The world's first "low-carbon and zero-corrosion" sleeper came out, and this subway was the first to

Rail Transit Exhibition News South Korea has successfully developed and installed the world's first environmentally friendly sleepers, greatly reducing the use of carbon emission building materials and cement.

The Korea Railway Technology Research Institute recently announced that the "environmentally friendly RC sleepers" developed by the institute have completed the trial laying on Incheon Metro Line 1. The sleeper is made of eco-friendly concrete material and glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) reinforcement, and is used in a real-world operating environment for the first time worldwide.

The test was conducted to verify the performance and durability of the Eco2crete RC Sleeper in real urban railway operating environments. In order to reduce the carbon emissions of traditional cement building materials, the Railway Technology Research Institute, together with Ulsan Institute of Science and Technology and Taeming Industry, has jointly developed a formula of "a large amount of cement instead of concrete", mainly using materials such as "blast furnace slag powder" and "calcium-based activator", a by-product of the steel industry.

According to reports, this new type of concrete has achieved 85% cement replacement and reduced carbon emissions by about 41%, while outperforming traditional RC sleepers in terms of key properties such as compressive strength and chloride ion permeability. In addition, the new sleepers are completely made of glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) to replace traditional steel bars (including A-beams), effectively avoiding the problem of steel corrosion and significantly improving the service life of the sleepers.

The eco-friendly RC sleeper not only meets the performance requirements of the Korean railway standard specification "RC sleeper (KRS TR 0009)", but also has passed the quality verification of the mass production line. At present, the test installation has been completed in the section from Incheon University Entrance Station to Central Park Station on Incheon Line 1.

Choi Jung-gyu, President of Incheon Transportation Corporation, said, "By applying eco-friendly RC sleepers for the first time in the world, Incheon Line 1 is at the forefront of achieving carbon neutrality goals and ESG management practices. As a professional transportation organization, we will continue to lead the development of a safer and more innovative future transportation culture. "

This research project is undertaken by the Korea National Science and Technology Research Institute (NST) Railway Technology Research Institute. "We have greatly improved durability by replacing cement with environmentally friendly materials and using advanced composite materials, while meeting the requirements of carbon neutrality policies and the actual needs of railway sites. In the future, we will cooperate with railway operators to fully promote this research result. "

Rail Transit Exhibition booth reservation

Free registration for the rail transit exhibition