Stabilizing-sensing synergistic geogrid for high-speed railways

Area of Science:

• Geotechnical Engineering
• Railway Engineering
• Sensor Technology

Background:

• High-speed railways require advanced substructure monitoring for safety and efficiency.
• Existing methods lack real-time data for soil variations and structural integrity.
• Geogrids offer soil stabilization but lack integrated sensing capabilities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a stabilizing-sensing synergistic geogrid (SMART geogrid) for high-speed railway applications.
• To assess the SMART geogrid's performance in soil stabilization and real-time monitoring.
• To evaluate its potential for intelligent trackbed sensing and foreign object detection.

Main Methods:

• Integration of Fiber Bragg Grating sensors within geogrids.
• Theoretical, numerical, and experimental analysis of geogrid-sensor coupling.
• Pull-out, compression, and full-scale railway loading tests (2 million cycles).
• Development of a foreign object intrusion detection system using machine learning.

Main Results:

• SMART geogrid demonstrated superior reliability and testing accuracy.
• Validated real-time monitoring of soil shear resistance, compressive strain, and enhanced bearing capacity.
• Confirmed effectiveness in full life cycle monitoring during extensive railway tests.
• Foreign Object Intrusion Detection System achieved R² of 0.9999 for position prediction and 100% classification accuracy.

Conclusions:

• The SMART geogrid effectively combines soil stabilization with real-time sensing for high-speed railways.
• It provides reliable data for assessing trackbed conditions throughout the operational life cycle.
• The system shows significant potential for intelligent infrastructure monitoring and safety enhancement.