2023, Vol. 10, No. 4. - go to content...

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DOI: 10.15862/04SATS423 (https://doi.org/10.15862/04SATS423)

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Isakov A.L., Kovalev N.Yu. Justifying calculations of snow load distribution on snow retaining structures in avalanche protection system. Russian Journal of Transport Engineering. 2023; 10(4). Available at: https://t-s.today/PDF/04SATS423.pdf (in Russian). DOI: 10.15862/04SATS423

Justifying calculations of snow load distribution on snow retaining structures in avalanche protection system

Alexander L. Isakov, Nikita Yu. Kovalev

Siberian State University of Raiway Engineering, Novosibirsk, Russia

Corresponding author: Nikita Yu. Kovalev, e-mail: Kovalev.unoff@mail.ru

Abstract. Snow load estimation is one of the most important tasks in designing snow-retaining structures for avalanche protection of railways and motorways in mountainous areas. The situation is complicated by the fact that avalanches are subdivided, depending on the consistency of snow, into dry, wet and damp avalanches. This paper analyses the existing foreign and domestic snow load calculation methods, based on which was concluded that there is no dependence of the load value on the physical and mechanical parameters distribution of the snow cover in all the considered methods of calculation. Moreover, none of these methods makes it possible to estimate the snow pressure distribution on a snow-retaining structure by its depth. The article proposes an alternative way of calculating the snow layer pressure using the developed discrete model for calculating the static snow pressure distribution on a barrier by its depth. The discrete model peculiarity is to take into account the change of physical and mechanical characteristics of snow — density, specific adhesion and angle of internal friction, by layers of natural deposit. Discrete model verification was performed by comparing the calculated and experimental data obtained as a result of both natural and laboratory experiments. The experiments were conducted in laboratory conditions on a special model, using a material with stable physical and mechanical characteristics that do not change during the course of the experiment. Also, for verification, the field experiment results on determining the naturally deposited snow pressure on an obstacle, taken from the open press, were used.

Keywords: avalanche; dry snow; snow cover parameters; snow cover pressure; static snow pressure; snow retaining structure; snow cover stability assessment

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