Stochastically rough surfaces as seismic barriers against railway-induced ground vibrations

In this chapter, an analysis of using artificially created stochastically rough surfaces for control of railway-induced ground vibrations is described. A particular attention is paid to control of ground vibrations generated by high-speed trains under the condition of ground vibration boom. Two types of surface roughness are considered: two-dimensional roughness formed by parallel grooves of randomly varying width and depth, and three-dimensional roughness formed by combinations of randomly positioned and randomly sized pits and hills. Recommendations are made on the values of the parameters of rough surfaces to be used in practice. Calculations of Rayleigh wave attenuation are carried out for recommended parameters and typical sizes of rough surface areas at the frequency range of 0-100 Hz typical for railway-induced ground vibrations. The results are compared with the available data for open trenches used as seismic barriers. It is demonstrated that, although stochastically rough surfaces for typical values of the parameters are less efficient as seismic barriers than trenches, the advantage of their use is that they can be easily made and maintained, in comparison with trenches, and they can be used for planting trees and other vegetation, while remaining accessible for people and animals.