High-Speed Railways: Environmental Impact and Pollution Prevention and Control

By Yulong He, Wei Tao and Changgen Mei

High-Speed Railways: Environmental Impact and Pollution Prevention and Control considers environmental pollution and pollution control technology in the construction and operation of high-speed rail infrastructure. In six chapters, this new volume introduces high speed rail and environmental impact, considers environmental pollution and prevention in high speed railways, and covers the prediction, measurement and prevention of key environmental aspects of the railway. The title gives engineers the means to understand and mitigate the major environmental impacts of building and operating high-speed railways in the modern world.

High-speed railways offer a low-carbon and environmentally-friendly future for public railways. However, building and operating high speed railways at scale causes stress both to the environment and to people living nearby. Impacts include noise, vibration, air and water pollution, electromagnetic radiation, and solid waste from construction sites and the normal operation of the railway. In turn, analyzing the impact of high speed rail has grown in urgency.

• Details the impact of high-speed rail engineering on people and the environment, also considering technological solutions
• Covers a wide range of environmental impacts stemming from the construction and operation of high-speed rail
• Gives insights into the prediction, measurement and prevention of environmental impact, including noise, vibration and electromagnetic radiation
• Provides practical information based on established engineering practice building and operating high-speed rail in China
• Includes the latest standards and specifications from China and the ISO in relation to high-speed rail

• Language: English
• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Release date: Mar 8, 2023
• ISBN: 9780443136788

Yulong He

He Yulong is a Professor in the Faculty of Geosciences and Environmental Engineering, at Southwest Jiaotong University, China. His research focuses on rail transit environmental protection. He has published three monographs and more than 50 papers.

Book preview

Preface

High-speed railway has been developed rapidly in a number of countries because it offers a low-carbon and environmentally friendly means of public transport. However, noise, vibration, electromagnetic, and other environmental pollution caused by the large-scale construction and operation of high-speed railway not only induced remarkable stress to environment along the line but also affected the working and living environment of people along the line, the production and usage of precision instruments, and the safety of ancient buildings. Therefore there is a need to analyze the impact of high-speed railway on the sound, water, atmospheric, and electromagnetic environment and take effective measures to prevent and control the environmental pollution induced by high-speed railway. These efforts could minimize its negative impact on the environment and improve the environmental quality along the line, so as to promote the green and sustainable development of high-speed railway.

This book will bring together the sources of environmental pollution such as noise and vibration, water pollution, air pollution, and solid waste and provide corresponding control measures during the construction period of high-speed railway. This book will also comprise chapters detailing concerns regarding prediction methods of noise and vibration, field test of noise and vibration, and pollution control technologies during the operation period of high-speed railway. In addition, this book will also summarize the sources of water pollution, air pollution, and the solid waste and corresponding prevention method during the operation period of high-speed railway. More importantly, the controlling measures described in this book are based on the engineering practice of high-speed railway in China, the data regarding noise and vibration are mainly from field measurements, and this book introduces the important pollution prevention and control measures that are already applied in high-speed railway in China. The book will be an enlightening practical guide for engineers and postgraduates in the field of high-speed railway environmental protection.

Finally, many people contributed to making this book as accurate and as informative as possible. We would like to thank Dr. Hongrui Xu and Dr. Yuanpeng He from Southwest Jiaotong University for reviewing and providing value insights for Chapter 3. We also would like to thank all gentlemen from companies and institutions for providing artworks and materials. Finally, we also wish to thank the editorial team of Elsevier for their patience and understanding during the long process of developing this book.

Yulong He, Wei Tao and Changgen Mei

January 2023

Chapter 1

Overview of high-speed railway

Abstract

This chapter described the definition of high-speed rail, the classification of high-speed railway track, and the classification of trains of high-speed railway.

Keywords

Slab ballastless track; bi-block ballastless track; harmony China railway high-speed; CR series of Chinese standard EMU

Contents

Outline

1.1 High-speed railway track 2

1.1.1 Slab ballastless track 2

1.1.2 Bi-block ballastless track 2

1.2 Trains of high-speed railway 4

1.2.1 Harmony China railway high-speed (CRH) 5

1.2.2 CR series of Chinese standard EMU (CEMU) (Fuxing series) 5

According to the definition of International Union of Railways (UIC), high-speed rail contains three aspects: (1) newly built special lines with a designed speed of 250 km/h or above, or existing lines with speed increased to 200~220 km/h, (2) electric multiple unit (EMU) train, and (3) special communication, signal and train control system. China’s Code for Design of High Speed Railway (TB 10621-2014) defines high-speed railway as a newly built standard gauge passenger dedicated railway with a design speed of 250–350 km/h and running EMU trains.

High-speed rail combines many different elements, which constitute a whole, integrated system, as follows: an infrastructure for new lines designed for speeds of 250 km/h and above; upgraded existing lines for speeds of up to 200 or even 220 km/h, including interconnecting lines between high-speed sections; its rolling stock, specifically designed for trainsets; telecommunications, signaling, operating conditions, and equipment.

According to UIC, by the end of 2021, 20 countries including China, Spain, Japan, France, and Germany will have high-speed railways of 56,129 km, 15 countries will have high-speed railways of 22,562 km, and 23 countries will have high-speed railways of 18,781 km, which are all under construction [1]. By the end of 2021, China will build and operate high-speed railways of more than 40,000 km.

In terms of the maximum operation speed, the highest operating speed of China’s high-speed railways is 350 km/h, followed by 320 km/h in Japan, France, and Morocco, 305 km/h in the Republic of Korea, 300 km/h in Spain, Germany, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and Saudi Arabia, and 250 km/h in Denmark and Turkey.

1.1 High-speed railway track

The track is composed of rail, fastener, sleeper and track bed, etc., which are the foundation of the train. High-speed railway track structure is divided into two categories: ballasted and ballastless (ballast) track, with ballastless track structure being the main track structure. Ballasted track is a track structure that uses gravel and other loose particles and rail sleepers as the foundation under the track, while ballastless track is a track structure that uses concrete and other integral structures as the foundation under the track. Newly built 250 km/h high-speed railway mostly adopts ballasted track, while newly built 300 km/h and above high-speed railway mostly uses ballastless track.

1.1.1 Slab ballastless track

The track slab, prefabricated reinforced concrete slab or prestressed reinforced concrete slab, is the main component of the slab track. The form of track plate mainly has China Railway Track System (CRTS)Ⅰtype plate ballastless track (CRTSⅠslab track), CRTSⅡplate ballastless track (CRTSⅡslab track), and CRTS Ⅲ type plate ballastless track (CRTS Ⅲ slab track) [2].

CRTS type I plate ballastless track is a unit plate ballastless track structure form with prefabricated track slabs laid on a reinforced concrete base (concrete base) poured on-site, adjusted by cement asphalt mortar and limited by a convex baffle (Fig. 1.1).

Figure 1.1 Schematic diagram of transverse section of CRTSI ballastless track. (A) Ballastless track built on subgrade. (B) Ballastless track built on bridge.

CRTSⅡslab track is a longitudinal connected plate ballastless track structure form with prefabricated track plate laid on the supporting layer paved on-site or reinforced concrete base poured on-site and adjusted by cement emulsified asphalt mortar (Fig. 1.2).

Figure 1.2 Schematic diagram of transverse section of CRTS Ⅱ slab track. (A) Ballastless track built on subgrade. (B) Ballastless track built on bridge.

CRTS Ⅲ slab track is a unit slab ballastless track structure form with prefabricated track slab with a shoulder on reinforced concrete base poured on-site, adjusted by self-compacting concrete, and limited by grooves and tabs set in base and self-compacting concrete layer (Fig. 1.3).

Figure 1.3 Schematic diagram transverse section of CRTS Ⅲ slab track. (A) Ballastless track built on subgrade. (B) Ballastless track built on bridge.

1.1.2 Bi-block ballastless track

Bi-block sleeper, formed by using a steel truss to connect two concrete support blocks, is the main component of double-block ballastless track. Its form is mainly CRTSⅠ bi-block ballastless track and a small amount of CRTSⅡ bi-block ballastless track.

CRTSⅠbi-block ballastless track is a ballastless track structure form that assembles prefabricated double-block type rail sleepers into rail rows and pours the rail sleepers into a reinforced concrete track bed by pouring concrete on-site (Fig. 1.4).

Figure 1.4 Schematic diagram transverse section of CRTSⅠ bi-block ballastless track. (A) Ballastless track built on subgrade. (B) Ballastless track built on bridge.

Each type of track varies in structure, stiffness, and other physical and mechanical parameters, which causes a difference in the noise and environmental vibration characteristics generated by each type of trainset.

1.2 Trains of high-speed railway

Trains of high-speed railway are a group of trainsets consisting of a moving car (powered) and a trailer (unpowered) that are self-powered, fixed group, maneuverable at both ends, and of integrated design. According to the type of power source, the trainsets of high-speed railways can be divided into two categories: EMU with electricity as the power source and diesel multiple unit (DMU) with an internal combustion engine as the power source.

According to the arrangement of power and drive equipment, high-speed trainsets can be divided into two categories: concentrated power multiple units and separated power multiple units. The power equipment of a power-concentrated rolling unit is concentrated on one or both vehicles of the train, while the power equipment of a separated power multiple unit is dispersed on several vehicles, and each vehicle is capable of carrying passengers.

At present, the main types of high-speed railway trains in the world are TGV and Thalys in France, ICE in Germany, ETR and AGV in Italy, N700 and E5 in Japan, and Harmony CRH and Fuxing CR trainsets in China.

1.2.1 Harmony China railway high-speed (CRH)

The prototype of CRH1 series is the Canadian Bombardier Regina C2008 type, the prototype of CRH2 series is the Japanese Kawasaki Heavy Industries Shinkansen E2 series 1000 Fantai, and the prototype of CRH3 series is the German Siemens ICE-3 trains. The power base of the CRH5 series is the Pendolino wide-body pendulum train from Francea Alstom without the installation of the pendulum function, and prototype of the car body of the CRH5 series is an Italian railway ETR pendulum locomotive set. Table 1.1 lists the basic characteristics of harmony CRH.

Table 1.1

Source: Data from http://www.china-emu.cn.

1.2.2 CR series of Chinese standard EMU (CEMU) (Fuxing series)

The Fuxing series high-speed trains currently include the CR400 series and CR300 series, where the operating speed of 400AF and 400BF of CR400 series is 350 km/h, and the operating speed of 300AF and 300BF of CR300 series is 250 km/h. The CEMU is fully capable of adapting to various geological conditions and operating environments and can realize the compatibility of rolling stock technology in different regions.

It should be noted that each type of trainset varies in axle load, underspring mass, length, operating speed, and other parameters, which causes a difference in the noise and environmental vibration characteristics generated by each type of trainset (Table 1.2).

Table 1.2

Source: Data from http://www.china-emu.cn.

High-speed railways will cause impacts on the surrounding ecology and environment both during construction and operation. This book discusses only environmental pollution and does not involve ecological impacts.

Chapter 2

Environmental pollution and control measures of high-speed railway projects during construction period

Abstract

The impact of high-speed railway project on the environment during the construction period is mainly ecological damage and environmental pollution. Noise sources of high-speed railway project during the construction period mainly include noise generated by machinery and vehicle transportation, as well as blasting construction noise. Vibration during the construction period of high-speed railway projects is mainly generated by power-type construction machinery and equipment, heavy transport vehicles, vibration generated by pile construction, and blasting construction. This chapter introduced the regulation for noise and vibration control. Moreover, the wastewater mainly comes from the wastewater generated from construction operations, the washing water of construction machinery and transportation vehicles, and the domestic sewage generated by construction personnel. Furthermore, the exhaust gas emitted from the construction machinery, the smoke from the blasting operation, and the dust generated from the earthwork and transportation vehicles will affect the air environment near the construction site. In addition, domestic garbage generated by construction camps shall be collected and sent to the sanitation department for unified and centralized treatment, and the abandoned soil and ballast shall be transported to the designed abandoned soil site for