Efficient Reuse of Railway Track Waste Materials

Abstract

Some of the most important materials that need recycling are generated by the construction industry. This waste has a multitude of disposal problems. In the specific case of railways, the treatment of materials taken from track maintenance and renewal operations is even more challenging. Every year, tons of track materials are replaced on rail tracks all over the world. These kilometres of rails, sleepers, and tons of ballast can be reused for other purposes. However, sometimes the environmental cost generated by their secondary use is worse than the problems involved in their disposal. This work describes a revised methodology to improve the recycling process of these waste track materials and considers the carbon footprint generated during the process along with important advantages and benefits for the economy and the environment. The reuse of these worn track materials is important to extend their life cycle and reduce environmental and economic costs in the long term. This research aims to analyse dismantled track material and evaluate possible second uses, taking into account the carbon footprint generated. Special attention has been placed on environmentally friendly uses such as fencing protected areas or green routes, among others.

A Sustainable Adaptive Reuse Management Model for Disused Railway Cultural Heritage to Boost Local and Regional Competitiveness

“…According to the cradle-to-cradle principle, which takes the biological processes of metabolic production from nature as a model to create a technical metabolic flow of industrial materials, a substantial and widespread heritage such as the railway system cannot remain unused. The entire abandoned railway system can have a second life, as within natural metabolisms, where each component can be derived from continuous recycling and reuse processes [2][3][4][5]. Indeed, this principle can also be applied to building components and up to entire buildings that undergo reuse or requalification interventions to increase and integrate their performance, with the aim of adequately satisfying requirements.…”