Simulation analysis and safety performance assessment of a novel am opening barrier for highway

To address the need for quick opening, easy mobility, and convenient maintenance of barrier in highway central medians, a novel Am rotatable open barrier has been designed. Based on guardrail safety performance evaluation standards, a finite element model of the vehicle-guardrail interaction is established for collision simulations to validate the adequacy of the new guardrail structure. In the meantime, full-scale vehicle crash tests are conducted to assess the safety performance of the proposed open guardrail. The results demonstrate that safety performance metrics, including vehicle post-collision acceleration, maximum dynamic inclination, maximum lateral dynamic deformation, and displacement extension values, meet standard requirements in both simulations and real-world validations. Additionally, the vehicle doesn’t penetrate, overturn, or ride over the barrier, and no rollover occurred. This indicates that the newly designed barrier not only fulfills the functions of quick opening and easy mobility but also provides excellent blocking and guiding capabilities, contributing to the enhanced safety and operational efficiency of highway service.