FAILURE BEHAVIOR OF SEMICIRCULAR STOPPERS IN SLAB TRACKS WITH FILLING LAYER

Abstract

 This study investigates the failure behavior of semicircular concrete stoppers in slab tracks, which act as track components restraining adjacent viaducts during earthquakes. Static loading tests were conducted on model specimens reproducing a stopper and a surrounding filling layer. Under loading perpendicular to the track direction for the stopper with CA mortar in the filling layer, cracks developed on the side surfaces of the stopper, and the specimens exhibited a failure mode similar to shear failure. The stiffness of the stopper, including the deformation of the filling layer, decreased beyond approximately 200kN. Under loading parallel to the track direction for the stopper with synthetic resin in the filling layer, V-shaped cracks appeared on the top and side surfaces of the roadbed. The final failure mode was characterized by punching shear failure of the roadbed, accompanied by flexural yielding of the longitudinal reinforcement within the stopper. The stiffness of the stopper, including the deformation of the filling layer, decreased beyond approximately 20kN.