Selection and ranking of rail vehicle components for optimal lightweighting using composite materials

The current performance requirements for the global rail industry demand that trains are more reliable, efficient and can accommodate an increased capacity for more passengers. Lightweight construction of rail vehicles is thus required to meet these requirements. This paper has identified the key components for lightweighting of rail vehicles using fibre reinforced polymer composite materials. A methodology used to select and rank those metallic components suitable for redesign in composite, developed as part of the ACIS (Advanced Composite Integrated Structures) UK project is described. From the audit, five demonstrator components – a cantilevered seat bracket, luggage rack module, intermediate end structure, body side structure and roof structure – were identified by the consortium using the methodology. These are components that the consortium believes to be the most suitable to demonstrate the benefit of a composite replacement in terms of integration potential, lightweighting benefits and commercial viability. Furthermore, rail car body structural components, forming the primary structure of a rail vehicle, were determined to be the most optimal components to replace in composites for maximum lightweighting of the sprung mass. It was estimated that a composite redesign of these components would result in a mass savings of 57% for intermediate end structures, 47% for body side structures and 51% for roof structures.