Keywords: railway arch bridge, bearing capacity, reinforcement mechanism, maintenance, technical indexes, finite element simulation analysis, flowchart, calculation.

Through theoretical analysis, this paper first puts forward three technical solutions for the railway bridge arch's reinforcement and reconstruction and offers a method that uses three possible technical solutions at the same time. The three technical solutions are as follows: 1. Retaining the original design level of the railway bridge arch enables weak bridges to meet the current design reinforcement requirements and restores their original level of bearing capacity by improving the current bearing capacity; 2. Improving the original design level and bearing capacity at the same time, in order that weak bridges meet the current design, reinforcement, and reconstruction requirements; 3. Railway bridge arches should be reconstructed if the bearing capacity is stretched to its limit and hence still cannot meet the requirements of the current design after the improvement of the original design level and the bearing capacity at the same time.

Through theoretical calculation and the worst case combination of dead load and live load, the basic reinforcement methods of the bridge arch proposed in this paper are by changing the volumetric weight or thickness of the arch bridge components.

The finite element simulation analysis using "Midas Civil" of a railway bridge arch is discussed in this paper. The members, track, and timber sleepers can be considered as an equal part of the bridge deck. By changing the volume weight and thickness, the relationship between the control sections' internal force and volumetric weight or thickness are also changed. "Midas Civil" also creates the bending moment diagram and provides the longitudinal deformation of main arch ring. The analysis of the results of the calculation indirectly prove the viewpoint that the basic reinforcement method is to change the volumetric weight or thickness of the bridge arch's components.

The most commonly used reinforcement methods of the bridge arch are listed in this paper. At present, the common methods of changing the volumetric weight are: the use of the reinforcement method to reduce the weight of the spandrel structure; the method of reinforcement and reducing the load on the extrados of the arch bridge, etc. At present, the common methods of changing the thickness are: the load reduction method; crack grouting technology; reinforcing technology using shotcrete and bolting; the precast bridge arch boost's method; adding a saddle on the extrados of the bridge arch; strengthening the main arch ring enclosed by a reinforced concrete jacket; pasting technology using high strength materials reinforcement, etc. Therefore, these practical reinforcement methods also indirectly prove the point of view that the basic reinforcement method changes the volumetric weight or thickness of the bridge arch components.

Finally, the paper makes the conclusion that a comprehensive analysis of technical solutions, economic indexes and other factors for railway bridge arch reinforcement and reconstruction, is required in order to select a suitable reinforcement scheme. As for railway bridge arch reinforcement, using only one kind of reinforcement technology will not be enough to strengthen the scheme of the railway bridge arch; which will demand a variety of combined reinforcement techniques.

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