CHANGES IN PROPERTIES AND THE INTERNAL STRUCTURE OF POLYETHYLENE POLYMER RAILWAY SLEEPERS

Elements of the railway infrastructure are subject to difficult weather conditions, as well as changing dynamic loads resulting from the operation of a given part of the infrastructure. The following article presents an analysis of the internal macro and microstructure of a polymer railway sleeper made of reinforced polyethylene. The aim of the research was to obtain the results of structure, analysis of hardness measurements and identification of structure inconsistencies and the presence of other structural components in recycled polyethylene substrates. In terms of the tested material properties of the polyethylene sleepers, no significant changes in strength and plastic stability were found for the samples made of polyethylene tested before and after exposure to varying atmospheric conditions in the climatic chamber.