<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>The railway infrastructure is a very important component of the world’s total transportation network. Investment in its construction and maintenance is significant on a global scale. Previously published life cycle assessment (LCA) studies performed on road and rail systems very seldom included infrastructures in detail, mainly choosing to focus on vehicle manufacturing and fuel consumption. This article presents results from an environmental study for railway steel bridge materials for the demonstration case of the Buna Bridge in Croatia. The goal of these analyses was to compare two different types of remediation works for railway bridges with different materials and construction types. In the first part, the environmental impact of the classical concrete bridge construction was calculated, whereas in the second one, an alternative new solution, namely, the strengthening of the old steel bridge with ultra-high-performance fibre-reinforced concrete (UHPFRC) deck, was studied. The results of the LCA show that the new solution with UHPFRC deck gives much better environmental performance. Up to now, results of LCA of railway open lines, railway bridges and tunnels have been published, but detailed analyses of the new solution with UHPFRC deck above the old bridge have not previously been performed.</p></abstract>

The railway infrastructure is a very important component of the world’s total transportation network. Investment in its construction and maintenance is significant on a global scale. Previously published life cycle assessment (LCA) studies performed on road and rail systems very seldom included infrastructures in detail, mainly choosing to focus on vehicle manufacturing and fuel consumption. This article presents results from an environmental study for railway steel bridge materials for the demonstration case of the Buna Bridge in Croatia. The goal of these analyses was to compare two different types of remediation works for railway bridges with different materials and construction types. In the first part, the environmental impact of the classical concrete bridge construction was calculated, whereas in the second one, an alternative new solution, namely, the strengthening of the old steel bridge with ultra-high-performance fibre-reinforced concrete (UHPFRC) deck, was studied. The results of the LCA show that the new solution with UHPFRC deck gives much better environmental performance. Up to now, results of LCA of railway open lines, railway bridges and tunnels have been published, but detailed analyses of the new solution with UHPFRC deck above the old bridge have not previously been performed.

Environmental life cycle assessment of railway bridge materials using UHPFRC

Zavod za gradbeništvo Slovenije – ZAG, Dimičeva 12, 1000 Ljubljana,

Materials and Geoenvironment

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

{"article-title":"Environmental life cycle assessment of railway bridge materials using UHPFRC"}

The railway infrastructure is a very important component of the world’s total transportation network. Investment in its construction and maintenance is...

Environmental life cycle assessment of railway bridge materials using UHPFRC

Published Online: Feb 18, 2017

Page range: 183 - 198

Received: Aug 23, 2016

Accepted: Sep 30, 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/rmzmag-2016-0017

Keywords
railway, materials, life cycle assessment, bridge, environmental

© 2016 Karmen Fifer Bizjak et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Environmental life cycle assessment of railway bridge materials using UHPFRC

Published Online: Feb 18, 2017

Page range: 183 - 198

Received: Aug 23, 2016

Accepted: Sep 30, 2016

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1515/rmzmag-2016-0017

Keywordsrailway, materials, life cycle assessment, bridge, environmental

© 2016 Karmen Fifer Bizjak et al., published by De Gruyter Open

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
railway, materials, life cycle assessment, bridge, environmental