Behavior of Full-Scale Railway Turnout Sleepers from Glue-Laminated Fiber Composite Sandwich Structures
Publication: Journal of Composites for Construction
Volume 16, Issue 6
Abstract
An experimental study on the flexural and shear behavior of the full-scale glue-laminated composite sandwich beams in three different layouts was conducted to evaluate the suitability of this construction system for railway turnout sleepers. The building block of this innovative beam is a novel composite sandwich structure made up of glass fiber composite skins and modified phenolic core material that has been specifically developed for civil engineering applications. The sandwich beam is produced by gluing layers of fiber composite sandwich structure together in flatwise (horizontal) and in edgewise (vertical) orientations. The glued sandwich beams with edgewise laminations presented appropriate strength and stiffness for replacement turnout timber sleeper. The mechanical properties of these glue-laminated sandwich beams are comparable with the existing timber turnout sleepers, demonstrating that the innovative composite sandwich beam is a viable alternative sleeper material for railway turnouts. From this study, it is concluded that the glue-laminated composite sandwich structures have the potential to be used for replacement railway turnout sleepers. An enhanced understanding of the behavior of fiber composite sandwich structures for potential civil engineering applications is also an outcome of this investigation.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Composites for Construction
Volume 16 • Issue 6 • December 2012
Pages: 724 - 736
Copyright
© 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Mar 24, 2011
Accepted: Oct 14, 2011
Published online: Apr 30, 2012
Discussion open until: Sep 30, 2012
Published in print: Dec 1, 2012
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