Experimental comparison of herbicide-free methods for weed management on railway tracks

Transportation research procedia, vol. 72, pp. 1169–1176

Abstract

Weed management on railway tracks is important to maintain function and operational safety, especially with regard to track stability and drainage. As the EU approval of the herbicide glyphosate expires in 2022, there is an urgent need for alternative weed management. Here, we investigated the potential of two thermal (hot water and freezing) and two mechanical approaches (manual weeding and mowing) for plant removal on tracks. Application of hot water at 10 L/m² resulted in a plant-damaging temperature of 55°C at up to 15 cm depth in the ballast. Freezing with dry ice did not go deep and only damaged aerial parts of plant when applied at up to 10 kg/m². Mechanical measures that uprooted the plants (force of 40 - 160 N) were more effective than those removing aerial plant parts only. In sum, mechanical approaches seem most promising for herbicide-free weed management on railway tracks.

Authors 6

1. Carolina Archut corresponding Aachen Institute for Rail Vehicles and Transport Systems

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Rail Vehicles and Transport Systems (IFS), RWTH Aachen University, Seffenter Weg 8, 52074 Aachen, Germany

2. Nils Jendrny Aachen Institute for Rail Vehicles and Transport Systems

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Rail Vehicles and Transport Systems (IFS), RWTH Aachen University, Seffenter Weg 8, 52074 Aachen, Germany

3. Aileen Schulte-Marxloh Aachen Department of Plant Physiology

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Plant Physiology, RWTH Aachen University, Worringer Weg 1, 52074 Aachen, Germany

4. Matthias Eberius
   Affiliation as printed

   crop.zone GmbH, Pascalstraße 55, 52076 Aachen, Germany

5. Uwe Conrath Aachen Department of Plant Physiology

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Plant Physiology, RWTH Aachen University, Worringer Weg 1, 52074 Aachen, Germany

6. Christian Schindler Aachen Institute for Rail Vehicles and Transport Systems

   RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute for Rail Vehicles and Transport Systems (IFS), RWTH Aachen University, Seffenter Weg 8, 52074 Aachen, Germany