Crash test performance evaluation of H1 containment level safety barriers installed behind curbs using finite element analyses

Curbs are commonly used along roadsides, even though they carry the risk of causing potential hazards. When vehicles leave the roadway, curbs can disrupt vehicle stability and cause the vehicle to elevate. This may lead to undesirable outcomes such as excessive structural damage to barriers placed behind the curb, barrier override, or vehicle rollover. Roadside safety systems used on European roads are typically tested on flat surfaces in accordance with the EN 1317 standard. Therefore, installing barriers behind curbs may result in real-world performance that does not meet the expectations set by standard tests. This study evaluates the crash performance of barrier systems installed behind standard curbstones used on Turkish highways. The effects of parameters such as curb height, barrier height, and the distance between the barrier and the curb on crash test results were analyzed using the finite element analysis. A steel barrier model with an H1 containment level was validated with full-scale real crash test results and then used in simulations. TB11 and TB42 test conditions were simulated using validated passenger car and heavy goods vehicle (HGV) models for different curb–barrier configurations. Findings indicated that when the curb height was 300 mm and the barrier was placed directly behind the curbstone, the curb–barrier combination exhibited rigid behavior and resulted in high impact severity indices. When the curb height was set to 150 mm, passenger car simulations showed that the barrier failed to perform effectively at critical offset distances, where the vehicle lifted after striking the curbstone and reached its maximum elevation, resulting in unsuccessful test outcomes. In conclusion, when placing barriers behind curbs, it is recommended to carefully evaluate factors such as curb height, barrier height, and curb-to-barrier distance, and to assess the performance of the curb–barrier configuration conducting computer simulations and real-world crash tests.