Hameed Jehanfo, Dr Ioannis Kaparias, Prof Jonathan Preston and Alan Stevens
51st Annual Conference of the Universities’ Transport Study Group
8/07/19 → 10/07/19
Leeds, United Kingdom
Paper embargoed until November 2021
Jul 03
Analysis of a bridge approach: long-term behaviour from short-term response
Giacomo Ognibene, Prof William Powrie, Dr Louis Le Pen and Dr John Harkness
15th Railway Engineering Conference, Edinburgh, U.K.
3rd July 2019
Abstract
Transition zones are locations where trackbed support conditions change abruptly, for example from an earth embankment onto a bridge. The track geometry at these sites degrades faster than regular railway track, requiring more frequent and costlier maintenance. To improve understanding of the underlying causes and improve maintenance and design methods, numerical studies are often carried out, although it is computationally expensive and generally not feasible to mimic a sufficient number of loading cycles to represent reality. This paper explores an approach to predicting the long term performance of a bridge approach based on a short term simulation. Three novel performance indicators are suggested, based on existing empirical settlement equations. The dynamic response of a real ballasted railway bridge transition was studied using a Finite Element (FE) model, and the effects of train speed, sub-base soil and under sleeper pads (USPs) were investigated. Results show that both the train speed and the sub-base material affect transition performance. In accordance with previous studies, a stiffer, wedge-shaped backfill was found to mitigate the adverse effects of the support stiffness variation at the bridge approach under idealised conditions. Adding USPs appeared to have a relatively minimal influence on track long term performance.
Jul 03
Evaluating the performance of different sleeper shapes and materials
Toshan Rampat, Dr Louis Le Pen, Prof William Powrie, Dr John Harkness and Dr Antonios Zervos
Railway Engineering-2019
15th International Conference & Exhibition
3rd -4th July 2019
Abstract
Sleepers are conventionally designed in a cuboid shape of similar volume regardless of the material of construction. However, the bending stiffness and load transfer into the track bed is material dependent; and modifying the shape of sleepers by making use of advances in manufacturing ability could improve load transfer characteristics. A parametric study was performed on 6 different shapes of concrete and composite sleepers resting on 4 different types of support to understand which shape works best with each the different support condition. The sleeper shapes and support conditions were modelled using two methods (1) a 2D beam on elastic foundation formulation solved by the finite difference numerical method and (2) a 3D finite element method. Comparison of the results demonstrated that the 2D FDM method was able to reliably predict important characteristics of behaviour – the deflection, pressure and bending moment profiles. The FDM was then used to compare the performance of the different sleeper shapes. The sleeper performance was evaluated for least differential deflection and pressure considering the volume of material used and the lowest range of bending moments present. The overall differential deflection was greater for the composite sleepers than for concrete, but greater improvements were observed for the optimised composite sleeper shapes. The difference between the negative and positive bending moments reduced as the height of the middle section of the sleeper increased and the support in the middle part increases. On average, sleeper with a larger bending stiffness in the middle performed better.
Jul 01
EVALUATING THE PERFORMANCE OF DIFFERENT SLEEPER SHAPES AND MATERIALS
EVALUATING THE PERFORMANCE OF DIFFERENT SLEEPER SHAPES AND
MATERIALS
Toshan Rampat, Louis Le Pen, William Powrie, John Harkness
T.C.Rampat@soton.ac.uk,
Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences,
University of Southampton, Southampton,
United Kingdom
In Railway Engineering-2019: 15th International Conference & Exhibition.
Published date: 1 July 2019
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/434411
KEYWORDS: Sleeper shapes, support conditions, composite, finite difference, finite element
ABSTRACT
Sleepers are conventionally designed in a cuboid shape of similar volume regardless of the material of construction. However, the bending stiffness and load transfer into the track bed is material dependent; and modifying the shape of sleepers by making use of advances in manufacturing ability could improve load transfer characteristics. A parametric study was performed on 6 different shapes of concrete and composite sleepers resting on 4 different types of support to understand which shape works best with each the different support condition. The sleeper shapes and support conditions were modelled using two methods (1) a 2D beam on elastic foundation formulation solved by the finite difference numerical method and (2) a 3D finite element method. Comparison of the results demonstrated that the 2D FDM method was able to reliably predict important characteristics of behaviour – the deflection, pressure and bending moment profiles. The FDM was then used to compare the performance of the different sleeper shapes. The sleeper performance was evaluated for least differential deflection and pressure considering the volume of material used and the lowest range of bending moments present. The overall differential deflection was greater for the composite sleepers than for concrete, but greater improvements were observed for the optimised composite sleeper shapes. The difference between the negative and positive bending moments reduced as the height of the middle section of the sleeper increased and the support in the middle part increases. On average, sleeper with a larger bending stiffness in the middle performed better.
Jun 30
Microplastics research at Glastonbury Festival
In June 2019, Freya Radford and Mhairi Miller, two CDT-SIS students, attended Glastonbury Festival to promote their current research into microplastics. They engaged with the public in the Green Futures Tent, part of the Green Fields area, about the underrepresented problem of microplastics in soil.
Feb 08
Engineering Outreach and Engagement Exhibition
The School of Engineering Graduate School hosted a PGR meal and Outreach exhibition on Thursday 7th February 2019 from 11.45am to 2pm in the Hartley Suite and Garden Court at the University of Southampton.
This event included displays of PGR work and Outreach demonstrations from Centres of Doctoral Training programmes in Sustainable Infrastructure Systems, Energy Storage and its Applications and Next Generation Computational Modelling. This was the first time that these cohorts had displayed their research together in an event organised by the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences Graduate School.
Jan 01
Potential of wireless power transfer for dynamic charging of electric vehicles
Potential of wireless power transfer for dynamic charging of electric vehicles
- IET Intelligent Transports Systems
- Volume 13, Issue 1, January 2019,
, ,
Abstract
Wireless power transfer (WPT) offers a viable means of charging electric vehicles (EVs) whilst in a dynamic state (DWPT), mitigating issues concerning vehicle range, the size of on-board energy storage and the network distribution of static based charging systems. Such charge while driving technology has the capability to accelerate EV market penetration through increasing user convenience, reducing EV costs and increasing driving range indefinitely, dependent upon sufficient charging infrastructure. This study reviews current traction battery technologies, conductive and inductive charging processes, influential parameters specific to the dynamic charging state as well as highlighting notable work within the field of WPT charging systems. DWPT system requirements, specific to the driver, vehicle and infrastructure interaction environment are summarised and international standards highlighted to acknowledge the work that must be done within this area. It is important to recognise that the gap is not currently technological; instead, it is an implementation issue. Without necessary standardisation, system architectures cannot be developed and implemented without fear of interoperability issues between systems. For successful deployment, the technologies impact should be maximised with the minimum quantity of infrastructure and technology use, deployment scenarios and locations are discussed that have the potential to bring this to fruition.
Dec 18
Microwave neutralizer development for the X-EPT ECR microwave gridded ion thruster
Sam Reeve, Dr Angelo Grubisic, Joseph Edwards, Peter Turner, Richard Jones, Marcus Collier-Wright, Alessandro Arno, Wojciech Zakrzewski, Maite Sevilla, Paul Aimone and Francois Dary
Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics
0022-3727
Scopus rating (2019): CiteScore 5.3 SJR 0.899 SNIP 1.144
Abstract
This paper presents the development and testing of a microwave neutralizer intended for the first ever dual-stage electron cyclotron resonance microwave gridded ion thruster. The neutralizer is fabricated from metal 3D printing and is driven via a common 2.45 GHz solid state microwave supply with the ion thruster, providing an electron source for beam neutralization. The thruster operates between 1-3 kW delivering 18-165 mN between 3000-5000 s specific impulse in dual-modes. A self-igniting plasma was achieved at 30 W forward microwave power and 2 SCCM Argon flow rate, while a maximum current of 86 mA was drawn to an external anode in a diode configuration. While extracted electron currents do not yet meet the beam current requirements for the gridded ion thruster, various developments are presented as a means to increase the extracted current in future design iterations.
Oct 16
A classification system for port cities to improve understanding of port-city maritime pollution
Toby Roberts, Attard, {George S.}, Mario Brito, Florentin Bulot, Easton, {Natasha, Hazel Celeste}, Gerrard, {Simon P}, Gareth Giles, Kim, {Jang Young}, Robert Mayon, Nugraha, {Aditya Tafta}, Peter Shaw, Damon Teagle, Wright, {Andrew J}, Yakran, {Sevil Deniz}, Prof Ian Williams and Matthew Loxham
The 12th International Conference of Port-City Universities League PUL 18
16/10/18 → 17/10/18
Ho-Chi Minh City, Viet Nam
Abstract
Ports are vital to the global economy, providing a range of local, regional, national, and international benefits. However they also give rise to negative impacts, which are often concentrated within the local area. Amongst these, maritime pollution of the air and water may have considerable consequences for the environment, as well as human health and well-being. In order to improve understanding of how maritime pollution varies between cities, a classification system was developed based on a range of variables. These variables include passenger numbers, annual throughput (TEU), World Bank Port Infrastructure Quality indices, urban area characteristics, human development index, adherence to environmental conventions, port structure, local climate zone, and local infrastructure. Information on these variables was collected for 200 large port cities selected from Lloyd’s list top 100 container ports, AAPA world port rankings, regional lists of large ports and members of Port-City Universities League. Cruise passenger numbers and cargo tonnage appear to be a useful way of grouping ports. A provisional system using these variables was created which offers an improved system for grouping ports by size and function.
Aug 25
Formation, Growth, and Failure of Debris Jams at Bridge Piers
Research Article
First published in Water Resources Research for American Geophysical Union AGU: 24 August 2018