Flexural waves analysis and enhancement of bandgap properties of a periodic track structure

Periodic structures possess frequency bandgaps wherein the waves cannot pass through. Here, the propagation behaviour of vertical and lateral flexural waves and its control in a railway track supported on periodic sleeper blocks connected using fasteners is investigated. The dispersion relationships for two kinds of waves are derived through Floquet–Bloch theorem, and the ensuing band structures are validated from finite element (FE) models. The results demonstrate that a Bragg and a locally resonant (LR) bandgap evolve in the track for both types of waves in the examined frequency range. However, the bandwidth of these bandgaps is found to be very small. Thus, waves can freely propagate in the track for a large frequency range, causing vibration and noise. Subsequently, the dependence of transmission properties of waves on the number of unit cells is studied. It is observed that the attenuation in the bandgap is significantly improved on increasing the number of unit cells. Further, to tune the bandgap properties, a single-degree-of-freedom resonator (SDoF) is used in the middle of each unit cell of the track. Afterwards, the parametric influence of resonator properties, that is, mass, stiffness and damping, on bandgaps is investigated in depth. Moreover, the phenomenon of bandgaps coupling is demonstrated when the resonator is tuned near the Bragg bandgap. The results provided herein are promising to realize the characteristics of flexural waves and to design resonators for track structures.