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With global warming intensifying, weather patterns become more volatile and extremes more common. Tornadoes are the most destructive natural disasters causing significant damage to infrastructure. Meanwhile, high-speed railways now face greater risks from tornado events as the national railway network and mass transit trains expand. Thus, studying the tornado flow characteristics and associated effects on high-speed trains is necessary. A study is presented regarding the wind-loading characteristics of a high-speed train running over a railway bridge induced by a tornado belonging to the future railway network. The wind-loading characteristics analyses are performed using the improved delayed detached eddy simulation method. After verifying the numerical approach and mesh strategy, computational studies are conducted to produce a tornado-like vortex and investigate the tornado-induced wind-loading characteristics of a high-speed train running on the bridge by combining a tornado simulation with a moving mesh technique. For the wind-loading parameters studied herein, the selected train's velocity range is between 50 and 350 km/h, the typical operation speed of either regular or high-speed trains. The numerical results show that the time histories of aerodynamic forces on the train revealed a pattern in tornadic flow variability, the time evolutions of the wind loads on the train were affected by train speeds, and the fluctuation was the greatest when the train ran at 50 km/h. Moreover, the train is subjected to larger aerodynamic forces and moments when it operates along with the rotating vortex flow, especially in the core region, and the train is more dangerous when it runs at a lower speed. The results in this study provide references for assessing operation safety, while a train running on the bridge encounters tornadoes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To better understand the aerodynamic characteristics of a train-bridge system under crosswind, an in-house experimental apparatus was developed in a wind tunnel at Central South University (CSU). The new facility consists of trains, a bridge, U-shaped slide rails, and positioning systems with winches. A wireless data acquisition system for pressure measurements was mounted within the train carriage to avoid any potential aerodynamic interference. A 1:25 scaled model of CRH2 running over a simply supported girder bridge was tested in a wind tunnel. The aerodynamic characteristics of the train-bridge system under various combinations of crosswind speed, train speed, and vehicle location on the bridge were identified. The experimental results reveal that the cosine law for surface wind pressure on a train under crosswind is no longer valid when the train runs on the bridge. The moving model method can better capture the more practical aerodynamic characteristics and the impact of train movement on the bridge. The present study indicates that the wind tunnel experiments using the stationary model cannot fully reveal the aerodynamic characteristics of both the train and bridge during crossing. The results captured using this unique approach provide insight into the aerodynamic characteristics of trains and bridges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High-speed trains (HSTs) are being buffeted by accelerating running speed, and with that comes the aerodynamic issues. The slipstream is related to the train aerodynamic characteristics and of importance to the safety of surrounding people and structures. In this study, the ensemble-averaged and instantaneous characteristics of the slipstream of a simplistic high-speed train model with a square-back were experimentally investigated using a novel moving model rig. The present investigation indicates that the double-line substructure causes obvious asymmetry in the slipstream even at locations apart from the bridge surface with a large distance. The square-back of the HST attenuates its slipstream significantly relative to that with a streamlined tail. Besides, the decaying rate of the slipstream is higher in the wake of a square-back HST. The presents results suggest that the trailing vortices downstream of the square-back HST are substantially suppressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the increase of the running speed of the high-speed train (HST), aerodynamic interference between the HST and surrounding structures becomes more and more important. Traditional wind tunnel experiments using the stationary model can not fully reveal the pulsing behavior of the aerodynamic forces on both the HST and surrounding structures. This paper numerically investigates the aerodynamic characteristics of an HST running on a bridge in cross-wind. The simulation results reveal that when there is no wind barrier, the stationary model case with the yaw angle identical to the moving model case can roughly reproduce the main flow structures around the train. However, once the train runs downstream a wind barrier, the stationary model cannot reveal its aerodynamic characteristics regardless of the yaw angle adopted. The moving model scenario successfully captures the pulsing behavior of the forces on both the train and wind barrier, which is concealed in the cases with a stationary model. The present results indicate that only the moving model method can fully reveal the aerodynamic characteristics and interactions between the train and surrounding structures, especially in evaluating their dynamic response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• The slipstream of the CR400 high-speed train is experimentally investigated by a moving train rig. • Measured by a point cloud of 25-locations, the ensemble-averaged profiles, spatial variations, gusts, and time–frequency characteristics of the slipstream were analyzed. • The spatial–temporal variation in the properties of flow around the head car has been explained regarding the shape of the train. This paper experimentally investigates the characteristics of the velocity field induced by the slipstream from the leading carriage model of a CR 400 high-speed train. The tests were carried out using a 1:16.8 scale model on a moving model rig developed at the Central South University, PRC. The slipstream velocity field was measured at a point cloud involving 25 locations on a plane orthogonal to the track orientation. Aiming at understanding the slipstream ensemble characteristics, especially those unique to the CR400 train, observations were analyzed to evaluate the ensemble-averaged profiles, spatial variations, gusts and time–frequency characteristics of velocity fluctuations in the slipstream. The results suggest that the moving train model and testing rig used in this study capture the unsteady and time-variant features of the slipstream. The spatiotemporal profile of the slipstream usually includes a primary and a secondary peak at the nose tip and the region immediately next to it, respectively. Among the collection of locations studied, the primary peak reaches its maximum at a lateral location close to the train side at the nose height. Finally, the time–frequency portraits of the spatiotemporal variations of the slipstream were obtained using wavelet scalograms of the velocity field, which offered an insightful understanding of the various scales of velocity fluctuations around the nose and their locale. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Identified current situation and challenges of high-speed railway aerodynamics. • Aerodynamics of train, bridge, train-bridge system and their factors are discussed. • In-depth review of wind tunnel testing for train, bridge, and train-bridge system. • Discussed limitations of existing experiments and tendencies in applications. • Proposed and developed some platforms for aerodynamic issues of train-bridge system. Wind tunnel tests have been widely applied in aerodynamic investigations owing to their unique advantages. However, it is difficult to theoretically establish a simplified symmetry or two-dimensional model because of the relative motion of the structures and proximity of the train to the ground/infrastructure. Additionally, railway-related aerodynamic problems tend to be more challenging than those encountered in other engineering structures. Moreover, transient and crosswind effects, as well as complex operation environments, need to be considered, thereby making aerodynamic analyses of train–bridge systems challenging. Advanced manufacturing methodologies can reproduce realistic scenarios of high-speed train (HST) operations in a wind tunnel. The development of a controllable and affordable experimental method presents considerable research opportunities and challenges. There exists a strong correlation between wind tunnel experimental methods and the understanding of aerodynamic mechanisms, and some wind tunnel tests are dedicated to identifying the aerodynamic behavior using specific test systems. This study mainly describes the types of tests typically performed in a wind tunnel to analyze the aerodynamic issues of train–bridge systems under wind action. To identify and understand the individual role of the above mentioned-correlated systems, trains and bridges in wind tunnel tests are described separately. High-speed trains on bridges must be made safe and environmentally friendly, and a few cases are presented as indications to reconsider our aerodynamic research priorities. Thus, advanced experimental activities have been proposed in the Central South University (CSU) wind tunnel, representing helpful practices in defining the real-world aerodynamic behavior of wind-vehicle-bridge systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]