Cradle to cradle crashes

A loud cracking sound, a set up with a high speed camera that was almost rampaged, and a total-loss bus – such was the outcome of the first experiment involving a 13-ton bus crashing into a wooden traffic barrier at 70 kilometers per hour.

“Right before impact the bus got a flat tire,” recalls Ingrid de Pauw, of the faculty of Industrial Design Engineering. “The bus changed direction and crashed into the barrier at a much greater angle and with a 60% higher energy-impact than intended.”

It was about a decade ago that De Pauw designed the barriers and performed the first experiments together with civil engineers from Delft and a few other interested parties, including a company called Wijma, which built the barriers and a company called Ideal & Co.

Now, many experiments and bureaucratic hassles later, the first stretch of road in the Netherlands – a 1-kilometer long section of a new provincial road in the town of Heerhugowaard – is equipped with wooden rather than steel traffic barriers.

“The most important advantage of a traffic barrier made of FSC-certified hardwood is that you don’t have any heavy metals seeping into the ground,” says De Pauw, adding that FSC stands for sustainably grown and cut wood. “The steel barriers on the other hand are galvanized. Over time the zinc erodes and ends up polluting the environment.”

Developing a safe wooden barrier was quite a feat. The researchers had to develop a completely new way of absorbing energy.
Metal traffic barriers deform plastically (the metal becomes permanently deformed), thereby absorbing lots of energy. Wood deforms elastically upon impact and will ultimately break if the forces are too great. The new barrier therefore partially consists of steam-bended wooden elements designed for optimal deformation.

De Pauw thinks that in the long run the wooden barriers are economically competitive, but for now they can be up to four times more expensive than metal, depending on the location and situation: “But wooden barriers do not need to be mended after a minor collision in which a car only brushes against the barrier, which is in contrast to the metal barriers. Also with other types of accidents the wooden guardrail will be less damaged.” 

http://bit.ly/fjagqB

,,

A loud cracking sound, a set up with a high speed camera that was
almost rampaged, and a total-loss bus – such was the outcome of the
first experiment involving a 13-ton bus crashing into a wooden traffic
barrier at 70 kilometers per hour.

“Right before impact the bus
got a flat tire,” recalls Ingrid de Pauw, of the faculty of Industrial
Design Engineering. “The bus changed direction and crashed into the
barrier at a much greater angle and with a 60% higher energy-impact than
intended.”

It was about a decade ago that De Pauw designed the
barriers and performed the first experiments together with civil
engineers from Delft and a few other interested parties, including a
company called Wijma, which built the barriers and a company called
Ideal & Co.

Now, many experiments and bureaucratic hassles
later, the first stretch of road in the Netherlands – a 1-kilometer long
section of a new provincial road in the town of Heerhugowaard – is
equipped with wooden rather than steel traffic barriers.

“The most
important advantage of a traffic barrier made of FSC-certified hardwood
is that you don’t have any heavy metals seeping into the ground,” says
De Pauw, adding that FSC stands for sustainably grown and cut wood. “The
steel barriers on the other hand are galvanized. Over time the zinc
erodes and ends up polluting the environment.”

Developing a safe
wooden barrier was quite a feat. The researchers had to develop a
completely new way of absorbing energy.
Metal traffic barriers
deform plastically (the metal becomes permanently deformed), thereby
absorbing lots of energy. Wood deforms elastically upon impact and will
ultimately break if the forces are too great. The new barrier therefore
partially consists of steam-bended wooden elements designed for optimal
deformation.

De Pauw thinks that in the long run the wooden
barriers are economically competitive, but for now they can be up to
four times more expensive than metal, depending on the location and
situation: “But wooden barriers do not need to be mended after a minor
collision in which a car only brushes against the barrier, which is in
contrast to the metal barriers. Also with other types of accidents the
wooden guardrail will be less damaged.”

De succesvolle tentoonstelling in de Kunsthal liet Nederlandse uitvindingen en innovaties uit de afgelopen eeuwen zien. Vierduizend industrieel ontwerpers studeerden de afgelopen veertig jaar af aan de TU Delft. Veel van door hen gemaakte prototypes waren in de Kunsthal te bewonderen.

Onderdelen van de expositie krijgen nu een tweede leven. Zo is de c,mm,n opgenomen in de tentoonstelling ‘Sustainable Futures’ van het Design Museum in Londen.

http://designmuseum.org/exhibitions/2010/sustainable-futures

A loud cracking sound, a set up with a high speed camera that was
almost rampaged, and a total-loss bus – such was the outcome of the
first experiment involving a 13-ton bus crashing into a wooden traffic
barrier at 70 kilometers per hour.

“Right before impact the bus
got a flat tire,” recalls Ingrid de Pauw, of the faculty of Industrial
Design Engineering. “The bus changed direction and crashed into the
barrier at a much greater angle and with a 60% higher energy-impact than
intended.”

It was about a decade ago that De Pauw designed the
barriers and performed the first experiments together with civil
engineers from Delft and a few other interested parties, including a
company called Wijma, which built the barriers and a company called
Ideal & Co.

Now, many experiments and bureaucratic hassles
later, the first stretch of road in the Netherlands – a 1-kilometer long
section of a new provincial road in the town of Heerhugowaard – is
equipped with wooden rather than steel traffic barriers.

“The most
important advantage of a traffic barrier made of FSC-certified hardwood
is that you don’t have any heavy metals seeping into the ground,” says
De Pauw, adding that FSC stands for sustainably grown and cut wood. “The
steel barriers on the other hand are galvanized. Over time the zinc
erodes and ends up polluting the environment.”

Developing a safe
wooden barrier was quite a feat. The researchers had to develop a
completely new way of absorbing energy.
Metal traffic barriers
deform plastically (the metal becomes permanently deformed), thereby
absorbing lots of energy. Wood deforms elastically upon impact and will
ultimately break if the forces are too great. The new barrier therefore
partially consists of steam-bended wooden elements designed for optimal
deformation.

De Pauw thinks that in the long run the wooden
barriers are economically competitive, but for now they can be up to
four times more expensive than metal, depending on the location and
situation: “But wooden barriers do not need to be mended after a minor
collision in which a car only brushes against the barrier, which is in
contrast to the metal barriers. Also with other types of accidents the
wooden guardrail will be less damaged.”