The moving-load problem in soil dynamics—the vertical displacement approximation

The moving point load problem in soil dynamics is analyzed in the vertical particle displacement approximation. Prior to its motion, the load is stationary. From the instant at which it is set into motion it moves, with constant speed, along a straight path on the (horizontal) planar surface of a semi-infinite elastic medium. The modified Cagniard method for solving transient wave problems is used to determine closed-form expressions for the vertical component of the particle displacement from the elastodynamic wave equation of which only the vertical component is taken into account. The relevant approximation is standard in soil dynamics. Both the cases of “subsonic” and “supersonic” surface load speeds are considered. Methods to include losses in the model are briefly discussed. The study has been initiated with a view to the application of the results to the analysis of the ground motion generated by high-speed trains traveling on a poorly consolidated soil.