Comparing performances of a triangular embankment and a rigid wall-type barrier in sandstorms using simulation and a win
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THE EUROPEAN PHYSICAL JOURNAL E
Regular Article
Comparing performances of a triangular embankment and a rigid wall-type barrier in sandstorms using simulation and a wind tunnel test Vahid Sarafrazia and Mohammad Reza Talaeeb School of Railway Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology (IUST), P.O. Box 16846-13114, Tehran, Iran Received 14 August 2020 / Received in final form 15 October 2020 / Accepted 2 November 2020 Published online: 3 December 2020 c EDP Sciences / Societ` a Italiana di Fisica / Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature, 2020 Abstract. The movement of sand particles and their accumulation on railway tracks are among the major problems observed in desert areas, which may impose huge maintenance and repair costs. One solution is to create a protective barrier in the vicinity of railway tracks to reduce sand deposition on these tracks. The present study introduced a triangular embankment due to its construction simplicity and low cost and compared it with a rigid wall-type barrier. At first, both models were compared in terms of the streamline and the sand mass flux with a two-phase flow of sandstorm numerical calculations. Then, the sand mass flux was measured for the rigid wall-type barrier using an experimental wind tunnel test. Moreover, the effects of wind speed, wall height, the zero-porosity barrier on the mass flux profile, and the deposition reduction of sand particles were examined after the barrier placement. Finally, the triangular embankment behavior was studied in a wind tunnel. The results revealed that the triangular embankment could increase the safe area after the barrier placement by up to 25%. Further, the triangular embankment was proven to be a permanent and cost-effective solution for protecting railway tracks in windblown sand-prone areas.
1 Introduction In recent years, windblown sand deposition and the risk of desertification have become major environmental issues. These issues can cause serious problems including sandstorms, environmental degradation, ecosystem destruction, and sand accumulation in railroads. Countries including China, Ghana, Egypt, and Iran have received the highest impact in this regard [1]. To overcome the above-mentioned problems occurring in arid environments and reduce the devastating effects of sand deposition, ecological (e.g., planting trees), physical, mechanical, and chemical stabilization methods have been considered in recent years. In these methods, the main factor for resolving the issue of sand movement in desert regions is to stabilize mobile dunes. However, modern methods such as excavating channels, building trenches, placing rigid barriers, etc. seek to provide solutions for reducing and eliminating the problems of railway tracks via controlling the movement path of sand particles, instead of preventing their movement [2]. The encroachment of sand particles on railway tracks is a major problem that threatens lives of people resida
PhD Candidate Associate Professor; e-mail: [email protected] (corresponding author) b
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