Influence of rub-plate length on forces and displacements of longitudinally coupled slab track for a bridge turnout

Because of the successful construction and operation of the Beijing-Tianjin intercity railway line, the longitudinally coupled prefabricated slab track (LCPBT) system has shown its outstanding advantages in both mechanical and structural aspects. With a design speed of 350 km/h, the LCPBT system was also used on the 595.62-m-long, double-track LeiDa Bridge on the Wuhan-Guangzhou passenger dedicated line (PDL) in China. To equably transfer longitudinal force from the coupled concrete base to the subbase by friction, a reinforced concrete rub-plate was placed in transition zones from bridges to the subgrade. A 100-m-long, 0.4-m-thick rub-plate was built at the Beijing-Tianjin intercity railway line, whereas a 50-m-long rub-plate was used at the Wuhan-Guangzhou PDL. This article established an integral finite element model of jointless turnout (crossover)-track slab-bridge-pier taking the LCPBT system on LeiDa Bridge as an example, and researched the proper setting length of the rub-plate in this structure. Calculation conclusions and suggestions were given: the 100-m-long rub-plate used on the Beijing-Tianjin intercity railway line can be shortened; a length of 50-75m will be appropriate as the case may be; in specific circumstances, it can be designed within the range 25-50 m.