EP1860240A1

EP1860240A1 - Depositing ballast into a railway

Info

Publication number: EP1860240A1
Application number: EP06010889A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Wouter Lampe
Original assignee: Voestalpine Railpro BV
Current assignee: Voestalpine Railpro BV
Priority date: 2006-05-24
Filing date: 2006-05-24
Publication date: 2007-11-28

Abstract

The invention is concerned with a method to deposit ballast into the railway (6) from with ballast filled wagons (1). Liquid is spread over the ballast near the opening (2) at low level through which the ballast is unloaded from the wagon by gravity action. This provides that dust generation is suppressed. The liquid is dispensed front one or more openings (9,10) in the direction of the ballast as jets. The train displaces during depositing to spread the ballast along the track.

Description

It is common practise to deposit stony, rigid debris like ballast (usually gravel or broken basalt or granite) directly from the wagons with so called low dumpers into the track, to make the loose deposited ballast bed of the railway for train, tram or subway traffic. As is known, lots of dust is released in the atmosphere, which is unhealthy for the personnel present and the surroundings, especially at tunnels, stations and in residential areas.
To prevent dust formation during unloading, it is known to wash the ballast prior to depositing it from above into the wagons, to wash the ballast clean and make it wet. Then the ballast arrives wet into the wagons.
As long as the ballast is sufficient wet at the time it is deposited from below the wagons, indeed less dust is generated. However, because of the large time span between washing and depositing into the railway, it is not sure that the ballast is sufficient wet at the time of depositing. Besides, additional dust is generated during transport and depositing of the washed ballast in the wagons by friction/abrasion of the moving ballast in the wagons. Thus, washed ballast insufficiently ensures dust free depositing.
It is therefore proposed, during depositing of the ballast into the railway, to spread water or another fluid (liquid) over the ballast, in particular near the opening where the ballast exits the wagon, such that said water deposits the into the atmosphere released dust from the ballast or prevents that such dust is released into the atmosphere during depositing from below the wagons. Based on a practical point of view water is preferred, and in the following the fluid is for ease of understanding called water, although the invention is not limited to the use of water. Possibly, an agent is added to the water, e.g. to improve the dust suppression or anti freeze or bacteria killers (e.g. anti fouling or anti legionella) or anti foaming or a foaming agent.
For an optimum operation it is preferred, to spray or jet the water such that it surrounds the from the wagon coming ballast e.g. as a cloud of mist of (fine) droplets, such that the effect is maximised with minimum water consumption.
The water can be spread by spraying it as a gentle, mist-like spray, e.g. such that some kind of aerosol is created, with hardly or no mechanical effect on the ballast, or can be spread as a powerful jet, e.g. so powerful that it removes the to the ballast adhering matter mechanically, or each type of spreading between those two extremes. The water is preferably in the direction of the from the wagon coming ballast dispensed/sprayed/jetted, e.g. as a cone or fan. If dispensing takes place from several dispensing openings for the depositing opening in the wagon from which the ballast is deposited, those dispensing openings are preferably arranged such that the jets/sprays there from partly mutually overlap, such that a substantially continuous jet/spray pattern is created.
The water can be spread by e.g. a hydraulic or pneumatic pressure head in the nozzle. For very fine spraying it can be advantageous to separately supply, e.g. via a separate conduit, water (possibly pressurised) and compressed air/gas, respectively, which fluids are combined within or upstream from the nozzle.
The skilled person can without undue effort design the device with which the invention can be embodied, such as pneumatic or hydraulic pumping units, valves, conduits, control units to operate the pumping units, valves and possibly other equipments that needs to be controlled, storage tank(s) for water, etc. This equipment can completely or partly be part of the relevant train of which the ballast depositing wagon is part of, or completely or partly be separated there from. Equipment can be shared between a plurality or all relevant wagons of the train; each wagon can have equipment of its own; or a combination of both is possible.
The control unit is e.g. designed to start/end spraying immediately before, simultaneously with or immediately after starting or ending, respectively, depositing ballast, such that no water is wasted. The control unit contains e.g. a sensor detecting the starting/ending of depositing ballast to thus automatically start or end, respectively, spraying of the relevant nozzles, e.g. by operating of a pumping unit of shut off valve to start/stop the water supply.
Each wagon of the train can at its depositing opening(s) be provided with one or more thereto mounted dispensing nozzles/openings to dispense water there from. Preferably those nozzles are directly pointed to the depositing opening of the wagon or the ballast coming there from. A wagon can be provided with a water source of its own, or the water supply is for a number or all wagons of the train in common, e.g. located on ) a separate wagon, such that under those circumstances the water storage is carried along by the train. It is however also feasible, that the water source is external to the train, e.g. located onto a wagon at an adjacent track or stationary next to the track.
Water lines are connected to the water supply and the nozzles and contain e.g. valves to control the water supply. The water will typically by supplied from the source to the nozzles with the aid of a pumping unit, e.g. connected to the water line. The pumping unit can e.g. be designed to pressurise ) the water source (e.g. by adding additional air to the air space above the liquid level within the water tank), or be designed to draw water from the tank/pump water to the dispensing nozzles (e.g. a membrane or piston pump). If spraying is carried out with air/gas support, a gas compression pump is also present and also piping that is designed for that and connected to that and the dispensing nozzle.
Also feasible is a unit separate from the wagons with nozzle(s) and possibly further equipment for spraying, wherein said unit is e.g. designed to be removably mounted to a wagon, or located next to it, e.g. displacable. Thus, savings related to spraying equipment are possible, e.g. if ballast comes simultaneously from only one or a limited number of wagons of the train each time, which is typical. Spraying equipment is then only required for the depositing wagons.
The enclosed drawing illustrates a non-limiting embodiment of the invention, showing in fig. 1 in side view a part of a train with four with ballast filled wagons 1 and wagon 7 filled with a water tank, and in fig. 2 a separate wagon.
From the water tank piping (not shown) extends to all wagons 1. Each wagon 1 has (viz. fig. 2) near the depositing opening 2 at the bottom nozzles (not shown) that are mounted to a frame 3 (schematically shown) mounted to the wagon 1, for spraying water to suppress dust formation. The depositing opening 2 is as usual designed to deposit the stones aside by gravitational action, wherein the stones are stored in the wagon within a funnel shaped container 4 with a central exit at the bottom to which a movable depositing gutter connects to be able to displace the stone jet transversely across the track 6. During depositing the train/wagon 1 displaces to simultaneously spread the ballast along the track.
The invention is also applicable to different wagon types, e.g. with more than one depositing opening 2 along its length.
WO91/15630 discloses a dust suppression system for a railway ballast cleaning vehicle. The vehicle, running across the track, digs ballast from the ballast bed and conveys it upward to a sieve within the vehicle and from there to depositing funnels at the vehicle, with which the ballast is brought back into the ballast bed. The ballast runs through the vehicle in a single layer thickness (stones are only next and not above each other) and passes subsequently many water jets at location where dust is created, a.o. during taking up, the conveyors, the sieve and the funnels. Thus, all ballast moving through the vehicle will already be wetted by water jets, before arriving at the depositing funnels.
Different from that, this invention preferably provides, that the ballast is only wetted by jets when the ballast flows from the vehicle. Besides, this invention is concerned with a ballast depositing wagon or a train from such wagons, having a large storage room for depositing material and closable depositing openings, and that is designed such that only by gravity action the ballast can be deposited through the openings and the storage space thus can be cleared completely. The ballast flows during depositing in a multiple layer thickness (stones are in two, three or more layers on top of each other) from the depositing opening. This wagon, or the train to which it belongs, is free from equipment to fill the storage space with ballast in a self contained manner. During depositing, the wagon or train is not supplied with ballast. The already completely with ballast filled wagon is brought to the desired location, where the ballast is deposited. On its way through the wagon during depositing, the ballast preferably passes jet(s) only at the depositing opening(s) . Differently spoken, on its way through the wagon during depositing the ballast is only at the depositing apenang(s) wetted by jet (s). Typically, a ballast depositing wagon is active at night, and a ballast cleaning vehicle during daylight.
A possible object of the invention is to be able to deposit ballast at night into the railway in a safe way. In this connection, sufficient lighting is important.
Preferably the ballast is sprayed according to one or more of the following manners: from two (preferably opposite) sides; from two levels (preferably from two sides); with different number of sprayers from two levels or two sides; (preferably from the same side) under different angles of at least 10, 20 or 30 degrees (preferably in upward direction); (preferably at the high level) substantially parallel to the out flow direction; (preferably at the high level) directed to the inner side of the wagon; from about the level of the frame and/or far there below; from pivoting mounted sprayers (preferably mounted to a pivoting depositing gutter); during moving across a sub surface (such as a depositing gutter) or moving through the air.
Preferably one or more of the following measurements are applied: the wagon is provided with illumination to illuminate the depositing opening(s) and/or the ballast bed below said opening(s) at night, wherein this illumination is preferably designed such that the environment and/or operator at the operating platform of the wagon has minimal disturbance from the light coming there from, for which the illumination is preferably mounted at or within the space below the frame of the wagon, e.g. between two running wheel shafts and/or preferably at about the same level or above it; a separate wagon is preferably approximately half way within the train of ballast depositing wagons and is provided with one or more of a water tank (contents e.g. 10,000 litres), water pump, combustion motor, generator such that the motor drives the pump and generator and pressurised water and steam are supplied to the ballast depositing wagons through piping; each ballast depositing wagon has a dedicated manual operation device to switch the sprayers on.
With the wagon of fig. 1, in an alternative embodiment three sprayers 9 are mounted at the same level with mutual spacing to the external beam of the frame 8 and directed towards the closable opening at the bottom of the ballast container 4 and thus towards the inside of the wagon 1. The central sprayer 9 inclines downward over approximately 45 degrees; the other two are directed horizontally. At the back of the depositing gutter 5 near the lower edge are two sprayers 10 present at the same level and with mutual spacing and directed parallel to the wall of the gutter 5. During depositing the ballast flowing from the bottom of the space 4 is first sprayed from the one side by the sprayers 9 while the ballast slides/rolls over the gutter. Thereafter the ballast is sprayed from the other side by the sprayers 10 after the ballast is fallen from the gutter 5.
Centrally below the frame 8, close to a wheel set, a lamp 11 is mounted, of which the light beam is directed onto the gutter 5 and away from the operating platform 12.
All described or in the drawing illustrated features provide in isolation or arbitrary combination the subject matter of this invention.

Claims

Method to deposit ballast into the railway from a train of mutually coupled and at a different location with ballast filled wagons, during which liquid is spread over the ballast near the opening at low level through which the ballast is unloaded from the wagon by gravity action, such that said liquid provides that the in the atmosphere released dust is deposited or prevents that such dust is released in the atmosphere during depositing from below the wagons, wherein the liquid is dispensed from one or more openings in the direction of the ballast as jets and the train displaces during depositing to spread the ballast along the track.
Method according to claim 1, wherein the ballast is sprayed according to one or more of the following manners: from two sides; from two levels; with a different number of sprayers from two sides or two levels; under angles differing over at least 10, 20 or 30 degrees; substantially horizontal; substantially parallel to the debouching flow; directed to the inside of the wagon; from approximately the level of the frame and/or sufficiently below that; from pivoting mounted sprayers; during moving across a sub surface, or during falling through the air.
Method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein at night the depositing opening(s) and/or the ballast bed below said opening(s) are illuminated from the wagon, wherein said light preferably minimally disturbs the environment and/or the operator at the operating platform of the wagon, for which the illumination preferably is mounted at or within the space below the frame of the wagon, e.g. between two running wheel shafts and/or preferably approximately at the same level or above it.
Method according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein liquid and/or electricity are supplied from a separate wagon, preferably located approximately half way the train and preferably equipped with one or more of a liquid tank, water pump, combustion motor, generator.
Device to carry out the method according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4.