Work

A Probabilistic Model of Fatigue Life at the Interface of CRTS II Slab Ballastless Track

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: The gradual deterioration of interfacial performance in CRTS II (China Railway Track System II) slab ballastless tracks during long-term service can significantly affect structural stability and durability. Existing studies have mainly focused on the fatigue performance of the overall track system and individual structural layers, whereas probabilistic fatigue-life modeling of the interlayer interface remains relatively limited. This study investigates the fatigue life behavior of the track slab-CA (cement-asphalt) mortar interface under cyclic loading. An exponential stress life relationship was combined with a two-parameter Weibull distribution of fatigue life at a specified stress ratio to establish a multi-parameter Weibull-based probabilistic framework that links fatigue life, stress ratio, and failure probability. Push-out and positive tensile fatigue tests were conducted on composite specimens to obtain interface fatigue lives under different stress ratios. Leveraging the multi-parameter Weibull model and experimental data, the L-BFGS-B (Limited-memory Broyden-Fletcher-Goldfarb-Shanno with Box constraints) algorithm was employed to optimize the model parameters and construct a probabilistic fatigue life model. The calibrated model was then used to analyze the fatigue behavior of the slab-CA mortar interface under tangential and vertical loading. The results show that the proposed probabilistic framework provides good agreement with the interface fatigue test data and enables the fatigue-life distribution and failure probability of the interlayer interface to be evaluated under different stress ratios. The findings provide a probabilistic basis for fatigue assessment and durability analysis of CRTS II slab ballastless track interfaces.

Source: Materials

DOI: 10.3390/ma19132762

Authors: Anxiang Song, Yuanchen Guo, Guowen Yao, Xuanrui Yu

Institutions: Chongqing University, Chongqing Jiaotong University, Chongqing University of Science and Technology

Language: English

Topic: Railway Engineering and Dynamics

Subfield: Mechanical Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,137