Evaluation of the structural integrity of hybrid railway carriage structures including the ageing effects of composite materials

In order to examine the structural integrity of hybrid railway carriage structures of Korean Tilting Train eXpress due to the degraded properties of composite materials under ground environments, T300/AD6005 graphite/epoxy composite specimens were exposed to accelerated ageing conditions including ultraviolet radiation, temperature and moisture for 2000 h. It was found that the mechanical properties of composite specimens after exposure to accelerated ageing environments were lower than those of unexposed specimens, and decreased as the ageing time increases. The values of the degraded properties were used in the structural analysis to check the design requirements of hybrid railway carriage structures caused by environmental degradation of composite materials. The results show that the structural integrity of hybrid railway carriage structures is affected by the degradation of composite materials during its mission life under ground environments.