|
Structural Monitoring and Maintenance Volume 5, Number 4, December 2018 , pages 429-443 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12989/smm.2018.5.4.429 |
||
|
Finite element analysis based fatigue life evaluation approach for railway bridges: a study in Indian scenario |
||
P.C. Hisham Ajmaland Althaf Mohammed
|
||
| Abstract | ||
| Fatigue is a principal failure mode for steel structures, and it is still less understood than any other modes of failure. Fatigue life estimation of metal bridges is a major issue for making cost effective decisions on the rehabilitation or replacement of existing infrastructure. The fatigue design procedures given by the standard codes are either empirical or based on nominal stress approach. Since the fatigue life estimation through field measurements is difficult and costly, more researches are needed to develop promising techniques in the fatigue analysis of bridges through Finite Element Analysis (FEA). This paper aims to develop a methodology for the Fatigue life estimation of railway steel bridge using FEA. The guidelines of IIW-1823-07 were used in the development of the methodology. The Finite Element (FE) package ANSYS and the programming software MATLAB were used to implement this methodology on an Indian Railway Standard (IRS) welded plate girder bridge. The results obtained were compared with results from published literature and found satisfactory. | ||
| Key Words | ||
| fatigue analysis; finite element modelling; rain flow counting; structural hotspot stress | ||
| Address | ||
| P.C. Hisham Ajmal and Althaf Mohammed: Department of Civil Engineering, TKM College of Engineering, Kollam, Kerala, India | ||
