Study of Mitigation of Vibrations and Re-Radiated Noise in Buildings Created by Railway Traffic

Purpose: To present an integrated methodology that will model the entire environment, from the source of vibration to the re-radiated noise within buildings. Conduct a brief parametric analysis to show the potential of this approach in evaluating the effectiveness of mitigation measures for vibration and re-radiated noise. Methods: Estimate sound pressure levels generated in residential compartments as a result of train travel; analyze the coupled train-trail-ground-construction system; solve the acoustic part of the problem. Results: A numerical model based on the substructuring approach is considered. A measure to reduce the level of vibration and re-radiated noise inside the building has been studied, which consists in a continuous “floating slab-track” system, for which different values of the elastic mat stiffness under the slab have been considered. It has been found that the effectiveness of this measure comes from a positive combination of two essential factors: the frequency content of the response and the cutoff frequency assigned to each solution adopted. Practical significance: A comprehensive methodology for determining ground vibration and re-radiated noise caused by railway traffic is presented. The dependence is obtained, that the efficiency of reduction of vibration level and re-radiated noise inside the building, will be higher, if the solution with low cutoff frequency is applied and the response has the most significant frequency content at high frequencies.