In-Depth Lifecycle Assessment of Ballasted Railway Track and Slab Track Considering Varying Subsoil Conditions

Dieter Christof Knabl*, Matthias Landgraf

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

This study assesses and compares lifecycle (LC) greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the two main railway track construction types: ballasted track and slab track. In this study, preexisting soil conditions are considered, as they significantly influence necessary measures during the construction phase for each type. This study is executed for Austrian boundary conditions with speeds up to 250 km/h. The results show that ballasted track is associated with 11–20% lower LC GHG emissions, whereby the variation in relative emission reduction is associated with additional soil reinforcement treatments due to varying preexisting soil conditions. Poor preexisting soil conditions increase LC GHG emissions by 26%, underlying the necessity to integrate this parameter into the lifecycle assessment of railway track. In contrast to the higher service life of slab track construction, this type amounts to higher masses of concrete and demands more extensive measures for soil enhancement due to the higher stiffness of the track panel. Only in tunnel areas does slab track cause lower GHG emissions since soil reinforcements are not necessary due to an existing concrete base layer after tunnel construction. For both construction types, over 80% of the GHG emissions stem from material production. Hence, circular economy as well as innovations within steel and concrete production processes hold significant potential for reducing GHG emissions.

Original languageEnglish
Article number12974
JournalSustainability
Volume15
Issue number17
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Sept 2023

Keywords

  • ballasted track
  • environmental impacts
  • global warming potential (GWP)
  • greenhouse gas (GHG)
  • lifecycle assessment
  • railway track
  • slab track
  • subsoil
  • substructure

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Computer Science (miscellaneous)
  • Environmental Science (miscellaneous)
  • Geography, Planning and Development
  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Hardware and Architecture
  • Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law
  • Computer Networks and Communications
  • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

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