Investigation of mechanical/dynamic properties of carbon fiber reinforced polymer concrete for low noise railway slab

In this paper, the mechanical/dynamic property of the carbon fiber reinforced polymer concrete (CFRPC) was investigated to reduce the vibration/noise problems on rail slab. The CFRPC was fabricated with the different weight fraction of carbon fiber and different fiber length. The oxygen plasma treatment was performed to enhance the adhesion between the carbon fiber and epoxy resin. The surface of the carbon fiber with the oxygen plasma treatment was characterized using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The flexural strength of the CFRPC was measured using 3-point bending test. Also, the frequency dependent variation of the stiffness and damping of the CFRPC were measured by impact test to characterize their ability to reduce the vibration. In this study, the CFRPC with 12 mm of optimal fiber length and 2 wt% of the optimal fiber content showed 25.12 MPa flexural strength and 0.01954 damping value. Finally, it was found that the noise level of the railway using CFRPC sleeper was decreased by 4 dB compared to that using the polymer concrete sleeper, from the impact test of the scaled model of the railway structure.