Restoring and Recycling Railroad Ties

Abstract

A method for restoring and reusing railroad ties and the resulting product are disclosed. According to the method, otherwise spent wooden ties are sorted as to their apparent suitability for providing a core for reuse. Those found unsuitable are discarded, while those found to be suitable are milled or trimmed about their dimensions to define a suitable core. That core is banded about a transverse perimeter and then submitted to a reaction injection molding process by which urethane or other suitable polymers impregnate the various voids, holes and cracks in the core, bond with the bands, and define a finish unit having the overall size and configuration of previously known railroad ties. The encapsulated product is then capped or plugged at the ends to ensure that the resulting product is impervious to penetration by the environment.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A composite railroad tie, comprising:
 a wood core formed from a spent wood tie, said wood core being banded in selected areas about lateral perimeters; and   a polymeric shell encasing said wood core, said polymeric shell being compatible with bands establishing said banded selected areas.   
     
     
         2 . The composite railroad tie according to  claim 1 , wherein said polymeric shell penetrates into cracks, voids, and holes within said wood core. 
     
     
         3 . The composite railroad tie according to  claim 2 , wherein said wood core is wrapped with polymeric bands, said polymeric shell bonding to and between said polymeric bands and wood core. 
     
     
         4 . The composite railroad tie according to  claim 3 , further comprising closures taken from the group of polymeric caps and plugs, for sealing ends of said polymeric shell and effecting total encasement of said wood core. 
     
     
         5 . The composite railroad tie according to  claim 3 , wherein said spent wood tie has been milled to form a substantially solid core. 
     
     
         6 . The composite railroad tie according to  claim 1 , wherein said polymeric shell comprises polyurethane. 
     
     
         7 . The composite railroad tie according to  claim 6 , wherein said bands are formed of a material taken from the group of polypropylene and fiber-reinforced polyurethane.