LCA Design Considerations for Cyclically Loaded Piles in Railway Infrastructure

Abstract

Future development of high-speed railways in Sweden will likely contain a large amount of piled structures, both bridges and piled embankments. Railway tracks used in high-speed railways are highly sensitive to settlements, in comparison to standard railway systems. The possible long-term settlement of the piles is therefore of large interest for the lifeCycle Analysis (LCA) of the railway system, since frequent repair of the track increases the Life Cycle Cost (LCC) of the system. This issue has not previously been the main concern in pile design, and therefore requires special attention as an internal part of the railway support system. The design considerations related to the cyclic axial loading of piles are here analyzed in brief, and typical soil conditions are discussed to illuminate possible problems of practical design for these types of piles and how it can be addressed in practical design. The concept of LCA and LCC for the long-term structural response of cyclically loaded piles is also considered.