Abstract: Pipeline embankment is a complex engineering structure; its coupled vibration of the "water flow-pipeline-embankment" trinity during operation－usually coupled with noise interference caused by multi-source excitation－makes it more difficult to identify its vibration transmission path. This paper presents a vibration path analysis for pipeline embankment structures based on the combination of the transfer entropy theory and VMD-SVD noise reduction method, with application to an embankment crossing pipeline project in Guangdong. First, a vibration source analysis is conducted, and the effectiveness of the transfer entropy method is verified through the simulated signals. Then, the VMD-SVD combined filtering method is used to determine adaptively the order of each IMF separated from the vibration test signal and to filter out vibration noise. Finally, based on the theory of transfer entropy, the vibration transmission path of the pipeline embankment structure is identified, and its correctness and efficacy are verified quantitatively with the help of information transmission rate. The results show that irregular vibration starts from the pumping station unit and gradually propagates outward along the pipeline axis. For the pipeline section passing over the embankment, 42.4% of its vibration energy is transmitted to the upper covering soil layer, and only 37.6% continues to propagate downward along the pipeline axis. This study helps identify the key nodes of vibration transmission in pipeline embankments, and is useful for the operation and management of pipeline embankments.

Key words: pipeline embankment, transfer entropy, information transmission rate, transmission path