Additive manufacturing to increase lifespan and reduce costs of railway infrastructure

CEIT TECHNOLOGY CENTRE IS TAKING PART IN THE LIFERAIL PROJECT, THE AIM OF WHICH IS TO PROLONG THE LIFESPAN OF HIGH-SPEED RAILWAY AND TRAM RAILS WHILE AT THE SAME TIME REDUCING MAINTENANCE COSTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT.

The EU spends around 40 million euros every year on railway infrastructure, of which about a quarter goes on maintenance costs and 40% corresponds to the cost of rail. Therefore, rail lifespan translates directly into major financial and energy savings.

The aim of the LIFERAIL project, headed by ArcelorMittal and coordinated on a technical level by the Ceit Technology Centre, is to prolong the lifespan of high-speed and tram rails while at the same time ensuring traffic safety, reducing maintenance costs and environmental impact, and also ensuring sustainability in terms of maintenance operations.

Two complementary strategies will be used to set the project in motion. On the one hand, rail repair using additive manufacturing (AM), which seeks to significantly reduce costs and environmental impact as, instead of manufacturing, transporting and fitting new sections of rail, they are repaired in situ using AM. On the other hand, and with a view to prolonging the rail lifespan, the aim is to develop predictive maintenance strategies via the influence of rail repair using AM, which will enable costs to be optimised and reduced.

As a result, an attempt is being made to prolong rail lifespan before they need to be replaced, reducing environmental impact in terms of their manufacture. Moreover, rails that have been torn up after reaching the end of their lifespan will be able to be used to create new material in powdered form for repairs using AM, which will contribute towards the circular economy.

Project members: ArcelorMittal, Copasa, Metro Tenerife, Idonial and Ceit