Experimental validation of the dynamic interaction analysis between high-speed trains and the Sesia viaduct

The EC research project ”DETAILS” aims to remove uncertainties on dynamic interaction effects of composite railway bridges. As part of the experimental part of the project, the Sesia viaduct, located on the new Italian high-speed line between Torino and Milano, has been tested under the excitation of Italian ETR500Y high-speed trains. This paper presents the finite element modeling of the Sesia viaduct, as well as the train-bridge interaction model and its implementation. To facilitate the calculation, a user friendly train-bridge interaction toolbox DATIS has been developed in Matlab that communicates with a finite element program. The toolbox is validated by comparing calculated accelerations and strains with measured results.