Structural performance of heavy duty composite railway sleeper

Introduction • Heavy duty mono-block prestressed concrete sleeper currently suffers from rail-seat deterioration and unexpected cracking due to chemical attack. • Early failure of sleeper increases the track maintenance cost. • The production of cement for infrastructure (e.g., concrete sleeper) contributes to more than 5% of global carbon dioxide emission. • Composites are now an emerging materials because they are environmentally friendly, have high strength and good resistance to chemical attack.