Pine, with its straight texture, moderate texture, and ease of processing, has become the "evergreen tree" of the world of sleepers. It can withstand repeated rolling of steel rails and is relatively economical and easy to obtain. When pine wood is cut into the regular shape of sleepers, without any chemical treatment, and shows its most authentic wood grain and pale yellow color, it is called "plain sleepers". It retains the pure scent of the forest, without any pungent odors, and has a warm touch, as if it has just left the forest farm.
The purity of this' plain faced sky 'has precisely created an irreplaceable stage for plain sleepers. It is naturally unadorned, without any frowning oil stains seeping out, and will not pollute the surrounding environment. In areas that require absolute cleanliness, wooden sleepers become silent guardians: on the internal tracks of grain silos, they ensure that food is protected from odors and oil stains; Next to the dedicated line in the food processing plant, it safeguards the safety of the tongue tip; The floor of indoor railway museums or exhibition areas is clean and tidy, leaving only the fragrance of the wood itself; Even for temporary tracks laid in specific warehouses or cleanrooms, plain sleepers are preferred. Its cleanliness and "inertness" make it a green safety barrier in places where it is necessary to avoid the migration of chemicals and ensure environmental cleanliness.
However, the cost of this purity is the fundamental basis for the survival of sleepers - their natural ability to resist decay is extremely limited. Wood itself is a feast for microorganisms, especially when exposed to damp, bacterial railway environments - infiltration by rainwater, gnawing by soil bacteria, and erosion by airborne microorganisms. Plain sleepers are like unarmed warriors, relying solely on the limited natural corrosion resistance of pine wood to sustain themselves, destined to be difficult to sustain. The service life often becomes an unavoidable hard injury, especially in areas with humid and rainy conditions or poor soil conditions, where decay and insect infestation will quickly break down its bones and tendons.
In order to give sleepers a longer service life, human wisdom has given birth to anti-corrosion sleepers. Carefully selected pine wood pillows are sent into a sealed pressure tank resembling an industrial fortress. There, after undergoing cycles of vacuum and high pressure, anti-corrosion oil is forcibly injected into the depths of the wood. That thick black anti-corrosion oil is the armor that the sleepers use to resist the erosion of time. They penetrate the wood and often reach a depth of more than 13 millimeters, forming a solid defense depth. After this' baptism ', the sleepers have undergone a complete transformation, obtaining a steel body that can resist decay, insect and termite erosion. Under the harsh test of wind, rain, and damp roadbeds in the wild, the durability of anti-corrosion sleepers is far from comparable to that of plain sleepers, greatly extending the replacement cycle and saving long-term maintenance costs.
Just this powerful 'armor' can also bring 'side effects'. Anti corrosion oil is not always locked inside the wood, and with the passage of time and environmental changes, there will be a small amount of slow seepage. This brings about oil stains that are difficult to ignore and a lingering special odor. In grain warehouses, food factories, or clean rooms, the oil stains and odors that seep out are like intruders, incompatible and polluting goods or the environment. Its deep color also appears solemn. What is even more alarming is that uncured anti-corrosion oil may also cause discomfort if it comes into direct contact with the skin. The "power" of anti-corrosion sleepers has become unbearable in such clean and sensitive areas.
Plain sleepers and anti-corrosion sleepers are like fish and bear's paw, carrying eternal wisdom in engineering selection. Plain sleepers guard the sacred boundaries of clean spaces with a pure appearance, at the cost of compromising durability with time; Anti corrosion sleepers, with their resilient bodies, have extended their service life, but have had to sacrifice their environmentally friendly purity. Pine wood, a natural material, splits into two completely different paths on the road leading to the railway tracks - one leads to a brief bloom of natural cleanliness, and the other leads to a long-lasting commitment of immersion protection.
