Recycling and utilization of waste cross-sleepers
One of the “Pirotex” spheres of application is recycling of waste cross-sleepers. The problem is that polygons, where waste cross-sleepers are buried, are overfulled, as a rule. Herewith, Russia takes the third in the world (after the USA and China) in the extension of railway – 121 thous. km. There are from 1 640 to 2 000 cross-sleepers in one kilometer. Each of them is treated with carbonous creosote oil (creosote). It's not surprising, that the recycling of waste cross-sleepers became a sore subject.
The scheme, which is used for waste cross-sleepers recycling, is looked the following way today: 1. cross-sleepers are kept illegitimately, paying ecological fines in case of control; 2. Instead of the third hazard rating, people try to get the findings of the fourth or even the fifth hazard rating of these wastes, and either burn them, or pass these cross-sleepers to people for private outdoor building-up, despite the harm, that damages the environment and human's organism.
THE MAIN CHARACTERISTICS OF CROSS-SLEEPERS:
| Parametr | Rate | Unit |
| Size | 2750x250x180, 2750х230х160 | mm |
| Mass | 80-100 | kg |
| Material | pine, white-wood, fir-tree, larch, birch | |
|
Wood volume |
0,1012-0,1237 | m3 |
| Life time | from 7 to 40 | year |
|
Norm of antiseptic absorbing |
79 - 90 | kg/m3 |
THE WAYS OF WASTE CROSS-SLEEPERS RECYCLING
The main legal ways of waste cross-sleepers recycling (except burial) include: burning, gasification and pyrolysis. All of them are, anyway, the opportunity of waste cross-sleepers recommission, but the effectiveness of each deserves certain consideration.
BURNING
The most wide-spread way of the recycling of waste cross-sleepers, as its realization doesn't cost a lot. The process consists of simple cross-sleepers burning, but you can get ash and volatile toxic matters (for example, acetone, phenanthrenes, phenols etc.), which get into the air, as final products. The last mentioned can be the reason for oncological diseases of people, during long-term effect. Burning – isn't only economically unfruitful, but it is also dangerous..
GASIFICATION
This method is thousand times safer and non-hazardous, than burning. Fuel (cross-sleepers) during gasification converts to the dusty flow. According to the statistics, most gas-generators, which serve for cross-sleepers gasification aren't economically fruitful and have low productivity under relatively high expenses for exploitation.ю.
PYROLYSIS
The most advanced way of the waste cross-sleepers recycling. The reaction (airtight thermal cracking) proceeds in enclosed space, that's why waste cross-sleepers pyrolysis is the most sustainable way of their recycling. The economy of the process is provided by means of using derivative products.
Carbon – 25%
Liquid fuel – 18%
Gas - 57%
You should understand, that only treated with creosote or any other hydrocarbon preservations cross-sleepers can be entitled to pyrolysis. Some factories for cross-sleepers treatment started to use water-born wood preservatives, based on cuprum. Such cross-sleepers aren't entitled to pyrolysis, as they don't contain hydrocarbons for distillation.
On the photo below you can see carbon, got under the waste cross-sleepers pyrolysis process. Based on the research findings, sorption activity of the cross-sleepers' carbon is slightly higher, than birch's carbon. On the second photo you can see gas burning, also got under the cross-sleepers pyrolysis.
'Technokomplex” company experimentally proved, that you can do economically fruitful and environmentally clear business of waste cross-sleepers recycling, by means of pyrolysis plant "Pirotex".