Load model of historic traffic for fatigue life estimation of Norwegian railway bridges: Fid-Bau Portal

Load model of historic traffic for fatigue life estimation of Norwegian railway bridges

Frøseth, Gunnstein T. / Rönnquist, Anders

Highlights • A framework for load model calibration to the most damaging train is presented. • A conservative load model of historic traffic for fatigue life assessment of Norwegian railway bridges is established. • Importance of historic traffic on fatigue life of Norwegian railway bridges is assessed.

Abstract This article presents a load model of historic traffic for fatigue life estimation of Norwegian railway steel bridges. A general framework for the calibration of a fatigue load model is established. The load model is calibrated to the maximum fatigue damage induced by passenger and freight traffic and is guaranteed to be conservative for a wide range of structural components. The significance of historic traffic to fatigue damage development is considered. Modern freight trains after 1985 have the highest fatigue damage potential of all rolling stock. The fatigue damage contribution from historic passenger and freight trains after 1900 is significant for certain lines due to the moderate fatigue damage potential and high number of train passages. The fatigue damage contribution of passenger and freight trains from the period prior to 1900 is shown to be insignificant and can be neglected in fatigue life estimation of Norwegian railway steel bridges. Structural components that are not considered in the calibration of the load model are demonstrated to yield a load model that is neither consistent nor conservative. Alternative approaches to assess structural components that are not considered in load model calibration are suggested.