Numerical evaluation of the dynamic response of pipelines to vibrations induced by the operation of a pavement breaker

Abstract

This paper studies the response of pipelines to vibrations induced by the operation of a pavement breaker during the rehabilitation of concrete pavements. An efficient two-and-a-half-dimensional (2.5D) formulation is employed, where the geometry of the structure and the soil is assumed to be invariant in the longitudinal direction, allowing for a Fourier transform of the longitudinal coordinate y along the structure to the wavenumber k y . The dynamic soil-structure interaction problem is solved by means of a 2.5D coupled finite element-boundary element (FE-BE) method using a subdomain formulation. The numerical model is verified by means of results available in the literature for a buried pipeline subjected to incident P-and SV-waves with an arbitrary angle of incidence. The presented methodology is capable to incorporate any type of incident wave field induced by earthquakes, construction activities, traffic, explosions or industrial activities. The risk of damage to a high pressure steel natural gas pipeline and a concrete sewer pipe due to the operation of a pavement breaker is assessed by means of the 2.5D coupled FE-BE methodology. It is observed that the stresses in the steel pipeline due to the operation of the pavement breaker are much lower than those induced by the operating internal pressure. The steel pipeline behaves in the linear elastic range under the combined effect of the loadings, indicating that damage to steel pipelines close to the road due to the operation of a pavement breaker is unlikely. The maximum principal stress in the concrete pipe, on the other hand, remains only slightly lower than the specified tensile strength. The decision to use a pavement breaker should hence be taken with care, as its operation may induce tensile stresses in concrete sewer pipes which are of the same order of magnitude as the tensile strength of the concrete. Assessing the risk of damage by means of vibration guidelines based on the peak particle velocity (PPV) gives, for the particular cases considered, qualitatively similar results.

A spatial windowing technique to account for finite dimensions in 2.5D dynamic soil–structure interaction problems

“…As the 3D response can hence be represented on a 2D mesh [1], a substantial reduction of the number of degrees of freedom (and the associated matrix dimensions) is achieved. The governing equations are briefly summarized in this subsection; an extensive discussion of the 2.5D coupled FE-BE methodology can be found in [1,25].…”

Development and experimental validation of a numerical model for the prediction of ground vibration generated by pavement breaking

“…where S(t) represents the dynamic stiffness of the coupled system [12]. When both systems are in perfect contact during the impact, u c (τ) can be replaced by u d (τ) in equation (3). Introducing the resulting expression for the contact force f c (t) in equation ( 2) leads to the following integro-differential equation for the drop hammer displacement u d (t):…”

“…The fear for damage to buildings and underground infrastructure such as pipelines [3] prohibits the employment of pavement breakers in many practical situations. In order to better understand and control the risks involved, a good estimate of ground vibration levels is crucial.…”

The influence of source–receiver interaction on the numerical prediction of railway induced vibrations

“…where the BE system matrixŨ(k y , ω) is determined based on a BE discretization of the interface Σ b ; only a one-way coupling of source and receiver is provided in this approach. The calculation of a force vector resulting from an incident wavefield by means of the 2.5D FE-BE methodology is discussed in more detail in [37]. Solving equation ( 10) finally gives the building displacementsũ b (k y , ω).…”