Church as a Connector: An Investigation into the role of the Transition zone in the Transformation of the Grote- of Mariakerk towards a Public Interior, whilst maintaining its Heritage Values

Churches have always been the centre of Dutch society to gather under one roof (De Kruijf & De Roest, 2010). Due to the secularization of the Netherlands, church vacancy is increasing. Currently, churches still fulfill a central function within a city, village or neighborhood (Kerkmagazine, 2022). The Grote- of Mariakerk is one of them, and...

Auxiliary rails as a mitigation measure for degradation in transition zones

This paper studies the effectiveness of adding auxiliary rails as a mitigation measure for degradation in transition zones of railway tracks. More specifically, it investigates the settlement mechanisms counteracted by the additional rails. Results show that when the system’s response is in the quasi-static regime, adding auxiliary rails over...

Dynamic amplication in a periodic structure subject to a moving load passing a transition zone: Hyperloop case study

Hyperloop is an emerging high-speed transportation system in which air resistance is minimised by having the vehicle travel inside a de-pressurised tube supported by columns. This design leads to a strong periodic variation of the stiffness (among other parameters) experienced by the vehicle. Also, along its route, the Hyperloop will encounter...

Design of a Measurement Sleeper: For the purpose of validating models of ballasted railway tracks

An important subject in the research on the behaviour of railway structures is the validation of numerical models by means of in-track measurements. Many forms of track measurements have taken place all over the world, mainly in the sense of strain and acceleration measurements, but a more unexplored area is that of the direct measurement of...

Macro-meso dynamic analysis of railway transition zone: Hybrid DEM/FDM simulation and experimental validation

To probe into the mechanical behaviour of railway transition zone from the macro-meso aspects, a numerical model of transition zone is built that hybrids the Discrete Element Method (DEM) and Finite Difference Method (FDM). The DEM is utilised to simulate the ballast bed and sleeper, because it can consider the realistic ballast shapes and...

Unravelling the sediment transport mechanisms in an artificial lagoon: Multi-modal sand transport analysis at the hard flood defence of Maasvlakte 2

The port of Rotterdam was full and new mooring locations were required to host the largest ships in the world. And if there’s no space to expand on land, why not create land in the sea? That is exactly what The Netherlands did by creating Maasvlakte 2. The construction of Maasvlakte 2 started in 2008 and was officially completed on May 22nd ,...

Measurement, Assessment, Analysis and Improvement of Transition Zones in Railway Track

Transition zones in railway tracks are locations with considerable changes in the vertical stiffness of the track support, which can be found near bridges, culverts and tunnels. In such locations, the stiffness variation and the differential settlement of tracks (uneven settlement of the track on the embankment and of the engineering structure)...

Corrective countermeasure for track transition zones in railways: Adjustable fastener

Transition zones in railway tracks are the locations with considerable variation in the vertical stiffness of supporting structures. Typically, they are located near engineering structures, such as bridges, culverts, tunnels and level crossings. In such locations, the variation of the vertical stiffness and the differential track settlement...

Modelling of the long-term behaviour of transition zones: Prediction of track settlement

Transition zones in railway tracks are the locations with considerable changes in the vertical support structures. Typically, they are located near engineering structures, such as bridges, culverts, tunnels and level crossings. In such locations, the variation of the vertical stiffness and the differential settlement of the track (when the...

A New Image Between City and Land: Landscape Structures Reconnected in the Urban Fringe of East Utrecht

Living solo in Rotterdam: Improving the living quality of one person households by urban interventions

The amount of one person households is rapidly growing in the Netherlands. Unfortunately solo dwellers are still disadvantaged, stigmatised and forgotten in urban design since society expects them to be in a relationship. This is exemplified by the focus on families and couples in cities and housing developments. As a result there is a lack of...