Tank Cars Research Articles

Contributions of dug wells, taps, and tank cars (case study clean water needs of Ampera settlement, Merauke city)

The ability of a residential area has different characteristics in supplying clean water needs. The uniqueness of the terrain of the city of Merauke only depends on two main sources, one puddle of swamp water is called the blue swamp which is the source of the local water company (PDAM) and infiltrate groundwater with dug wells. Blue swamp and dug wells later became sources of new business types of tank car water orders directly. Research has been carried out in the scope of the city of Merauke precisely in the complex of Ampera1 up to Ampera5 which aims to explore the ability to contribute the three water source variables using direct survey and interview methods. The results show that estimation comparison of PDAM = 1,573 m3 or (25.98%) contribution, supply from tank cars is = 730 m3 or (12%), and the supply from the dug well is 3,750 m3 or (61.95%). While the level of urgency of the need for dug wells is seen every decade of excavation from the 1960s = 1 unit, 1970s = 4 units, 1980s = 14 units, 1990s = 37 units, 2000s = 21 units, and 2010an 17 units. Dug turns out to be the biggest contributor to clean water. Hope and dependence the digs are getting stronger every year. During the dry season, the well is the only one hope the people of Merauke city.

Features of tank car testing for dangerous cargoes transportation

The experience of the operation of rail transport shows that a significant part of emergency situations with significant negative environmental consequences are related to tank cars carrying liquid goods of a wide range, including liquefied gas, petroleum products, concentrated acids, toxic and explosive products of chemical origin. The article presents the peculiarities and result of carrying out of the corresponding tests. In order to address the question of the possibility of further safe operation of tank cars in the over-term period, their technical diagnostics and control tests are carried out. In this case, the control of the technical condition includes visual inspection of the tank wagon, measurements of the thickness of the metal at the control points of the boiler and the frame of the car, conducting of the magnetopowder, ultrasonic and acoustic emission control of the bearing metal constructions. Control tests include static vertical load tests, test for a low cyclic load by boiler pressure, typical, resource shock tests, and possible emergencies testing.

A posteriori modelling of a fire spreading in selected types of industrial halls

Two different scenarios of fire development identified for two industrial halls are considered and discussed in detail. In both cases an attempt is made, using the appropriate numerical models, to describe a posteriori the spread of a fire that has already occurred in the past. The numerical model is implemented in a Fire Dynamic Simulator (i.e. FDS) computer program and used for simulation. The first considered hall is an one-storey two-aisled steel structure with an incomplete covering of its side walls. Recyclable materials were stored inside, mainly the plastic waste. The fire observed in this hall developed slowly, being repeatedly partly suppressed and then subjected to flashover again. The other building described in this contribution is an one-bay steel hall located in a transhipment terminal, in which the crude oil was stored in railroad tank cars. In this case, a fire initiated by the ignition of oil leaking from the damaged tank car and quickly intensified by the collapse of a part of the hall roof proceeded rapidly until the fuel supply ran out. The basic parameters of both models developed by the authors were calibrated on the basis of available material data as well as of the reports received from meteorological stations located in the vicinity of the destroyed halls.

A finite element analysis on mechanical behavior of Al/Al-Mg composites for the design of tank cars under actual measuring loads

The transportation safety of tank cars carrying concentrated nitric acids under conditions of heavy loads has attracted the increasing attention. The use of Aluminum/Aluminum-Magnesium(Al/Al-Mg) alloys to form laminated composites can solve the problems associated with the low corrosion resistance and strength of tank car bodies. In this work, a finite element analysis was used to simulate the tensile tests of the Al/Al-Mg laminated composites. In particular, the stress and strain behavior of the composites under tensile loads was investigated, and the corresponding mechanical properties of the composites were determined, which was verified by the tension test results. Furthermore, the effective load time history was obtained by processing the measuring data of C70E type gondola car body on three typical general railway line. Load spectra of car body were compiled using the rain-flow count method, which was applied to do the fatigue design for 70 t Al/Al-Mg tank body. Most importantly, in conjunction with the SN curve of the base materials and the lap-welded joint, based on the tank car finite element analysis results under various load cases, the fatigue life of the 70 t Al/Al-Mg tank body was calculated based on Miner's linear accumulative damage theory. The results showed a very promising application of such composite materials to meet the safety requirements.

Development of a Method and Means for Transporting High-Purity Liquid Hydrogen

Preservation of the purity of liquid hydrogen (H2 ), which is used to fuel electrochemical generators of spacecraft power supply systems, during storage and transportation in model ZhVTs-100M railroad tank cars is studied. The quality of liquid H2 at various technological stages of transportation from the railroad tank-car filling plant to the consumer is analyzed. Experimental results are compared with the calculated stepwise increase of impurity N2 and O2 concentrations in the liquid H2. The methodology for calculating the purity of liquid H2 during transportation is clarified based on the assessment. Tanks with improved thermal insulation are proposed for maintaining its quality.

LPG Cars in a Car Park Environment-How to Make It Safe.

Alternative and innovative fuel types are being introduced to power cars. These include liquified petroleum gas (LPG) gas and hydrogen energy sources. However, they also introduce new hazards, requiring revised thinking with respect to safety within car parking environments. One of the most significant dangers is accidental gas release from a car’s system, especially in underground car parks. Jet fan systems are widely used for ventilation of such enclosures, but currently their design is most often based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) according to computer simulations that may not be relevant for such new fuels. This paper presents the results of full-scale tests which demonstrate the operational factors of jet fan ventilation systems, and assesses the conditions which can occur in a car park when a small volume of LPG is released. On the basis of measurements undertaken, Fire Dynamics Simulator (FDS) software was validated against the air velocity flows and LPG gas dispersion patterns. Finally, the simulations were used to demonstrate the effectiveness of systems in an actual car park, in the case of an accidental LPG car tank release.

Safety Analysis and Countermeasure of Tank Car Transportation Based on Fish bone Diagram and Analytic Hierarchy Process

Tanker transportation is an important part of road transportation of refined oil. Compared with other modes of transportation, it has high risk and is prone to accidents, which not only promotes economic prosperity, but also affects public safety and social stability. Therefore, analyzing and exploring the main factors affecting the accident of tank trucks and preventing the secondary occurrence of similar accidents is of great significance of improving transportation safety and promoting social stability and economic development. Taking specific accidents as an example, this paper analyzes the causes of oil tank accidents from the perspective of system safety and puts forward some specific suggestions.

Optimization design and crash-worthiness analysis of tank made of aluminum foam sandwich

In order to improve the energy efficiency, environmental protection and safety of the tank, a tank car body was designed as a prototype for the design of foam aluminum sandwich tank body. And then the static performance and Crash-worthiness of the prototype tank body were analyzed by finite element method. The mass, energy abosorption and acceleration of the main parameters of tank strength were analyzed by the MOGA method in Workbench goal-driven optimization, with the results of analysis as constraint conditions. Finally, by confirmed the optimized tank, and the results showed that the static performance and crash-worthiness of foam aluminum sandwich tank body are significantly improved and the mass is reduced, compared with the prototype structure tanker tank. which prove that foam aluminum sandwich tank body in improving the energy efficiency of tankers, environmental protection, especially the effectiveness of security.

Fatigue properties of AL/AL-MG alloy laminated materials for the applications to railway tank cars

In this study, Al/Al-Mg alloy laminated plates were developed, and such composite materials are applied in a 70 t tank car for transporting concentrated nitric acids. The fatigue tests of the base materials and the lap-welded joint of the Al/Al-Mg alloy laminated plate were conducted, and the stress-cycle (S-N) curve with a survival rate of 97.7% was obtained. The fatigue failure mode was analyzed, and its fracture mechanism of the laminated plates was determined. Furthmore, the mechanical behavior of Al/Al-Mg alloy laminated plate was investigated using the finite element analysis (FEA). Based on the load spectrum of 100 t tank car described in the Association of American Railroads (AAR) standard, in conjunction with the S-N curve of the base materials and the lap-welded joints, the fatigue life of the 70 t tank body was calculated based on the Miner’s linear accumulative damage theory. The results showed that the 70 t tank car constructed with such materials can meet the safety requirements of operating for 2.5 million km.

Investigation of coupled dynamics of a railway tank car and liquid cargo subject to a switch-passing maneuver

The movement of the liquid cargo within a partly filled tank car is known to impose additional slosh forces and moments that may adversely affect the dynamic responses of the vehicle. This study is aimed at analyzing the liquid cargo slosh in a partly filled tank car and its effects on vehicle responses during a switch-passing maneuver. A two-dimensional analytical liquid slosh model is formulated for the analyses of the liquid load shift in the roll plane, lateral slosh force, and roll moment through summation of first four antisymmetric modes of the liquid. The analytical slosh model is integrated to a 114 degrees-of-freedom multibody dynamic model of the railway tank car comprising nonlinear wheel–rail contact and contact pairs of the suspension system. The validity of the slosh model is illustrated by comparing the responses with those reported in other studies and those obtained from a nonlinear computational fluid dynamic model. The coupled fluid–vehicle model is subsequently used to study the effects of fluid slosh during switch-passing maneuvers on different response measures, namely roll motion of the tank car, lateral and vertical wheel–rail contact forces, and derailment ratio. The significance of the liquid cargo slosh in the partially filled state is demonstrated by comparing the responses with those of the car with equivalent rigid cargo. The results show that liquid sloshing within the partly filled car can lead to higher magnitudes of car body roll angle and thereby the unloading ratio compared to the conventional rigid cargo car. Switch-passing critical speeds are further identified for different fill ratios and switch geometries. For fill ratios below 80%, the switch-passing critical speeds of the partly filled car are substantially lower compared to those of the equivalent rigid cargo car. Neglecting the contributions due to dynamic slosh force and roll moment arising from a partially filled railway tank car may thus lead to underestimation of the critical speed in switch-passing maneuvers.

Statistical modeling of types and consequences of rail-based crude oil release incidents in the United States

Rail incidents involving release of crude oil from train tank cars is a safety concern. The objectives of this study are identification and quantification of the impacts of different factors on types and consequences of crude oil release from trains, and investigation of the impacts of types and consequences of release on the resulting costs. Two separate multinomial models for types of release (gas dispersion, spillage or both) and consequences of release (fire, explosion or none), and one joint multinomial model were estimated using 10-year crude oil release data. Non-accident releases were associated with higher probability of gas dispersion, lower probability of fire and explosion, and lower costs. Tank car head puncture resistance system and tank car insulation increased the probability of gas dispersion. Increase in quantity of spillage, increased the probability of fire and explosion, significantly. Robust linear regression models captured the effects of types and consequences of release on post-release costs. While sufficient evidence was not found regarding a relationship between types of release and costs, fires and explosions significantly increased the costs. These findings can assist decision-making regarding safety improvement of rail-based crude oil transportation.

Anaerobic treatment of residuals from tanks transporting food and fodder

The anaerobic digestion of wastewater from the cleaning of tank cars transporting food and fodder was investigated in both bench and pilot scales with a single-stage, mesophilic (39 °C), completely mixed process. The promising results lead to the planning and building of a 1200-m3 full-scale biogas plant at TS-Clean cleaning station in Fahrbinde, Germany. Due to softened water used in the cleaning of the car tanks, the alkalinity in the digester decreased as predicted by the physicochemical model developed for this treatment process. The model showed that 2.4 kg NaHCO3/m3 of wastewater has to be added in order to control digester pH at 7.2 and to maintain the digester alkalinity at 3.1 g CaCO3/L. In a laboratory study, the decrease of alkalinity caused a volatile organic acids accumulation and pH drop below the optimal range. In this case, if chemical buffering was not added into the digester, the digester deteriorated. In a 3-year investigation, we confirmed that the strongly polluted WW from the cleaning of tank cars transporting food and fodder is suitable for an anaerobic treatment if the organic loading rate is controlled below 4 kg COD/m3/day, digester alkalinity is adjusted by NaHCO3, and micronutrients are added despite constant considerable variations in strength and composition of the wastewater. A biogas yield of 35–45 m3 CH4/m3 of wastewater and a COD elimination of 80–90% were achieved in bench- and pilot-scale experiments and are achieved in the full-scale biogas plant. The full-scale biogas plant is working stable with a biogas yield of 68 m3 biogas/m3 of wastewater.

CALCULATED DEPENDENCIES AND ESTIMATES OF FREQUENCIES AND VIBRATION MODES OF SHELLS OF RAIL TANK WAGONS

For the English full text of the article please see the attached PDF-File (English version follows Russian version).ABSTRACT The article gives the procedure for calculating the frequencies of natural oscillations of a shell of a railway tank wagons, taking into account its incomplete filling with liquid cargo. This task is relevant, since it is related to the conditions of safe operation of rolling stock. In this formulation, the solution of the problem is, of course, not done by the finished tracing paper. Including using the hypotheses of the absence of annular deformations of the shear of the shell of the tanks. The reliability of the calculated results is also confirmed by the experimental data obtained in time when testing eight-axis tanks. Keywords: rolling stock, tank car, rail tank wagon, tank oscillations, semimuscular theory of shells, natural frequencies, underfilling of liquid cargo.

DESAIN MANAJEMEN RISIKO BERBASIS ISO 31000 PADA PDAM TIRTA MEULABOH

Regional Water Company (PDAM) Tirta Meulaboh is the only state- ownedof West Aceh district that provides clean water for the residents of West Aceh, especially the residents of the city of Meulaboh and its surroundings. But in its operation the company has not yet to have a risk management system, so it has the impact on the company’s survival and not optimal service to its customers. The study aims to identify risk, risk analysis and risk evaluation, in order to do prevention and mitigation of the impact of risk on each section in PDAM Tirta Meulaboh using risk management system standard ISO 31000. The process steps of risk management based on ISO 31000, starting from risk identification to methods Risk Breakdown Structure (RBS), risk analysis using matrix risk quantification and Risk Priority Number (RPN), and the evaluation of risks by using risk map. The results showed that in PDAM Tirta Meulaboh there were 43 risk events that have the potential business problems, which if they were not solved immediately it could affect the performance of the company, even the survival of the company. Of the 43 potential risks that were logged to the red zone, there were 5 potential risks which occupies the first rank is on productions departement: the defective of production water meter, the defective of distribution water meter and retrieval water by tank car without through the water meter. Branch Kaway XVI: customers are reluctant to pay the water bill and in IKK Rantau Panjang: water meter of raw water was damaged. The Efforts to mitigate against the risk of those 43 events which were logged in the red zone has not been planned and done yet by the management of PDAM Tirta Meulaboh. Key words: ISO 31000, PDAM Tirta Meulaboh, Risk Management.

STRENGTH INVESTIGATION OF RAIL TANK CAR FOR TECHNICAL SULFURIC ACID

Strength analysis of the rail tank car for technical sulfuric acid is carried out by numerical simulation of the stress-strain state and obtained results processing. Various types of loading of the tank car are considered. Stress-deformed state at collision of railcars, at braking of a heavy-weight structure, and also at braking and racing of the rolling stock moved in a curved section of the track is determined. An additional check of the frame and tank for stability under the action of external excess pressure was carried out. An approach that allowed using the existing universal tools, as well as developed specialized modules, to justify the parameters of investigated railcar, is described

Analysis of Puncture Resistant Steel for Tank Cars

A new puncture resistant steel is developed to improve the safety of tank cars transporting flammable liquids. The puncture behavior of the tank cars is simulated using a ductile damage model available in the finite element program, ABAQUS. The damage model assumes that, for a given stress‐state (triaxiality), failure initiates at the maximum load‐carrying capacity. The subsequent damage evolution is defined by its fracture energy. To investigate a range of triaxiality conditions, uniaxial tensile tests are performed on notched, round‐bar specimens for both current and new steel grades. Numerical simulations of each test are performed and validated with the test data. The relation between the equivalent plastic strain at failure initiation and the stress triaxiality (damage initiation) is obtained from the test data and the simulations, as is the fracture energy (damage evolution). Impact simulations are performed on the tank car and the results show that the new steel absorbs more impact energy, thereby delaying puncture.

Accident-Cause-Specific Risk Analysis of Rail Transport of Hazardous Materials

Rail plays a key role in the transportation of hazardous materials (hazmat). Improving railroad hazmat transportation safety is a high priority for both industry and government. Many severe railroad hazmat release incidents occur because of train accidents. The Federal Railroad Administration identifies over 300 accident causes, including infrastructure defects, rolling stock failures, human factors, and other causes. Understanding how hazmat transportation risk varies with accident cause is a key step in identifying, developing, evaluating, and prioritizing cost-justified accident prevention strategies, thereby mitigating hazmat transportation risk. The objective of this paper is to develop an integrated, generalized risk analysis methodology that can estimate accident-cause-specific hazmat transportation risk, accounting for various train and track characteristics, such as train length, speed, point of derailment, the number and placement of tank cars in a train, tank car safety design, and population density along rail lines. Using the two major causes of accidents on freight railroads—broken rails and track geometry defects—as an example, this paper demonstrates a step-by-step analytical procedure and decision support tool to assess how accident frequency, severity, and hazmat transportation risk vary by accident cause. The research method can be adapted for risk analysis at corridor- or network-level accounting for other accident causes.

ANCF analysis of the crude oil sloshing in railroad vehicle systems

With the increase in crude oil rail transportation, accurate modelling of non-Newtonian crude oil rheological properties and the corresponding nonlinear sloshing effects becomes necessary in order to establish safety and operation guidelines. In this investigation, nonlinear continuum-based crude oil constitutive models are used in a total Lagrangian formulation to study the effect of the sloshing on railroad vehicle dynamics and stability. In particular, the Oldroyd constitutive model is employed to capture the non-Newtonian characteristics of three different crude oil types; classified as light, medium, and heavy. The crude oil complex deformation shapes are captured using the finite element (FE) absolute nodal coordinate formulation (ANCF). The FE continuum-based liquid sloshing formulation is systematically integrated with a fully nonlinear multibody system (MBS) railroad vehicle algorithm that allows for wheel/rail separation. A general penalty contact approach is developed to allow for studying the effect of sloshing suppression devices such as bulkheads. Different braking scenarios, including electronically controlled pneumatic (ECP) braking are considered to study the effect of crude oil sloshing on the train longitudinal stability. The ECP braking computer simulations show that increasing the crude oil viscosity can lead to approximately 30% reduction in the maximum coupler force compared to the light oil case. It is observed that the coupler force response to the sloshing excitations as the result of ECP braking reaches steady state faster as the viscosity increases. Furthermore, installing the bulkheads in tank cars can lead to a 70% reduction in the maximum coupler force and more uniform distribution of the normal contact forces to the front and rear wheels. The effect of crude oil rheological properties on the centrifugal forces during curve negotiation is also evaluated. The curve negotiation results show that the increase in crude oil density is responsible for exacerbating train lateral instability effects, thus the risk of vehicle roll over, especially when the train travels at a speed higher than the balance speed.

Computational simulation of nonlinear liquid sloshing in a tank truck

Liquid sloshing in the tank of a tank truck is one of the important factors affecting the driving stability of the tank truck. When the external motivation is larger, the liquid sloshing phenomenon shows the nonlinear characteristics of the movement, causing rollover accidents. Therefore, it is of practical significance to study the movement of a tank car to improve its stability. Based on the equivalent pendulum mechanical model under nonlinear condition, the liquid sloshing nonlinear motion of a tank was investigated. A simulated liquid sloshing test bench was used to verify the validity of the nonlinear model. This study provides a theoretical basis to improve the driving stability of a tank truck.

2391 - Relationship between Safety Culture and Transport Worker Health

2nd Highest Scoring Abstract: Researcher Background Recent examples of the relationship between Safety Culture, transportation worker's health and the public health is found in the derailment of major commuter trains in Seattle and New York, not to mention the catastrophic fire and explosion that let Forty-two people dead, with five more missing and presumed dead from workers failure to properly secure a set of tank cars loaded with highly flammable petroleum that derailed and burned down most of the town of Lac-Megantic, Quebec, Canada. Several regulatory factors and the underlying and pervasive Safety Culture that exists within an organization have recently begun to receive increased attention from public health and transportation safety professionals and government officials charged with regulating transportation. Moreover, descriptions of key factors that contribute to the makeup of a safety culture as well as new and psychometrically valid measures of safety culture have recently come in to use. However, this study seeks to remedy the fact that there is very little published data that provides concrete evidence of the empirical relationship between safety culture and the occurrence of accidents, injuries and other health benefits. Methods The 68-item Safety Culture Scale (Sherry & Colarossi, 2016) for the transportation industry was administered to employees of a global shipping company. Approximately 100+ vessels and their crews were invited to complete surveys using online and paper methods. Survey data were analyzed using SPSS. Results Results from N=1601 completed surveys indicate that Safety Culture is significantly related to the decreased reporting of injuries, near misses, and lost work time. Significant correlations were found between number of work injuries and employees’ perception that supervisors, co-workers and safety officers contributed to make the work place safe (r= -.123, -.137 and -.146,p Conclusions Results provide empirical support for the preventative role of organization safety culture in the transportation industry public health and safety. A strong safety culture supported by management, safety professionals, employees and coworkers was related to improved health and the reduction of work accidents and injuries.