Australian Journal of Structural Engineering

ISSN: 1328-7982 (Print) 2204-2261 (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tsen20

Comparison of structural design methods for

railway composites and plastic sleepers and
bearers

Érica Andrade Silva, Dominik Pokropski, Ruilin You & Sakdirat Kaewunruen

To cite this article: Érica Andrade Silva, Dominik Pokropski, Ruilin You & Sakdirat Kaewunruen
(2017): Comparison of structural design methods for railway composites and plastic sleepers and
bearers, Australian Journal of Structural Engineering, DOI: 10.1080/13287982.2017.1382045

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13287982.2017.1382045

Published online: 23 Oct 2017.

Submit your article to this journal

Article views: 11

View related articles

View Crossmark data

Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

http://www.tandfonline.com/action/journalInformation?journalCode=tsen20

Download by: [University of Florida] Date: 29 October 2017, At: 09:38

 Australian Journal of Structural Engineering, 2017
https://doi.org/10.1080/13287982.2017.1382045

Comparison of structural design methods for railway composites and plastic

sleepers and bearers
Érica Andrade Silvaa, Dominik Pokropskib, Ruilin Youc and Sakdirat Kaewunruena
a
Department of Civil Engineering, School of Engineering, The University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK; bDepartment of Civil Engineering,
Military University of Technology in Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland; cRailway Engineering Institute, China Academy of Railway Sciences, Beijing,
P.R. China

ABSTRACT ARTICLE HISTORY

Railway sleepers are safety-critical and essential components in a ballasted railway track system. Received 15 March 2017
Sleepers could principally be made of different materials, such as, timber, steel, concrete, Accepted 12 September 2017
composite and plastic. The deterioration process of sleepers depends largely on the materials KEYWORDS
of which they are made. The most popular material for manufacturing sleepers nowadays Sleeper; crosstie; transom;
is concrete. In very recent years, a new type of railway sleeper has been developed using plastic; composite; structural
composite and plastic materials. These plastic sleepers have been trialled as bridge transoms design; railway; track
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

and, to a limited extent, as switch and crossing bearers. A limited application of composite (a component
combination of cement, steel and plastics) to bridge transoms can also be seen. At present,
there is no unified design method or standard for these new plastic and composite sleepers and
bearers. The lack of design information can compromise public safety. This paper thus highlights
the design aspects for plastic and composite sleepers in comparison with traditional materials.
It reveals that limit states design concept is the most optimal approach for sleeper design and
manufacture. The insight will help rail asset owners and managers establish predictive and
condition-based track design and maintenance.

1. Introduction In general, railway sleepers are made of concrete, tim-

ber, steel, plastic or a composite material (referred to
Railway sleepers are significantly important compo-
hereinafter as ‘composite’). Timber, concrete and in some
nents in ballasted railway track systems (Zhao, Chan,
cases steel are traditional materials used to manufacture
and Burrow 2007). Their main functions are to with-
railway sleepers. Figure 2 gives an actual breakdown (as
stand static and dynamic loads imposed by the wheels
of 2010) of different types of sleeper used in mainline
and transfer them to the ballast and underlying for-
railway tracks within European countries (UIC 2013).
mation, and to secure the rail gauge to allow trains The deterioration process of sleepers depends substan-
to travel safely (Kaewunruen and Remennikov 2009). tially on the materials of which they are made. Hence,
Another important function of the sleepers in a bal- studies have attempted to determine the most suitable
lasted railway track system is to help provide lateral material for sleepers with regard to durability, strength
track resistance to improve the stability and stiffness and cost (Ticoalu, Aravinthan, and Karunasena 2008).
of the track structure (Kumaran, Menon, and Krishnan However, most sleepers deteriorate regardless of their
Nair 2003; Koike et al. 2014). Any damage to or poor material, thereby reducing their performance capacity.
conditions of sleepers could influence the quality of the To ensure acceptable track performance, broken sleepers
railway track, resulting in impaired rail services. For should be replaced by new ones (Manalo et al. 2010).
example, if the sleepers cracked severely they would According to Hagaman and McAlphine (1991) and
deform highly under the loads imposed by wheel–rail Goldgabr (2009), 14 million timber sleepers are replaced
interaction. This large differential settlement acceler- each year by the US railroad industry. McConnell (2008)
ates the damage to other railway components, which also states that around 5% of timber sleepers are replaced
in turn shortens the maintenance period of the railway annually in the US and Canada. In Germany, the railway
track. In addition, if the lateral resistance of the track industry must replace about 11 million timber sleepers
is insufficient to support lateral forces (i.e. because of in the future (Woidasky 2008). In Australia, 25–35% of
loosened ballast or abraded sleepers), rail buckling may the costs of the railway industry are for maintenance,
occur as shown in Figure 1 (Kumaran, Menon, and including sleeper replacement (Yun and Ferreira 2003).
Krishnan Nair 2003). Therefore, the elevated maintenance costs of sleepers

CONTACT Sakdirat Kaewunruen [email protected]

© 2017 Engineers Australia
 2  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

make it even more important to study railway sleeper and safety-critical component could be determined at a
materials and their design methods. given time in adverse rail environments (Binti Saadin,
This paper presents a state-of-the-art review of the Kaewunruen, and Jaroszweski 2017; Setsobhonkul,
structural design of railway sleepers made of concrete, Kaewunruen, and Sussman 2017). Commercially, plastic
steel, timber, plastic or composite, and identifies essen- and composite sleepers are often manufactured and fab-
tial factors such as their life cycle and deterioration pro- ricated by small- and medium-sized enterprises whose
cess. However, the main focus is on the design concepts product line may not last as long as railway lines do
of plastic and composite sleepers. Because the use of (i.e. the average lifespan of a start-up company is about
such sleepers is relatively new in railway industry around 5–8 years, whereas a railway line is normally built to
the world, this review offers new useful information last 50+ years). Knowledge of the engineering design
for the industry. There is a misconception that stand- principle is therefore crucial for enabling suitable repair,
ard testing procedures (or laboratory type testing for modification and retrofit of the track components in the
manufacturing quality) could replace a design method. future (Kaewunruen, Remennikov, and Murray 2014;
It is, therefore, important to highlight the necessity Kaewunruen, Sussman, and Einstein 2015; Kaewunruen,
of reliable design methods to ensure that future track Sussman, and Matsumoto 2016). In this paper, we eval-
maintenance does not suffer from the lack of design uate and explain different design methods associated
information so that the service life of the structural with plastic and composite sleepers. These insights will
help railway engineers determine suitable engineering
techniques and solutions for track construction and
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

maintenance under future uncertainties.

2. Different types of sleeper

2.1. Materials
2.1.1. Timber
The most common material used to make railway sleep-
ers is hardwood. Nowadays, about 2.5 billion sleepers in
railway networks around the world are made of timber.
The state of Queensland, in Australia, alone has 8 million
timber sleepers in service (Manalo et al. 2010). In China,
there are more than 13.8 million timber sleepers under
Figure 1. Rail buckling due to lateral movements of sleepers,
commonly found in timber and steel sleepered tracks (Kumaran, revenue services. Each year, the European wood industry
Menon, and Krishnan Nair 2003). supplies around 390,000 m³ of wooden sleepers, part

Swiss 30% 60% 10%

Sweden 20% 80%

Poland 38.4% 59.3% 2.3%

Norway 20% 80%

Latvia 9% 91%

Hungary 15% 85%

Germany 11% 81% 6% 2.0%

France 28% 68% 4%

Fnland 24% 76%

Czech 17.5% 81% 1.5%

Belgium 21% 79%

Austria 36.5% 63% 0.5%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

wood concrete steel other

Figure 2. Different kinds of sleepers used in main tracks of European countries (UIC 2013).
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  3

of which is exported out of Europe. Figure 3 shows the 2.1.2. Steel

different species of wood purchased in Europe in 2010 Because of the scarcity of timber, steel sleepers began
(UIC 2013). to be used in railway networks around the 1880s and
According to Zarembski (1993), high-quality hard- have advanced since; the original sleeper design has
wood timber sleepers perform reliably and capably for been replaced by the modern Y-shaped one (Ferdous
many years. However, as they deteriorate, they become et al. 2015a). Australia is among the countries with the
less able to meet the performance requirements (Manalo most steel railway sleepers, with 13% of its stock made
et al. 2010). In the US, the railway industry replaces about of steel nowadays (Manalo et al. 2010). However, com-
15 million timber sleepers each year (Lampo 2002). Such pared to timber sleepers, more care is required during
demand makes it necessary to develop an alternative to the installation and tamping of steel sleepers because
timber for the railway industry. The main advantage of their inverted shape complicates the ballast-packing pro-
timber sleepers is their versatility. They are easy to man- cess. This aspect makes steel sleepers more expensive to
age, simple to replace, light in weight, high in damping manufacture and to maintain.
and require no complex equipment. Timber sleepers can According to several studies, there are many reasons
also be used in every type of railway track. Therefore, why steel sleepers are not the preferred choice in rail-
they are attractive to the railway industries of countries ways networks. The main ones are their high corrosion
in which high-quality hardwoods are accessible. rates, difficult ballast contact and appreciable electrical
However, one of the main disadvantages of timber conductivity (Ferdous and Manalo 2014). They corrode
sleeper is their susceptibility to mechanical degrada- because of salts in the ballast, soil and groundwater, as
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

tion and moisture. The combination of bearing-plate can be seen in Figure 5. Given that steel sleepers are
and ballast effects and the fracture of timber sleepers prone to corrosion, it is essential avoid bringing them
caused by stresses may advance their mechanical failure into contact with salt-bearing materials (ETC-02-03
(Qiao, Davalos, and Zipfel 1998). Because of material 2009). Another problem with steel sleepers is fatigue
degeneration, it is very common for the ends of timber cracking due to repeatedly imposed loads (Ferdous
railway sleepers to split (Hibbeler 2004). Another signif- and Manalo 2014). These problems with corrosion and
icant disadvantage of timber sleepers is fungal decay. In fatigue cracking mean that steel sleepers are not always
Queensland, for example, the most common cause for the appropriate choice. In addition, according to Manalo
the failure of timber sleepers is fungal decay (Hagaman et al. (2010), handling and installation are more difficult
and McAlphine 1991). Both main types of failure of tim- with steel sleepers, which also increase the maintenance
ber sleepers are shown in Figure 4. costs.
There are many ways to improve the performance of
timber railway sleepers, not least timber preservatives 2.1.3. Concrete
given the high incidence of decay. In addition, dowels Nowadays, in railway networks around the world, about
can be used to reduce the frequency of splitting (Qiao, 500 million concrete sleepers are required every year,
Davalos, and Zipfel 1998). which is more than half the total demand. Concrete is
the principal material used for sleepers in many coun-
tries around the world. The increasing use of concrete
sleepers is due to the need of the railway industry to
replace ageing timber by more durable concrete (Ferdous
et al. 2015b).
Concrete sleepers present damage similar to that in
concrete structures because they use the same material.
Depending on the consequences to the sleepers, this
damage can be classified into different types. One com-
mon type in concrete sleepers is longitudinal cracks (see
Figure 6), which usually start at the dowels and continue
along the sleeper, even before loading occurs. The main
causes of such cracks are incorrect placement of the dowel
screws, the presence of sand in the dowels and dowels that
rupture because of the expansion of frozen water (Rezaie,
Shiri and Farnam 2012; Rezaie, Bayat and Farnam 2016).
In Australia, the first concrete sleepers were used in
1970, and currently mono-block prestressed concrete
is the material of choice (Kaewunruen 2010). Because
concrete sleepers are effectively prestressed concrete
Figure 3. The different species of wood purchased in Europe, in beams, the pre-stressing force is one of the most impor-
2010 (UIC 2013). tant parameters to be considered in the structural design
 4  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Figure 4. Types of timber sleeper failure. (a) Fungal degradation, (b) end splitting (Manalo et al. 2010).

important parameters that determine the occurrence

Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

and propagation of longitudinal cracks (Rezaie, Bayat,

and Farnam 2016). The negative point of using this type
of sleeper is the high cost involved (Rezaie, Bayat, and
Farnam 2016).

2.1.4. Plastic and composite

Plastic sleepers are now being used more by the railway
industry, with composite also being useful in sleeper
manufacturing. Different papers have different mean-
ings for composite and plastic sleepers. In this paper,
we consider plastic sleepers as being those made of
recycled plastic or vehicle tyres (or something similar),
with no (or barely any) fibre reinforcement. Meanwhile,
Figure 5. Corrosion in steel sleepers due salt deposits we consider composite sleepers as being either those
(Hernandez, Koch, and Barrera 2007). made of long-fibre composites or whose strength has
been increased by adding long-fibre composites to the
original ones.
Recent studies have been conducted globally to
develop technologies for composite and plastic sleepers.
These developments are aimed at reducing the number
of timber sleepers in railway networks. Such composites
try to imitate the behaviour and performance of timber
while reducing maintenance costs and minimising envi-
ronmental impact (Ferdous et al. 2015a).
Recycled rubber is added to some types of plastic
sleeper. According to (Pattamaprom et al. 2005), natu-
ral rubber has better hardness and compressive modu-
lus compared to other materials. However, engineered
rubber has greater stiffness and inelasticity. Japan has
Figure 6. Longitudinal cracks in concrete sleepers (Rezaie,
Bayat, and Farnam 2016). recently developed synthetic sleepers made of glass
fibre and hard polyurethane foam. This type of com-
posite sleeper is designed to have a long lifespan and the
process. However, even if the tensile strength of con- same physical properties as timber ones. These synthetic
crete is low, longitudinal cracks may occur before traf- sleepers have also been used in places where replace-
fic loading occurs. This is due to the high pre-stressing ment is more difficult, for example in switches and girder
force that is applied to the concrete. Therefore, the ten- bridges (Miura et al. 1998). Figure 7 shows an example
sile strength and pre-stressing force are the two most of composite sleepers.
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  5

Another possibility is to use fibre composites to were stiffer and could support greater imposed loads
increase the strength of original sleepers (Manalo et compared to the original timber sleepers. The treat-
al. 2010). Qiao, Davalos, and Zipfel (1998) showed that ment also reduced stresses and increased the surface
the performance of timber sleepers improved appre- resistance to ballast attrition. In addition, grass fibre
ciably when they were enveloped in grass fibre-rein- improves the durability of timber sleepers (TTCI
forced polymer (GFRP). These GFRP–timber sleepers 2005).

2.2. Topological design aspects

Each sleeper has its own characteristic size, shape and
dimensions according to its material, the type of railway
in which it is used and the company that operates the
railway. General design aspects are described in Table 1
for each sleeper material. Several aspects should be con-
sidered when determining the shape, size and dimen-
sions of a sleeper. For example, the length of a sleeper
depends on the track gauge. The choice of material is
also an important factor when determining these design
aspects because it will dictate the time and costs of man-
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

ufacturing and maintenance, as well as the deterioration

process.

Figure 7. Composite sleepers in Zollant Bridge, Austria (SEKISUI).

Table 1. Topological design aspects for each type of sleepers.

Material Outside design aspects Images
Timber The timber sleepers are usually rectangular due the diffi-
culty of designing different shapes in timber bodies. The
Australian Standard (ARTC) recommends the following
dimensions with their correspondent tolerances: length
(standard gauge) = 2440 + 75 mm; length (broad and mixes
gauge) = 2600 + 50 mm; width = 230+25 mm and depth =
130+10 mm

(Rail News 2015)

Steel Recent railways have used ‘Y-steel-sleepers’ instead the or-
thogonal steel ones (Hibbeler 2004). These modern sleepers
have more resistance to support cross movements due
to the ballast between the parts of the ‘Y’. However, these
‘Y-shape’ are indicated to areas with reduced radius because
the contact area is limited (Rail News 2015)

(Manalo et al. 2010)

Concrete Several concrete sleepers have a complex shape because
concrete is easily workable. Hernandez, Koch, and Barrera
(2007) shows, for example, the dimensions of the used
concrete sleepers. However, the University of Queensland
design a rectangular pre-stressed concrete sleeper appro-
priate to replace timber ones (EFRTC 2007)

(Allbiz)
Plastic and Fibre composites sleepers may be manufactured with similar
compos- dimensions to timber ones (Ticoalu, Aravinthan, and Karun-
ite asena 2008). However, the shape, size and dimensions of
polymer sleepers depend on the company which produce
them and the type of plastic used (Ferdous et al. 2015b)

(Lankhorst)
 6  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Table 2. Life cycle and failure causes of each type of sleepers. 3.1.3. Concrete sleepers
Material Life cycle Failure causes Rail-seat damage is the most serious cause of failure
Timber *Hardwood – 20–30 years • Fungal decay in concrete sleepers around the world. This issue can
(SPC 231 2012) • End splitting be caused by several factors, but rail-seat abrasion is
*Softwood – 20 years (Mana- • Insect attack
lo et al. 2010) the most harmful one (Ferdous and Manalo 2014).
Steel 50 years (Manalo et al. 2010) • Fatigue cracking According to Kaewunruen and Remennikov (2009),
• Corrosion
cracks are common in concrete sleepers because of the
Concrete 50–60 years (SPC 232 2012) • Rail-seat corrosion inconstant and considerable loads due to irregular wheel
• High impact loading
• Sulphate attack
imperfections.
• Alkali-aggregate Some problems associated with concrete sleepers are
reaction similar to those with other concrete structures, such
• Acid attack
as sulphate attack, alkali–aggregate reaction and acid
Plastic and 50 for fibre-reinforced • Voids attack. Sulphate salts are present in the soil, groundwater
Composite Foamed Urethane (Manalo • Wear and tear
et al. 2010),and 60 or more • Decomposition and aggregates, and may react with hydrated cement past
for glass fibre-reinforced • Permanent deforma- to produce expansive products that cause the sleeper to
hard polyethylene foam tions
(Ferdous and Manalo 2014) • Fatigue cracking crack (Neville 2011). According to (Shayan and Quick
• Elevated temperature 1992), the alkali–aggregate reaction is responsible for
longitudinal cracking parallel to the top of the sleeper
and map cracking in its ends. Acid attack is common in
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

concrete given that the constituent cement is not resist-

3. Design aspects ant to it and is consequently destroyed (Ferdous and
3.1. Life cycle and deterioration process of Manalo 2014).
sleepers
3.1.4. Plastic and composite sleepers
The life cycle of a sleeper depends directly on the mate- The process of manufacturing plastic and composite
rial of which it is made and on the quality of that mate- sleepers creates voids inside the materials that concen-
rial. Other factors such as imposed load, temperature trate any applied load. This process is responsible for
change and chemical elements present in the atmosphere failures before the design lifetime (Ferdous et al. 2015b).
also affect sleeper life cycle. The main causes of failure Another important issue with plastic and composite
of each type of sleeper are listed in Table 2. sleepers is the loosening of the fastening system caused
by creep deformation, the extent of which depends
3.1.1. Timber sleepers on the magnitude and frequency of the applied loads
One of the most important issues with regard to tim- (Nosker et al. 1998; Ferdous et al. 2015a). Fatigue crack-
ber sleepers is rotting. Wetting environments facilitate ing is a serious problem in plastic and composite sleepers
the biological degradation of timber sleepers by fun- because they are made of heterogeneous and anisotropic
gus because timber is an organic material. This issue material.
is referred to in general as fungal decay (Ferdous and Plastic sleepers can fail through fibre fissure, delam-
Manalo 2014). Another common problem with timber ination, matrix fracture and fibre–matrix de-bonding
sleepers is end spitting, which is caused by the behaviour (Degrieck and Paepegem 2001). Elevated temperature
of the timber itself (Manalo et al. 2010). These two issues can also alter the performance of plastic sleepers, which
are the main reasons why timber sleepers fail (Ticoalu, expand if the temperature changes are excessive (2015a).
Aravinthan, and Karunasena 2008). Insect attack (e.g. Another disadvantage of plastic sleepers is material dis-
from termites) is another common problem for timber integration. Figure 8 shows an example of the failure of
sleepers (Ferdous et al. 2015a, 2015b). each type of sleeper.
3.1.2. Steel sleepers
The life cycle of steel sleepers is determined by the 3.2. Environmental effects
build-up of fatigue over time (ETC-02-03 2009). Fatigue Environmental effects are important when choosing a
cracking occurs because of train-induced movement in sleeper material. The main environmental effects asso-
the fastening holes (Manalo et al. 2010). The rail-seat ciated with each type of sleeper material are detailed in
area is exposed to fatigue failure due to the repeated Table 3 in relation to manufacturing and maintenance.
imposition of excessive loads on the rails (ETC-02-03
2009; Ferdous and Manalo 2014). Steel sleepers are also
susceptible to chemical harm and corrosion, mainly 3.3. Focus on plastic and composite sleepers
when they come into contact with salts in the ballast This paper highlights the disadvantages of the timber,
and other subgrade materials (ETC-02-03 2009; Ferdous concrete and steel sleepers that have been used by the
and Manalo 2014). rail industry throughout the years. Concrete and steel
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  7
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

Figure 8. Failures of each type of sleepers (a) Timber sleepers: end splitting, (b) Steel sleepers: corrosion, (c) Concrete sleepers: rail-
seat abrasion, (d) Plastic sleepers: cracking at fasteners (Hernandez, Koch, and Barrera 2007; Ferdous and Manalo 2014, 2015b).

Table 3. Environmental effects of material used in sleepers. replace old timber sleepers with new ones (Ferdous and
Material Environmental effects Manalo 2014). Table 4 lists the properties of the various
Timber • A considerable amount of tree are cut to timber sleep- sleeper materials. The performance of plastic and com-
ers manufacturing (Ferdous et al. 2015a; Sekisui, 2016) posite sleepers is summarised in Table 5 (Ferdous et al.
• The emission of carbon dioxide during operation
• The use of chemical substances to reduce the decay rate 2015b; Kaewunruen and Remennikov 2016; Kimani and
may affect expressively the environment (Thierfelder Kaewunruen 2017).
and Sandström 2008)
Recent studies around the world have looked for
Steel • The steel industry produces a large amount of carbon alternative materials in which the cited problems are
dioxide during its production (Ferdous et al. 2015b).
However, during the operation, the emission is insig-
less common and with which the maintenance costs
nificant should be reduced: plastics and composites are seen as
• The high corrosion rates reduce the time for replace- such alternative materials. They do not corrode easily,
ment, which generate more waste
are resistant to insect attack, and have high electrical
Concrete • The concrete industry also produces a large amount resistance and low thermal conductivity (Ferdous et al.
of carbon dioxide during its production (Ferdous et al.
2015b), and the emission is reduced significantly in 2015b). According to Lampo (2002), the manufacturing
operation period of recycled plastic sleepers is associated with a remarka-
• The high replacement rate due sulphate and acid
attack, and alkali-aggregate reaction ble reduction in greenhouse gases. Furthermore, plastic
• The concrete wasted during the production sleepers can be manufactured in several different ways,
Plastic and • Plastic is not a bio-degradable material, and, if not
which make railway industry hesitate to adopt a single
compos- recycled, it will be discharged in the environment method for design or type testing.
ites unsustainably The number of companies investing in these recent
• The plastic, which is not recycled, is made of petrole-
um which makes it unsustainable. Therefore, recycled technologies is increasing considerably (Manalo et al.
plastics are the preferable ones 2010). Because of the recent growth in the use of plas-
tic sleepers, research is required to assess their behav-
iour, limitations and environmental effects. The present
sleepers have now largely replaced the original timber review analyses the common design methods used for
ones, but concrete and steel themselves are not with- sleepers, with the aim of evaluating the reliability of
out their problems; sometimes it is actually better to composite and plastic sleepers.
 8  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Table 4. Summary of properties of different materials sleepers (Manalo et al. 2010).

Properties Hardwood Softwood Concrete Steel Plastic/composite
Adaptability Easy Difficult Difficult Difficult Easy
Workability Easy Easy Difficult Difficult Difficult
Handling and instal- Easy Easy Difficult Difficult Easy
lation
Durability Low Low High Low High
Maintenance High High Low High Low
Replacement Easy Easy Difficult Difficult Easy
Availability Low High High High Low
Cost High Low Very high Very high Low
Fasteners Good Poor Very good Poor Good
Tie ballast interaction Very good Good Very good Poor Good
Electric conductivity Low Low High Very high Low
Impact High High Low Medium Low
Weight (kg) 60–70 60–70 285 70–80 45–75
Service life (years) 20–30 20 60 50 60

Table 5. Comparison of the performance of composite sleeper (Ferdous et al. 2015b).

Types of sleeper
Properties Timber FFU TieTek Axion InegriCo Wood core Glue laminated
Density, (kg/m3) 1085 670–820 1153 849–897 1121 993 –
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

Modulus of elasticity, (MPa) 16000 8100 >1724 1724 1655 1517 5190
Modulus of rupture, (MPa) 65 142 >18.6 20.6 18.6 17.2 103
Compressive MOE, (MPa) – – 269 176.5 262 241 –
Rail-seat compression, (MPa) 60 58 16.5 20.6 15.9 15.2 –
Screw pullout force, (kN) 40 65 35.6 31.6 73.4 – 63.8
Thermal expansion, (cm/cm/°C) – – 1.35 × 10−4 0.74 × 10−4 1.26 × 10−4 0.2 × 10−4 –
Electrical impedance (wet), (Ω) – 140 × 106 500 × 106 – – – –
Flammability – – No@20s – – – –
Impact bending strength, (MPa) – 41 – – – – –

4. Design concept for plastic sleepers Railroad provide some specifications for their design
(Ferdous et al. 2015a). The absence of a consistent stand-
4.1. Design challenges
ard has resulted in non-uniformity in the manufacturing
Because plastic is not an isotropic material, a specific of plastic sleepers, which in turn creates uncertainty over
drawback of plastic sleepers is that they have different using this material in long-term operation.
strength in different directions. It is easier to design in Most designs of composite and plastic sleepers are
concrete or steel because these materials have constant based on associated specific research outcome and
strength in all directions. Although timber is also an guidelines. Experimental tests performed to benchmark
anisotropic material, it has been used in civil engineer- structural capacity and manufacturing quality (i.e. type
ing for long time and designers are familiar with its testing) using a certain number of sleepers and re-anal-
behaviour. As yet, we do not have enough experience ysis are often chosen depending on the designer’s experi-
of using plastic in railway applications, and difficulties ence and the risk management plan taken by the railway
with designing plastic sleepers are intensified by their organisation (though increased inspection and mainte-
anisotropy, fragility, low tensile strength, light weight nance). For composite sleepers and bearers, any design
and the dependence of the properties of their topology. method should consider the fibre layers, all dimensional
These issues increase the design complexity of composite aspects and structural functions of the sleepers and bear-
and plastic sleepers; the design process must consider ers (Kaewunruen 2014a, 2014b, 2014c; Kaewunruen et al.
the sleeper material as well as its form and size (Awad 2017). Consequently, designers should use optimisation
et al. 2012; Standards Australia, 1981). methods after the experimental tests to seek an ideal solu-
Several standards and specifications cover the design tion in both aspects (Awad et al. 2012, You et al., 2017).
of timber, steel and concrete sleepers because of their Numerical simulation is often used in the design of
ubiquity. Timber sleepers are covered by RailCorp SPC concrete, steel and timber sleepers, an example of which
231 and AS 3818.2, steel ones by Australian Rail Track is shown in Figure 9. Such numerical methods may be
Corporation (ARTC) ETA-02-03 and AS 1085.17, and used to design composite and plastic structures as well,
concrete ones by AS 1085.14 and RailCorp SPC 232. but the design process in that case is complicated by
However, there is no specific design code for plastic the uncertainty and variation in material quality, which
sleepers, although the American Railway Engineering depends on the process used to manufacture the com-
and Maintenance-of-Way Association (AREMA), posite or plastic sleepers. In contrast, it takes a long time
the Chicago Transit Authority and the Union Pacific to test several sleepers experimentally and requires the
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  9

Figure 9. Components of railway tracks in a numerical simulation (Kaewunruen, Remennikov, and Murray 2014).
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

Figure 10. Static wheel loads (Tanaka and Furukawa 2008).

use of appropriate facilities. This difficulty also dis- 10 shows the static wheel loads that are considered in
courages the sufficient number of repeated tests since it allowable-stress design.
increases the costs (Awad et al. 2012). The allowable-stress design concept is present in the
concrete sleeper design standards used in Australia, Asia
4.2. Design principles and North America. However, because this approach has
to consider reductions in material strength, the resulting
4.2.1. Allowable-stress design sleepers are over-designed (Kaewunruen, Remennikov,
Allowable-stress design (also known as permissi- and Murray 2014), which is a concern for railway com-
ble-stress design) is a design concept used commonly panies. Also, it omits the important factors in sleeper
to design traditional sleepers. Allowable-stress design design, such as real dynamic load, ultimate material
is more conservative than limit states design because strength and risks associated with operation, mainte-
the former considers only quasi-static wheel loads nance and even failure (Kaewunruen, Remennikov, and
(Kaewunruen, Remennikov, and Murray 2014), which Murray 2014). These are the main disadvantages of using
need higher safety factors making the design method this design principle.
unsatisfactory. A quasi-static wheel load is usually As shown in Figure 11, this design concept deter-
multiplied by a dynamic factor of between 2.0 and 3.0 mines the maximum strength of some material, which
(AS1085.14 2003), (AREMA 2006). However, wheel– then cannot be exceeded in the structure. Aspects such
rail interactions can produce dynamic loads higher than as buckling, brittle fracture, fatigue failure and allow-
those specified in the design codes. A recent studied able deflections are taken into account in this design
showed that dynamic wheel loads can reach four to six method. In this concept, the limit strength of the
times the static ones (Leong and Murray 2008). Figure material is reduced by factors associated with errors in
 10  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

material homogeneity, size and finishing (Mrema 2011) on the analysis method (Remennikov, Murray, and
Examples of some reduced factor values are given in Kaewunruen 2012).
Table 6 for each type of sleeper. The highest factor is for This concept is based on a deterministic model.
timber sleepers because timber is the least homogeneous However, the resistance and loads factors are based on
of the materials. a probabilistic model, which means a reliable statisti-
cal distribution of loads and resistance (Kaewunruen,
4.2.2. Limit states design Remennikov, and Murray 2012). Figure 13 shows an
Recently, limit states design has been used for concrete example of a statistical probability distribution. Failure
sleepers in Europe and South Australia. This concept will happen in the area of the curves in Figure 13 in
takes into account the ultimate strength of materials by which the distribution of load effects reaches that of the
extensive analysis and experimentation, as shown in capacity. In limit states design codes, the probability of
Figure 12. Over the past 7–8 years, limit states design failure relates pt to the reliability index or safety index
has replaced allowable-stress design because the for- β through
mer has many advantages such as less material waste
and the implementation of new material technologies
Φ(−𝛽) = pt , (3)
(Remennikov, Murray, and Kaewunruen 2012). These where the factor Φ is a cumulative distribution curve
factors make limit states design superior to allowa- (AS5104 2005) Figure 14 shows how the safety factors
ble-stress design because the former leads to much more and probability of failure are related. The limit state can
optimal sleeper manufacturing. be divided into the following limit states.
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

Limit states design calculates the strength of a struc- The ultimate limit state is associated with one event
ture by multiplying its resistance by reduced factors (Φ), that can cause a sleeper to fail because of the imposed
which should be superior to multiplying the imposed loads. The analysis is probabilistic, which means it is
loads by load factors (γ) (Remennikov, Murray, and based on the results of experiments involving loading
Kaewunruen 2012). Therefore, over a period of time (usually more than one year); a
statistical analysis takes into account the importance of
(1)
( )
Σ 𝛾 × imposed loads ≤ (Φ × resistance) the train and operational data (Ferdous et al. 2015a).
Failure is common at the midspan and the rail seat. This
or limit state is more common in concrete sleeper design
(Kaewunruen 2007).
Design effects ≤ Design capacity, (2)
The fatigue (damageability) limit state considers the
where the design effects taken into account are the shear accumulated damage caused by the loads over a long
forces, bending moments and axial forces imposed on period of time. Therefore, the sleeper lifetime is deter-
the sleepers. These can be static or dynamic, depending mined by the design service time to support repeated

Figure 11. Allowable stress of materials (SF is safe factor).

 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  11

loads; the design service time should be longer than the services (such as displacement, ride quality, gauge and
actual life of the sleeper (Kaewunruen, Remennikov, and rail cant, etc.). Failure of a significant number of sleepers
Murray 2014). may reduce its operational capacity. Currently, this limit
Finally, the serviceability limit state is the limit state is used in the replacement of sleepers made of dif-
state that defines when problems incur during revenue ferent materials based on track stiffness (Kaewunruen,
Remennikov, and Murray 2014).
Table 6. Reduced factors values in allowable stress design.
Members Reduced factor Source 4.3. Application of design principles to plastic and
Prestressed concrete sleeper 0.50 AS 1085.14 composite sleepers
– at operational perfor-
mance level 4.3.1. General design aspects
Prestressed concrete sleeper 0.45 AS 1085.14
– at fully operational Currently, the design of composite and plastic sleepers
performance level is based on allowable-stress design. To guarantee better
Steel sleeper 0.40–0.60 AS 1085.14
Timber sleeper – permissible 0.60 BS 5268
reliability, static and dynamic loads should be consid-
tension stress ered in the design (Ferdous et al. 2015a). According to
Composites sleeper – at 0.40 Rajendran and (Remennikov and Kaewunruen 2007), a quasi-static
service at top and bottom Tensing (2015)
of centre of sleeper, and at wheel load is about 1.4–1.6 times a static one, when
top of rail seat the track is well maintained to a very good condition.
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

Figure 12. Ultimate limit states of materials (γm is material strength reduction factor).

Figure 13. Model of probability density function.

 12  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Because this concept does not take dynamic loads into et al. 2015b). By optimising the material distribution,
account, the load factor used is usually taken as 1.5 this method is very useful for designing composite sleep-
times of rail-seat loads. However, calculation of the real ers. It avoids material waste by reducing the height and
dynamic loads is important to guarantee better analysis weight of the sleepers, thereby reducing manufacturing
of sleeper performance, rather than merely some esti- costs appreciably.
mates. Therefore, the effects of real dynamic loads should Another way to design fibre-reinforced polymer com-
be considered and included in sleeper design standards posite sleepers is via optimisation. Awad et al. (2012)
to increase the design reliability (Ferdous et al. 2015b). demonstrated several different optimisation methods,
In addition, the design of fibre composite sleep- such as design sensitivity analysis, genetic algorithms
ers is usually based on the allowable deflection limit and simulating annealing. However, the method most
(Awad et al. 2012). The serviceability deflection limit used is the finite-element method, which can be applied
permitted by the EUROCOMP design code is between to various composite structures (Prochazka, Dolezel,
L/150 and L/400 for composites structures, where L is and Lok 2009). All these methods have the same objec-
the span (Clarke 1996). In the absence of standards for tive: to optimise the sleeper design, thereby reducing
fibre composite structures, civil engineers use various material waste and manufacturing costs, among others.
methods to design these structures, such as optimisation Despite the absence of design standards for composite
and finite-element analysis (FEA). Both methods can sleepers, AREMA (2006) currently require plastic sleep-
be used to design these structures according to their ers to satisfy minimum criteria for mechanical and phys-
serviceability limits (Awad et al. 2012). ical performance. In addition, the Japanese code JIS 2101
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

In the design of fibre composite sleepers, FEA is (Takai, Sato, and Sato 2006) and Koller (2015) also spec-
important for determining in which areas the stresses ify certain properties required of FFU (fibre-reinforced
are higher, and consequently where the fibres should be formed polyurethane). However, these design codes are
placed. This is an intuitive and iterative method that can currently limited in practice, and the behaviour of com-
also determine in which areas the stresses are lower and posite sleepers requires further research (Kaewunruen
so material can be removed. This addition and removal 2014b; Ferdous et al. 2015b). The lack of standards limits
of polymers and fibres should happen until the sleepers the ability to retrofit or maintain such sleepers during
have the strength required by the serviceability con- the service life.
ditions and the costs are the lowest possible (Ferdous
4.3.2. Comparison and application of methods
The design of prestressed concrete sleepers is usually
done by allowable-stress design, which is the preferred
approach in standards such as AS 1085.14 (2003).
However, allowable-stress design is more conservative
than limit states design. Therefore, using allowable-state
design, the effectiveness of the sleepers is reduced and
their cost is increased (Kaewunruen 2007). The same
happens with the design of composite sleepers, so limit
states design should be researched further for composite
and plastic sleepers to guarantee acceptable values for
the reduction factors and partial-load factors (Ferdous
et al. 2015b) and to further optimise the design. A com-
parison between the allowable-stress and limit states
design methods is given in Table 7.
There are several companies around the world that
Figure 14. Graph: safety index (β) × probability of failure (pf) are producing different types of plastic and composite
(AS5104 2005). sleepers, each of which uses a different methodology to

Table 7. Comparison of allowable stress design method and limit state design method (You, Silva, and Kaewunruen 2017).
Items Allowable stress design Limit state design
Basic principle Working stress ≤ permissible stress ≈ ultimate Σ (γ × imposed loads) ≤ (Φ × resistance)
stress/SF
Filled status Excess the permissible stress Divide into ultimate limit state serviceability
limit state etc.
Load Use dynamic factor Combine the loads that multiplied by a load
factor
Material strength Ultimate stress/SF Based on the degree of reliability
Reliability index Not take into account Use reliability index or safety index
Structure importance factor Not take into account Depend on the category
Common sleeper material Concrete, timber, steel, plastics, composite Concrete, steel
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  13

Table 8. Different sleepers’ technologies and their design method.

Name Material Country Design Method Source Images
AXION 100% recycled plastics USA AREMA Railway-technology

TieTek 85% recycled materials USA AREMA TieTek web-site

(plastic, rubber,
fibreglass)

IntegriCo Landfill-bound recy- USA AREMA IntegriCo web-site

cled plastics

Wood core Plastic mixture rein- USA AREMA Southwest RV and Marina
forced by wooden
beam
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

I-plas 100% recycled plastic UK Network Rail Greener Business

Ecotrax High density polyethyl- New Zealand AREMA and ASTM SICUT
ene and polypropyl-
ene plastic recycled.

KLP 100% recycled plastics Netherlands French national Lankhorst

railroad company
SNCF

MPW Mixed Plastic wastes Germany WO 9808896 Fraunhofer ICT (2010)

and glass fibre waste A1 (UPS), WO
2000044828 A1
(Polywood), US
639 1456 B1,
among others

FFU Fibre-reinforced Japan JIS E1203 SEKISUI web-site

Foamed Urethane China CJ/T 399 Xssunrui web-site

 14  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Table 9. Requirements for a typical transom (Kaewunruen and

Remennikov, 2008, 2014b, 2017c; Wu and Kaewunruen 2017).
Limit state
Limit state action Axle load Distance rail design
effect (tonne) to girder web requirement
Strength limit state 30 250 mm 60 kNm
bending moment
Strength limit state 30 n/a 200 kN
shear force
Fatigue limit state 30 250 mm 18.75 kNm
bending moment
Fatigue limit state 30 n/a 75 kN
shear force

design its own products; some companies known to be

active in the railway field are listed in Table 8. Allowable-
stress design is preferred in different parts of the world
for designing plastic sleepers. However, the absence of Figure 15. Hybrid polymer transoms (Van Erp and Mckay 2013).
a consolidated standard has spawned several different
sets of guidelines for designing plastic and composite their use and application in railways networks (Ferdous
sleepers. et al. 2015a; Kaewunruen 2015). To increase the number
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

As mentioned before, allowable-stress design is a con- of composite sleepers used, further research should be
servative approach that usually results in over-designed undertaken to guarantee better knowledge about these
sleepers. The performance benchmarking is in fact based sleepers.
on timber and its performance, but it is found that not
all behaviours are mapped. The reduced factors con-
5. Conclusions
sider only 40–50% of the real material strength, which
shows how moderate this method is. Many researchers The use of plastic and composite sleepers and bearers has
around the world are working on the limit states design increased by degrees in rail networks around the world,
method for railway sleepers, trying to reduce the amount but their structural design is yet to be thoroughly deter-
of material used and consequently the manufacturing mined. The disadvantages of timber, concrete and steel
costs. sleepers have inspired research into this new technology
Van Erp and Mckay (2013) state that transoms (large of plastic and composite sleepers. These could be made
sleepers used on railway bridges) have higher strength of recycled plastic so that less carbon dioxide is emitted
requirements than those of commonly used sleepers into the atmosphere. These materials have many suitable
because the latter are supported by ballast. The design properties, such as durability, lightness and high damp-
requirements for common transoms are given in Table ing. However, some disadvantages of plastic sleepers are
9; the method used to design these transoms is once their low stiffness, low strength, light weight (for track
again allowable-stress design. According to Table 6, the stability) and high plastic deformations due to elevated
maximum bending moment required is 60 kN m, which temperatures.
corresponds to roughly half the real bending moment. At present, there are only several guidelines that are
Therefore, the value of the reduced factor is 0.5, which is used inconsistently to design and manufacture plastic
a typical value for plastic sleepers. This is a real example and composite sleepers/bearers. It is important to note
of how allowable-stress design works for transoms. that there are no specific structural standard or method
The CarbonLoc company has promoted a new tech- for the design of plastic and composite sleepers/bearers.
nology of a hybrid plastic transom with steel bars inside This could lead to serious safety risks over their service
a plastic sleeper. In 2007, the ARTC used several of these life. This review has highlighted the necessity for further
transoms on a railway bridge in Hunter Valley, Australia research into the design of plastic and composite sleep-
(Van Erp and Mckay 2013), some of which are shown ers/bearers to ascertain public safety and operational
in Figure 15. reliability over time.
As mentioned before, the reduction of 40–50% in the Based on the comparison of structural design meth-
material strength makes allowable-stress design inappro- ods for railway composites and plastic sleepers, it could
priate for designing plastic sleepers because this reduc- be found that allowable-stress design is a conservative
tion does not consider plastic behaviour such as fatigue approach. The information about material-strength
or dynamic dumping. This method merely reduces the reduction of composites and plastics does not justify
total strength of the material without a complex analysis the use of such a design principle. That is why more
of the real behaviour of plastic and composite sleepers. research should be undertaken to underpin the relia-
The fact that there are few available standards to guide bility and safety of the process of designing such sleep-
the design of composite and plastic sleepers restricts ers. This state-of-the-art review has also revealed that
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  15

different design guidelines use different values of did a research project about analysis of rheological properties
reduced-strength factors in the allowable-stress design of industrial mortars by rotational rheometer in the labora-
method. Thus, railway authorities should pay special tory of the Mortar Technology Center (CETA) of UFBA. In
2015, she went to Birmingham, in England, to study civil engi-
attention to the use of plastic and composite sleepers neering for a year in the University of Birmingham. In 2016,
and ensure that high-quality track maintenance is always she made a research project about structural design methods
planned as required during the service life of the sleep- of railway plastic sleepers with Dr Sakdirat Kaewunruen in
ers. In addition, it was found that limit states design takes the University of Birmingham. Since the beginning of 2017,
into account the ultimate strength of the material and she has done a internship in the project sector of ENPRO, a
metallurgical company in Salvador, Brazil.
other important failure-mode and serviceability consid-
erations. This makes that approach more suitable than Dominik Pokropski was born on 5th March 1993 in Zuromin,
allowable-stress design for plastic and composite sleep- Poland. He graduated Wyspianski High School in Mława,
ers’ design and manufacture. Since, the field experience mathematic profile. He studied civil engineering between
of composites and plastics sleepers are rather limited, 2011 and 2016 years at Military University of Technology. At
it is recommended that future work be focussed on the this University, he decided to learn more about railway and
track system. Now, it is his main part of education. During
unified limit states design method of plastic and com- master degree studies, he visited University of Birmigham.
posite sleepers and bearers in order to ensure the rail- He was there by ERASMUS program. In 2016, he started PhD
way’s safety, stability and durability. studies, also at MUT. His PhD studies are about Continuous
Welded Rail. During his PhD studies, he is also working in
engineering design office, where he is an assistant of main
Acknowledgements
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

designer.
EAS would like to thank Brazil’s Sciences without Borders
for her scholarship at the University of Birmingham, Bio:Ruilin You is an assistant professor of China Academy
UK. DP would like to acknowledge the support of the of Railway Sciences (CARS) and holds a visiting position
Erasmus + programme. RY is grateful to the China Academy in the University of Birmingham. He mainly engages in the
of Railway Sciences for visiting fellowships at the University research and design of high-speed and heavy-haul railway
of Birmingham, UK. SK wishes to thank the Australian structure and components. His work include but not limit in
Academy of Science and the Japan Society for the Promotion the following areas: fatigue life and service state evaluation of
of Sciences for his Invitation Research Fellowship (Long- pre-stressed concrete sleeper of railway and design, construc-
term) at the Railway Technical Research Institute and The tion, inspection, operation and maintenance of railway track.
University of Tokyo, Japan. The authors wish to gratefully He is also a member of ISO standard committees for concrete
acknowledge the financial support from the European sleeper and plastic sleeper.
Commission for H2020-MSCA-RISE Project No. 691135
‘RISEN: Rail Infrastructure Systems Engineering Network’, Zac (Sakdirat Kaewunruen) is a senior lecturer in Railway
which enables a global research network that tackles grand and Civil Engineering. He holds a PhD degree in Civil
challenges (Kaewunruen, Sussman, and Matsumoto 2016) Engineering with the particular expertise in Structural
in railway infrastructure resilience and advanced sensing in Engineering (Railway Infrastructure) from the University of
extreme events (www.risen2rail.eu); and from H2020-S2R Wollongong (UoW), Australia, and completed a Leadership
Project No. 730849 ‘S-CODE: Switch and Crossing Optimal program at John F Kennedy School of Government, Harvard
Design and Evaluation.’ University, MA, USA. He has over 14 years of professional
and industry experience in both public and private sectors.
He recently spent over 6 years towards a Technical Specialist
Disclosure statement (Senior Project Manager Level), Track Engineering, with
RailCorp, Sydney Trains, and Transport for NSW (TfNSW)
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors. in Sydney, Australia. He has been recognised domestically
and internationally and is a Chartered Engineer in both
Civil and Structural Colleges. He is a positive and self-mo-
Funding tivated technical manager and specialist with extensive
This work was financially supported by the European experience across civil, transport, and rail industry in public
Commission [H2020-MSCA-RISE] Project No. 691135 and private sectors. He has extensive expertise in transport
‘RISEN: Rail Infrastructure Systems Engineering Network’; infrastructure engineering and management, successfully
and from [H2020-S2R] Project No. 730849 ‘S-CODE: Switch dealing with all stages of infrastructure life cycle and assur-
and Crossing Optimal Design and Evaluation.’ ing safety, reliability, resilience, and sustainability of rail
infrastructure systems. He has highly skills in business man-
agement and continuous improvement of customer experi-
Notes on contributors ence. He held visiting appointments at various institutions,
including Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),
Érica Andrade Silva was born in 1994, in Santo Antônio de Chalmers University of Technology’s Railway Mechanics
Jesus, Bahia, Brazil. She was graduated from high school at Centre in Gothenburg Sweden, and Railway Technical
Santo Antônio de Jesus School in 2011 in her hometown and, Research Institute in Tokyo Japan. He has over 300 techni-
then, she moved to Salvador, Brazil to study civil engineering cal publications and consultancy reports, and has served on
in Federal University of Bahia (UFBA) in 2012. In 2013, she the editorial boards of many international journals, includ-
was part of ENGETOP, a junior enterprise of civil engineering ing Structural Monitoring and Maintenance, Shock and
of UFBA. She had made electrical, hydraulic, sewerage and Vibration, Journal of Structures, Scientific World Journal,
architecture designs for economical buildings. In 2014, she and International Conference of Railway Technology. He is
the lead guest editor for a special issue on “Safety, Reliability,
 16  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Risks and Uncertainties in Railway and Transport Systems”, Board. Contractor’s Final Report for TCRP Project D-7.
through collaboration with University of Illinois at Urbana Task 14 Rail base corrosion detection and prevention.
Champaign, MIT, Japan Transport Safety Board and Beijing Hibbeler, R. C. 2004. Statics and Mechanics of Materials. 4th
Jiaotong University. His current research focuses over a wide ed. Singapore: Prentice Hall.
range of civil and railway engineering, including: civil and Kaewunruen, S. 2007. “Experimental and Numerical Studies
rail infrastructure, train/track interface and interaction, track for Evaluating Dynamic Behaviour of Prestressed Concrete
systems, rail dynamics, structural dynamics, reliability and Sleepers Subject to Severe Impact Loading.” PhD thesis,
resilience, shock/blast and impact, high speed rails, railway School of Civil, Mining & Environmental Engineering,
and transportation systems, risks, economics, strategy, sys- University of Wollongong.
tems, and urbanisation. Kaewunruen, S. 2010. Track Design Fundamentals, Sleepers
Fastenings, Rail Civil Engineering Course. Sydney: Rail
Corporation.
ORCID Kaewunruen, S. 2014a. “Impact Damage Mechanism and
Mitigation by Ballast Bonding at Railway Bridge Ends.”
Sakdirat Kaewunruen http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2153- International Journal of Railway Technology 3 (4): 1–22.
3538 doi:10.4203/ijrt.3.4.1.
Kaewunruen, S. 2014b. “Monitoring in-service Performance
of Fibre-reinforced Foamed Urethane Sleepers/Bearers in
References Railway Urban Turnout Systems.” Structural Monitoring
Allbiz. Sleepers, Reinforced-concrete. Accessed June 17, and Maintenance 1 (1): 131–157. doi:10.12989/
2016. <http://waasmunster.all.biz/en/sleepers-reinforced- smm.2014.1.1.131.
concrete-g32303#.V2QzPfkrKhc> Kaewunruen, S. 2014c. “Monitoring Structural Deterioration
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

AREMA (American Railway Engineering and Maintenance- of Railway Turnout Systems via Dynamic Wheel/Rail
of-Way Association). 2006. Manual for Railway Engineering Interaction.” Case Studies in Nondestructive Testing and
Chapter 30 Ties, Lanham, MD 20706, USA. Evaluation 1 (4): 19–24. doi:10.1016/j.csndt.2014.03.004.
Australian Rail Track Corporation. 2009. ETC-02-03 Steel Kaewunruen, S. 2015. “Acoustic and Dynamic Characteristics
Sleepers – Usage and Installation Standard. Sydney: of a Complex Urban Turnout Using Fibre-reinforced
Australian Rail Track Corporation. Foamed Urethane (FFU) Bearers.” Notes on Numerical
Awad, Z. K., T. Aravinthan, Y. Zhuge, and F. Gonzalez. 2012. Fluid Mechanics and Multidisciplinary Design 126: 377–
“A Review of Optimization Techniques Used in the Design 384. doi:10.1007/978-3-662-44832-8_45.
of Fibre Composite Structures for Civil Engineering Kaewunruen, S., Lewandrowski, T., Chamniprasart, K.,
Applications.” Materials & Design 33: 534–544. (2017), ​Dynamic responses of interspersed railway tracks
Binti Saadin, S. L., S. Kaewunruen, and D. Jaroszweski. 2017. to moving train loads, International Journal of Structural
“Heavy Rainfall and Flood Vulnerability of Singapore- Stability and Dynamics, 1850011, in press.
Malaysia High Speed Rail System.” Australian Journal of Kaewunruen, S., and A. M. Remennikov. 2008. “Experimental
Civil Engineering 14 (2): 123–131. doi:10.1080/14488353. Simulation of the Railway Ballast by Resilient Materials
2017.1336895. and its Verification by Modal Testing.” Experimental
Clarke, J. L. 1996. Structural Design of Polymer Composite – Techniques 32 (4): 29–35.
EUROCOMP Design Code and Handbook. London: E&FN Kaewunruen, S., and A. M. Remennikov. 2008b. “An
Spon. alternative rail pad tester for measuring dynamic
Degrieck, J., and W. V. Paepegem. 2001. “Fatigue Damage properties of rail pads under large preloads.” Experimental
Modelling of Fibre-reinforced Composite Materials Mechanics 48 (1): 55–64.
Review.” Applied Mechanics Reviews 54 (4): 279–300. Kaewunruen, S., and A. M. Remennikov. 2009. “Dynamic
European Federation of Railway Trackworks Contractors. Flexural Influence on a Railway Concrete Sleeper in Track
2007. High-output Installation of Y-steel-sleepers. System due to a Single Wheel Impact.” Engineering Failure
Accessed June 11, 2016. <http://www.efrtc.org/htdocs/ Analysis 16 (3): 705–712.
newsletters/Efrtc_Newsletter_2007_1.pdf> Kaewunruen, S., and A. M. Remennikov. 2016. “Current
Ferdous, W., and A. Manalo. 2014. “Failures of Mainline State of Practice in Railway Track Vibration Isolation:
Railway Sleepers and Suggested Remedies – Review of An Australian Overview.” Australian Journal of Civil
Current Practice.” Engineering Failure Analysis 44: 17–35. Engineering 14 (1): 63–71.
Ferdous, W., A. Manalo, T. Aravinthan, and G. Van Erp. Kaewunruen, S., A. M. Remennikov, and M. H. Murray.
2015a. “Composite Railway Sleepers: New Developments 2012. “Limit States Design of Railway Concrete Sleepers.”
and Opportunities.” IHHA 2015, Perth, Australia, June Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers: Transport
21–24, 2015. 165 (2): 81–85. doi:10.1680/tran.9.00050.
Ferdous, W., A. Manalo, G. Van Erp, T. Aravinthan, S. Kaewunruen, S., A. M. Remennikov, and M. H. Murray.
Kaewunruen, and A. Remennikov. 2015b. “Composite 2014. “Introducing a New Limit States Design Concept
Railway Sleepers – Recent Developments, Challenges and to Railway Concrete Sleepers: An Australian Experience.”
Future Prospects.” Composite Structures 134 : 158–168. Frontiers in Materials 1: 8. doi:10.3389/fmats.2014.00008.
Goldgabr, A. 2009. “Plastic Railroad Ties: Growing Market Kaewunruen, S., J. M. Sussman, and H. H. Einstein. 2015.
for Alternative Materials.” Market Commentary. “Strategic Framework to Achieve Carbon-efficient
Hagaman, B. R., and R. J. McAlphine. 1991. “ROA Timber Construction and Maintenance of Railway Infrastructure
Sleeper Development Project.” Conference on Railway Systems.” Frontiers in Environment Science 3: 6.
Engineering (6th Adelaide), Institution of Engineers, doi:10.3389/fenvs.2015.00006.
Australia, p. 233–237. Kaewunruen, S., J. M. Sussman, and A. Matsumoto. 2016.
Hernandez, F. C. R., K. Koch, and G. P. Barrera. 2007. Transit “Grand Challenges in Transportation and Transit
Cooperative Research Program. Transportation Research Systems.” Frontiers in Built Environment 2: 4. doi:10.3389/
fbuil.2016.00004.
 AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF STRUCTURAL ENGINEERING  17

Kimani, S. K., and S. Kaewunruen. 2017. “Free Vibrations of Remennikov, A. M., and S. Kaewunruen. 2007. “Resistance
Precast Modular Steel-concrete Composite Railway Track of Railway Concrete Sleepers to Impact Loading.” 7th
Slabs.” Steel and Composite Structures 24 (1): 113–128. International conference on shock & impact loads on
Koike, Y., T. Nakamura, K. Hayano, and Y. Momoya. 2014. structures, Beijing, China, October 17–19, p. 489–496.
“Numerical Method for Evaluating the Lateral Resistance Remennikov, A. M., M. H. Murray, and S. Kaewunruen.
of Sleepers in Ballasted Tracks.” Soils and Foundations 54 2012. “Reliability Based Conversion of a Structural Design
(3): 502–514. Code for Prestressed Concrete Sleepers.” Proceedings of the
Koller, G. 2015. “FFU Synthetic Sleeper – Projects in Europe.” Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part F: Journal of Rail
Construction and Building Materials 92: 43–50. and Rapid Transit 226: 155–173.
Kumaran, G., Devdas Menon, and K. Krishnan Nair. 2003. Rezaie, F., M. Bayat, and S. M. Farnam. 2016. “Sensitivity
“Dynamic Studies of Railtrack Sleepers in a Track Structure Analysis of Pre-stressed Concrete Sleepers for Longitudinal
System.” Journal of Sound and Vibration 268 (3): 485–501. Crack Prorogation Effective Factors.” Engineering Failure
Lampo, R. 2002. “Recycled Plastic Composite Railroad Analysis 66: 385–397.
Crossties.” Accessed June 08, 2016. <http://www.cif.org/ Rezaie, F., M. R. Shiri, and S. M. Farnam. 2012. “Experimental
Nom2002/Nom13_02.pdf> and Numerical Studies of Longitudinal Crack Control
Lankhorst. Plastic Sleeper. Netherlands. Accessed June 11, for Pre-stressed Concrete Sleepers.” Engineering Failure
2016. <http://www.lankhorstrail.com> Analysis 26: 21–30.
Leong, J., and M. H. Murray. 2008. “Probabilistic Analysis Sekisui. 2016. FFU Synthetic Railway Sleepers. Accessed June
of Train-track Vertical Impact Forces.” Proceedings of the 09, 2016. <http://www.sekisui.de/product/ffu/>
Institution of Civil Engineers Transport 161: 15–21. Setsobhonkul, S., S. Kaewunruen, and J. M. Sussman. 2017.
Manalo, A., T. Aravinthan, W. Karunasena, and A. Ticoalu. “Lifecycle Assessments of Railway Bridge Transitions
2010. “A Review of Alternative Materials for Replacing Exposed to Extreme Climate Events.” Frontiers in Built
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017

Existing Timber Sleepers.” Composite Structures 92 (3): Environment 3: 35. doi:10.3389/fbuil.2017.00035.

603–611. Shayan, A., and G. W. Quick. 1992. “Microscopic Features
McConnell, V. P. 2008. “Rail – An Evolving Market for FRP of Cracked and Uncracked Concrete Railway Sleepers.”
Components.” Reinforced Plastics 52 (11): 24–29. Materials Journal 89 (4): 348–361.
Miura, S., H. Takai, M. Uchida, and Y. Fukuda. 1998. “The Standards Australia. 1981. Allowable Stress Design for Steel
Mechanism of Railway Tracks.” Japan Rail Transport Beams and Columns. Australian Standard AS1250. Sydney:
Review 15: 38–45. Standards Australia.
Mrema, G. C. 2011. Chapter 7 – Structural Design. Rural Standards Australia. 2003. AS1085.14-2003 Railway Track
Structures in the Topics: Design and Development. Accessed Material – Part 14: Prestressed Concrete Sleepers. Sydney:
June 20, 2016. <http://www.fao.org/docrep/015/i2433e/ Standards Australia.
i2433e04.pdf> Standards Australia. 2005. Reliability-based Design of
Neville, A. M. 2011. Properties of Concrete. 5th ed. Essex: Structures. Australian Standard AS5104. Sydney: Standards
Prentice Hall. Australia.
Nosker, T., R. Renfree, J. Lynch, M. Lutz, B. Gillespie, K. E. Takai, H., Y. Sato, and K. Sato. 2006. “Japanese Twenty-
V. Ness, and R. G. Lampo. 1998. “A Performance-based five Years Experiences and Standardization of Synthetic
Approach to the Development of a Recycled Plastic/ Sleeper.” <http://www.railway-research.org/IMG/pdf/589.
Composite Crosstie.” ANTEC, Atlanta, Georgia, April pdf>
26–30. Tanaka, H., and A. Furukawa. 2008. “The Estimation Method
Pattamaprom, C., D. Dechojarassri, C. Sirisinha, and W. of Wheel Load and Lateral Force Using the Axle Box
Kanok-Nukulchai. 2005. Natural Rubber Composites for Acceleration.” 8th World Congress on Railway Research
Railway Sleepers: A Feasibility Study. Thailand: Thammasat (WCRR), May 18–22, 2008.
University. Thierfelder, T., and E. Sandström. 2008. “The Creosote
Prochazka, P. P., V. Dolezel, and T. S. Lok. 2009. “Optimal Content of Used Railway Crossties as Compared with
Shape Design for Minimum Lagrangian.” Engineering European Stipulations for Hazardous Waste.” Science of the
Analysis with Boundary Elements 33: 447–455. Total Environment 402: 106–112.
Qiao, P., J. F. Davalos, and M. G. Zipfel. 1998. “Modelling and Ticoalu, A., T. Aravinthan, and W. Karunasena. 2008. An
Optimal Design of Composite Reinforced Wood Railroad Investigation on the Stiffness of Timber Sleepers for the
Crosstie.” Composite Structures 41 (1): 87–96. Design of Fibre Composite Sleepers. Toowoomba, Australia:
RailCorp Engineering Specification. 2012. SPC 231: Timber University of Southern Queensland ePrints.
Sleepers and Bearers. Sydney: Australia. Transportation Technology Center. 2005. Wrapped
RailCorp Engineering Specification. 2012. SPC 232: Concrete Tie Performance Evaluation Report. Virginia, VA:
Sleepers. Sydney: Australia. Transportation Technology Center Inc.
Rail News. 2015. India Sanctions Rs.1000 Crore for Agartala- UIC (International Union of Railways). 2013. SUWOS
Akhaura (Indo-Bangla) Rail Project in the North East. (Sustainable Wooden Railway Sleepers). Pairs: UIC.
Accessed June 11, 2016. <http://www.railnews.co.in/india- Van Erp, G., and M. Mckay. 2013. “Recent Australian
sanctions-rs-1000-crore-for-agartala-akhaura-indo- Developments in Fibre Composite Railway
bangla-rail-project-in-the-north-east/> Sleepers.” Electronic Journal of Structural Engineering
Rajendran, R., and D.Tensing. 2015. “Study on Behaviour 13: 62–66.
of Composite Sleepers.”IJRET: International Journal of Woidasky, J. 2008. Railwaste – Production of Railway Sleepers
Research in Engineering and Technology 4:1–5. http:// by Mixed Plastic Waste. Berlin: Forschungs Forum
esatjournals.net/ijret/2015v04/i21/IJRET20150421001.pdf Sustainable Development.
 18  É. A. SILVA ET AL.

Wu, L., and S. Kaewunruen. 2017. Performance and Strategies.” International Journal of Production Economics
Durability of Concrete Structures in Railway Environment 81–82: 589–595.
under Extreme Climate. Proceedings of the 1st International Zarembski, A. M. 1993. “Concrete vs Wood Ties: Making the
Conference on Rail Transportation, Chengdu, China, July Economic Choice.” Conference on Maintaining Railway
10–13, 2017. Track, Determining Cost and Allocating Resources,
You, R., E. A. Silva, and S. Kaewunruen. 2017. Methodologies Arlington.
for Designing Railway Plastic and Composite Sleepers. Zhao, J., A. H. C. Chan, and M. P. N. Burrow. 2007. “Reliability
Chinese Journal of Railway Engineering. Analysis and Maintenance Decision for Railway Sleepers
Yun, W. Y., and L. Ferreira. 2003. “Prediction of the Demand of Using Track Condition Information.” The Journal of the
the Railway Sleepers: A Simulation Model for Replacement Operational Research Societyv 58 (8): 1047–1055.
Downloaded by [University of Florida] at 09:38 29 October 2017