Elastic Components for Reduction of Vibrations in Railway Superstructure

Optimization of noise and vibration transmission into adjacent buildings especially in urban lines, is the target of research and development projects on and off the track for many years. Getzner USA, Inc., located in Charlotte, has been providing solutions for rail application for more many years. Starting by developing different PUR-foams, like Sylomer(r) and Sylodyn(r), Getzner started already in its early years to build up know-how in engineered elasticity reducing operating cost and providing vibration mitigation solutions. As the requirements of railway operators have changed, because of ever-increasing traffic loads and rising requirements for a "quiet" track, also Getzner expanded its portfolio of railway products. Using additional elastic components in track superstructure might reduce the dynamic loads caused by the vehicle and transmitted into the rails, rail fasteners and the track superstructure. Due to defined degree of elasticity of the elastic components furthermore the vibration levels can be reduced efficiently. Long-term results and comparisons between tracks with and without above mentioned elements are now available on a wider range from different operators around the world. These results show significant reduction of vibration transmission into adjacent buildings on one hand and increased lifetime of the track quality on the other hand.