NTL Record

Title Selected Topics in Railroad Tank Car Safety Research. Volume 1: Fatigue Evaluation of Prototype Tank Car Head Shield
Record ID 34228
Personal Name
Creator
Johnson, Milton R.
Source 84p. in various pagings
Corporate Creator IIT Research Institute; John A. Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (U.S.)
Publisher United States. Department of Transportation. Federal Railroad Administration
Publication Date 19780800
Language English
Abstract The characteristics of a prototype head shield for hazardous material tank cars were evaluated with respect to the maintenance of its structural integrity under normal service conditions. The primary concern was with the resistance to fatigue damage of head shield connections to the tank car. The evaluation was conducted by performing tests on a tank car equipped with the shield. The shield and its supporting structure were instrumented to determine the principal forces acting within the structure and at points of attachment to the tank car. Both car-coupling impact and over-the-road tests were conducted. The impact tests were conducted at speeds of from 3 to 8 mph. The over-the-road tests included 432 miles of operation at speeds up to 55 mph. Evaluation of the data revealed that the car-coupling impact environment was the most severe. A definite fatigue life was indicated for the most severely stressed region of the supporting structure. The most severe over-the-road environment occurred with the loaded car at speeds above 45 mph when the main suspension bottomed out. The loads associated with this phenomenon were below those of the car-coupling impact environment.
Rosap ID dot:8792
Rosap URL https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/8792
TRT Terms Mechanical fatigue; Head; Crash tests; Instrumentation; Railroad safety; Safety; Safety hats; Tank cars
General Subjects Fatigue analysis; Fatigue life; Head shields; Slack action; Tank car heads; Tank car safety
Classification NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - RAIL TRANSPORTATION;
NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - Rail Planning and Policy;
NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - Rail Energy and Environment;
NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - Rail Safety;
NTL - RAIL TRANSPORTATION - Rail Economics and Finance
Geographical
Coverage
United States
OCLC 4407665
TRIS Online
Accession No
188683
Contract Number DOT-TSC-1043-1
Report Number FRA/ORD-78/32.I; DOT-TSC-FRA-78-12.I
Availability Volpe National Transportation Systems Center, Technical Reference Center
Resource type Tech Report
URL https://ntlrepository.blob.core.windows.net/lib/34000/34200/34228/DOT-TSC-FRA-78-12-1.pdf
Format PDF
Database NTL Digital Repository