A method for establishing and/or maintaining a desired temperature of a material in an intermediate bulk container including the steps of positioning a heating element in at least partial contact with a material container containing the material within the intermediate bulk container; and applying an electrical power source to the heating element, wherein the heating element is at least partially made of a positive temperature coefficient resistant material, the heat from the heating element being largely transferred to the material in the material container.

A tank for bulk material storage and transport and method for producing same. In an embodiment, a tank is provided that includes a shell having a sidewall, a neck including a first collar, and a tube terminating in a second collar. A frustoconical cap may be secured to the first collar. A substantially conical cap may be secured to the second collar. A liner may be applied to the shell so that the liner substantially covers an interior surface of the sidewall, an interior surface of the neck, at least a portion of the first collar, an interior surface of the tube, and at least a portion of the second collar. Annular thickened segments may be trimmed to prepare the tank for use. The annular thickened segments may be located at an interior joint between the frustoconical cap and the first collar, and/or an interior joint between the substantially conical cap and the second collar. The trimming step may form first and second sealing surfaces of the liner adjacent respectively to the first and second collars. The first and second sealing surfaces may respectively be configured to substantially seal against a manway cover and an outlet cover. In a final, assembled preferred form, the frustoconical and substantially conical caps are replaced with the manway assembly and outlet cover, respectively sealed against the first and second sealing surfaces.

An intermediate bulk container (IBC) system comprising a base and walls, and having an interior space. The system comprises a drain in the base or in a wall, a liner bag having a liner bag drain couplable to the drain in the base or in a wall, and a door coupled to the wall by a hinge and shaped to cover an opening in the wall. The opening extends from a top of the wall. The hinge is coupled to the door to allow the door to rotate into the interior space. A stop prevents the door from rotating beyond the wall. The system may be used by rotating the door into the interior space to expose the opening, reaching through the opening and operatively coupling the liner bag drain at the drain in the base or in a wall, and rotating the door to cover the opening.

A method of manufacturing a dryer for plant material, which converts a caged intermediate bulk container tote into a dryer by adding wires from which plant material may be hung to dry. Intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) are widely available and offer the benefits of stackability and easy transport; the method creates plant material dryers with the same advantages. Any number of wire segments may be attached to the cage of the IBC tote. Illustrative configurations may place wires into two rows: one row of wires across the top of the cage, and a second row roughly at mid-height of the cage. Wires may be for example stainless steel wires with a gauge between 24 gauge and 30 gauge.

A stackable container system is configured to provide stacked receptacles for receiving bulk material therein. The stackable container system includes a first receptacle configured to provide a respective stacked receptacle. The first receptacle includes a receptable bottom, a receptable top, and a receptacle side extending along an upright container axis between the receptacle bottom and top, with the first receptacle presenting a container chamber. The receptacle top is configured to at least partly support another one of the stacked receptacles stacked relative thereto along the upright container axis. The receptacle top and the receptacle side have, respectively, a top peripheral margin and a side peripheral margin that extend laterally about the upright container axis, with at least part of the top peripheral margin being laterally outboard of the side peripheral margin. At least part of the top peripheral margin is interconnected to the side peripheral margin along a transition section that extends laterally between the receptacle top and the receptacle side.

A container includes a receptacle including an upright receptacle side and a receptacle bottom that cooperate to at least partly define a container chamber. The bottom presents a peripheral margin, with the side being attached to the bottom along the peripheral margin and extending upwardly relative to the bottom along an upright container axis. The receptacle further includes a drain configured to permit material flow out of the chamber, with the drain intersecting the bottom to define a drain opening that fluidly communicates with the chamber. The drain opening is spaced inboard from the peripheral margin and is laterally offset from the container axis in an offset direction. The bottom includes first and second floor sections extending inboard from the peripheral margin and joined relative to each other along a first gutter area adjacent the drain opening. The first floor section slopes downwardly toward the first gutter area in the offset direction and the second floor section slopes downwardly toward the first gutter area in a direction opposite the offset direction, with the floor sections configured to cooperatively advance material within the chamber toward the drain opening.

A tank rack apparatus provides a liquid storage tank. The tank includes a tank vessel having a top wall, bottom wall, side walls, and tank corners at the interface of each pair of adjacent side wall, each side wall defining a wall plane. A tank alcove provides a recess that is spaced away from a tank corner and inwardly from a tank wall plane. This inwardly spaced recess provides an alcove space having an alcove wall, an alcove top, and an alcove bottom. A sight glass gage is contained within the alcove space, below the alcove top and above the alcove bottom and inwardly of the tank wall plane. A screen occupies a position in or near the wall plane, the screen extending between a position next to alcove top and a position next to the alcove bottom.

The present invention discloses a cover device used to cover the built-in valve mounting channel port of IBC and a container. The IBC comprises a side plate, a base and a channel located in the base and used to receive the built-in valve. The cover device comprises a cover and structures or components used to detachably connect the cover to the side plate over the channel. The cover can be installed on the base at the position adjacent to the side plate, and can be rotated around a rotational axis of the cover itself, so as to open or cover the channel port. The cover is further provided with a lock hole, and the base is provided with a locking slot, so that the cover can be locked to the base by a disposable lock. The cover device of the present invention has a simple structure and is easy to operate. Further, it can well achieve the effect of dust-proof and/or thief-evident.

A tank for bulk material storage and transport and method for producing same. In an embodiment, a tank is provided that includes a shell having a sidewall, a neck including a first collar, and a tube terminating in a second collar. A frustoconical cap may be secured to the first collar. A substantially conical cap may be secured to the second collar. A liner may be applied to the shell so that the liner substantially covers an interior surface of the sidewall, an interior surface of the neck, at least a portion of the first collar, an interior surface of the tube, and at least a portion of the second collar. Annular thickened segments may be trimmed to prepare the tank for use. The annular thickened segments may be located at an interior joint between the frustoconical cap and the first collar, and/or an interior joint between the substantially conical cap and the second collar. The trimming step may form first and second sealing surfaces of the liner adjacent respectively to the first and second collars. The first and second sealing surfaces may respectively be configured to substantially seal against a manway cover and an outlet cover. In a final, assembled preferred form, the frustoconical and substantially conical caps are replaced with the manway assembly and outlet cover, respectively sealed against the first and second sealing surfaces.

Described are liners for bulk containers that are abuse resistant. The liners include at least one sidewall. The sidewall includes at least an exterior ply and an interior ply. Optionally, the sidewall may include at least one intermediate ply. One of the plies includes a first polyolefin-silicone copolymer. The adhesion between the plies is from 0 g/25.4 cm to 50 g/25.4 cm (0 g/in to 50 g/in).