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EMBANKMENT TECHNOLOGIES


had to come up with a compromise, where we constructed two of the sections – the core of the embankment – to simulate a highway embankment using modern tech- niques. Then, the outer sections were pur- posefully not well-compacted, to try to bet- ter simulate something that looked more like a rail embankment; but it was quite diffi cult!


“We had rainfall sprinklers designed to de- liver the right sort of droplet size and that could deliver a deluge to simulate wind and rain and downpours. Although we haven’t used it in earnest yet, we have also got a cover system, which can cover part of the embankment and with which we can simu- late long-term drying.”


But the complexities of the project only became more obvious as time went on, she said, meaning that despite the research so far, they have held back from drawing fi rm conclusions.


She said: “It’s the usual thing with research – the more complicated it becomes, the more research you need to do. Particularly in terms of the modelling, which we wanted to validate numerical models against the data from the slope. We can do all of that, but what we found when studying what


the project and into the next round. We’re just keeping our fi ngers crossed.


“They’re probably looking for two things; mostly advice on management practice. Most of the rail network certainly is ‘al- ready there’. We may or may not get new bits of it, but if we do, then they may also be looking for design guidance on how to construct embankments to make them best able to deal with climate change.


goes on at the embankment is that it’s the top metre-and-a-half or so that’s critical, and it’s a lot more complicated than we can capture using our numerical tools. That is because it cracks, and there’s vegetation – the infl uence of which is really important. We’re now looking to develop further those models and we’ve bid for money from the research council and we’re waiting on the outcome of that.”


Have the project partners, like Network Rail and the civil engineering fi rms, taken an interest in the research?


“Oh yes”, she said. “They are ‘bought in’ to


“The historical methods of building em- bankments are pretty hopeless. They in- volved constructing embankments just by tipping soil, and not doing very much with it. But we don’t do that now, we do compact the soil, and we have found that to be very benefi cial in terms of resisting the effects of climate change. What we probably would recommend is that additional drainage is used. That’s been known for awhile – but it’s the cost, that’s the trouble, so it’s a case of working out the benefi ts of drain- age versus the costs later of not doing it.”


Visit http://research.ncl.ac.uk/bionics/ Dr Stephanie Glendenning


FOR MORE INFORMATION


rail technology magazine Jun/Jul 11 | 91


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