Numerical Simulation Approach for Multi-Corrugated Plates with Longitudinal Lapped Seams in Circular Buried Culverts

Tens of thousands of Multi-Corrugated-Plate Buried Culvert Systems (MCPBCS) are in many locations throughout North America and internationally dictating the significance of more rigorous investigations. Lapped seams are locations where MCPBCS might wear and then tear apart due to various causes like erroneous installation practices, overestimated seam strength, or extreme loading situations. Exploring such issues comprehensively by physical experimentation, needs to be backed with extensive studies that numerically simulate MCPBCS realistically, as a multi plate structure and not roughly as a single plate one. The article embodies a first study of general static earth load analysis of a multi corrugated plate with longitudinal lapped seams (where plates overlap perpendicular to the direction of corrugation) in perfectly circular buried culverts, using continuum elements for the bolted corrugated plates and everywhere in the model with minimal idealizations. The springline thrust, and vertical change in culvert diameter calculated for the MCPBCS modeled have been found to be in an acceptable agreement with values reported in literature. Moreover, moment, thrust, and deflections calculated for the multi-plate simulation have been found to be almost identical to those of a single-plate model analyzed under the same material properties and boundary conditions. This work is a starting point for studying seam strength, improving bolting arrangments and torquing limits adopted, in addition to exploring how deterioration in the structure (corrosion) or backfill soil (erosion) affects seam strength.

Language

  • English

Media Info

  • Media Type: Digital/other
  • Features: Figures; References; Tables;
  • Pagination: 11p

Subject/Index Terms

Filing Info

  • Accession Number: 01857914
  • Record Type: Publication
  • Report/Paper Numbers: TRBAM-22-00044
  • Files: TRIS, TRB, ATRI
  • Created Date: Sep 16 2022 4:31PM