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Dynamic response of flexible rockfall barriers with different block shapes

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Abstract

Flexible rockfall barriers are commonly constructed on steep hillsides to mitigate rockfall. The evaluation of the dynamic response of proprietary flexible rockfall barriers is conventionally performed using full-scale field tests by dropping a block onto the barriers in accordance with the European test standard ETAG 027. The block typically has a spherical or polyhedral shape and cannot reproduce more complex rockfall scenarios encountered in the field. Little attention has been paid to the effects of the block shape on the impact force and structural response. This paper aims to quantitatively reveal the influence of the block shape on the dynamic response of flexible rockfall barriers. First, an ellipsoidal model is established to approximately simulate the block, and the sphericity is employed as the representative index of the block’s shape. A full-scale test on a typical flexible barrier system is carried out and then used to calibrate an advanced three-dimensional finite element model. Finally, the dynamic responses of flexible rockfall barriers are analyzed and discussed, focusing on the effects of the block’s shape. The numerical results show that the sphericity will obviously influence the maximum elongation of flexible barriers, the peak impact force, the peak force of the upslope anchor cable, the peak force of the lower main support cable, the axial peak force of the post, and the peak shear force at the post foundation. The assumption of spherical or polyhedral blocks in the test standard could lead to the defensive failure of flexible rockfall barriers in some impact scenarios.

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Funding

The work in this study was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China under Grant No. 2018YFC1505405, the Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No. 51678504, the National Key Research and Development Program of China under Grant No. 2016YFC0802205, the Department of Science and Technology of Sichuan Province under Grant No. 2018JY0029, the Science and Technology Research and Development Program of China Railway Corporation under Grant No. 2018KY10, the Shock and Vibration of Engineering Material and Structure Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province under Grant No. 18kfgk07, and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities under Grant No. 2682019ZT04.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Civil Engineering, Southwest Jiaotong University, Chengdu, 610031, Sichuan, China

    Zhixiang Yu, Liru Luo, Chun Liu, Liping Guo, Xin Qi & Lei Zhao

Authors
  1. Zhixiang Yu
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  2. Liru Luo
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  3. Chun Liu
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  4. Liping Guo
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  5. Xin Qi
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  6. Lei Zhao
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Chun Liu.

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Yu, Z., Luo, L., Liu, C. et al. Dynamic response of flexible rockfall barriers with different block shapes. Landslides 18, 2621–2637 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-021-01658-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10346-021-01658-w

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