the prediction of traffic induced vibrations in the free field or in the built environment. These models consist of a finite element formulation for the vehicles and the buildings and a boundary element formulation that accounts for the wave propagation in the soil. The latter is based on the Green’s functions of a horizontally layered halfspace. The experimental validation of these models reveals a discrepancy between the predicted and measured response in the higher frequency range. Given the crucial role of the Green’s functions in the prediction model, the dynamic soil characteristics governing these functions are a possible source of the discrepancy. Common techniques for the in-situ measurement of the dynamic soil characteristics such as the spectral analysis of surface waves (SASW) test and the seismic cone penetration test (SCPT) are based on local averages of the soil characteristics and have a limited resolution. The small scale variations of the soil characteristics are not revealed.

In this paper, the influence of the small scale variations of the dynamic shear modulus on the Green’s functions of a vertically inhomogeneous soil is studied. A probabilistic approach is followed where the mean soil is modelled using the results of the aforementioned measurement techniques. Superimposed on the mean profile is a zero mean random process that represents the small scale variations of the dynamic shear modulus. This process is characterized by a marginal probability density function and a correlation function, estimated by means of a cone penetration test (CPT). The resolution of the CPT test is high as compared to the SASW and the SCPT tests. The non-Gaussian random process is discretized by means of a Hermite polynomial expansion and a Karhunen-Loeve decomposition [

1

]. The methodology of the stochastic finite element method [

2

] is applied to a hybrid thin layer - direct stiffness formulation [

3

] in order to assemble the stochastic system equations. These are solved by means of a Monte Carlo simulation to obtain the stochastic Green’s functions.

The results of the simulation are in good correspondence with the discrepancy observed in the validation of the deterministic vibration prediction models. In the low frequency range, the small scale variations of the dynamic shear modulus are not resolved by the waves and all realizations of the stochastic Green’s functions tend to the Green’s functions of the mean soil. In the high frequency range, the waves do resolve the small scale variations. As a result, phase shifts and variations of the amplitude occur between different realizations of the stochastic Green’s functions.

Dont have a licence yet? Then find out more about our products and how to get one now:

Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Wirtschaft+Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 102.000 Bücher
  • über 537 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Finance + Banking
  • Management + Führung
  • Marketing + Vertrieb
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe
  • Versicherung + Risiko

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

Springer Professional "Technik"

Online-Abonnement

Mit Springer Professional "Technik" erhalten Sie Zugriff auf:

  • über 67.000 Bücher
  • über 390 Zeitschriften

aus folgenden Fachgebieten:

  • Automobil + Motoren
  • Bauwesen + Immobilien
  • Business IT + Informatik
  • Elektrotechnik + Elektronik
  • Energie + Nachhaltigkeit
  • Maschinenbau + Werkstoffe




 

Jetzt Wissensvorsprung sichern!

Metadata
Title
The Wave Propagation in a Vertically Inhomogeneou Soil with a Random Dynamic Shear Modulus
Authors
Mattias Schevenels
Geert Lombaert
Geert Degrande
Daan Degrauwe
Brecht Schoors
Copyright Year
2006
Publisher
Springer Netherlands
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/1-4020-5370-3_669

Premium Partners