Design and Optimization of a Hybrid Railcar Structure with Multilayer Composite Panels

Within contemporary railway engineering, manufacturers of rolling stock are increasingly focused on developing vehicles that combine reduced weight with enhanced reliability. This objective is largely motivated by the need to decrease energy demand and limit environmental impact, encouraging the integration of innovative materials and cut-ting-edge design strategies. The growing use of multilayer composite materials in the railway sector stems from their unique combination of high strength and low weight, making them particularly suitable for structural applications. This study investigates the structural performance and optimization of a hybrid car body system composed of an aluminum frame integrated with multilayer composite panels. A fully automated computational framework has been developed to generate and assess all possible stacking sequence permutations of the laminate plies, coupled with a high-fidelity finite element model of the car body. The methodology enables the evaluation of failure indices, including Maximum Stress, Tsai–Wu, and Interlaminar criteria, across a wide design space. A comprehensive assessment of both mechanical and dynamic performance has been carried out according to relevant railway standards, supporting the robustness and reliability of the proposed optimization framework. The results confirm the capability of the methodology to efficiently identify and compare multiple laminate configurations while maintaining compliance with structural and modal requirements. The optimized configurations demonstrated maximum Tsai–Wu values below 0.9, first-mode frequency variations below 0.5% and potential mass reductions of 25–45% on the selected components. This approach provides a powerful and versatile tool for the rapid optimization of lightweight hybrid structures in railway applications.