Mechanical properties of foamed polyurethane solidified ballasted track

Foamed Polyurethane Solidified Ballasted Track (FPSBT), an innovative railway track, is formed by solidifying ballast bed with foamed polyurethane. Compared with the traditional Discrete Ballasted Track (DBT), FPSBT does not require regular maintenance such as tamping and cleaning. However, limited studies exist on the mechanical properties of FPSBT. In this study, Laboratory experiments are conducted on polyurethane samples to investigate the effects of polyurethane density on the mechanical properties of FPSBT. Furthermore, the performance of DBT and FPSBT with different polyurethane densities are compared, and the recommended polyurethane density is obtained. FPSBT exhibited negligible accumulation of deformation under cyclic loads, indicating excellent performance of FPSBT owing to the anti-deformation properties of polyurethane. Further, a track load vehicle test is conducted. FPSBT exhibited better load-transmitting ability than DBT. Finally, the construction and application of FPSBT in China are introduced. This study is expected to contribute to realizing a more extensive application of FPSBT.