Railroad train car having a fluid-containing outer shell

Abstract

Disclosed is a railroad train or tank car for transporting oil and other combustible fluids with an outer fluid-filled shell designed to greatly reduce the potential for an explosion if a train car tank derails. The tank car has an outer shell that is surrounded by a flame-retardant fluid that eliminates sparks resulting from derailment that could cause the oil or other combustible fluid contained by the tank car to combust and burn. An additional feature of the invention is a train car coupler with springs on each side so the coupler can move freely. The movement allowed by the springs would prevent derailment that could occur when a train was going around a curve. This is especially beneficial when train cars are of different weights, such that a heavier car going around a curve that gets derailed could not derail a lighter or empty car that is connected.

Claims

1. A railroad train car comprising: a tank car comprising a combustible fluid and an inlet located on top of the tank for injecting and removing the combustible fluid from the tank; a fluid-containing outer shell surrounding the tank car and connected to the tank car via one or more connector arms; and one or more connector arms connecting the outer shell to the tank car.

2. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the outer shell is 2-10 inches thick.

3. The railroad train car of claim 3, wherein the outer shell is 4-6 inches thick.

4. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the connector arms are made of a non-corrosive material comprising galvanized steel, and the tank car is made of or coated with a non-corrosive material comprising non-corrosive steel or galvanized steel.

5. The railroad train car of claim 4, wherein the arms comprise 2-4-inch thick perforated walls that are spaced 3-12 inches apart around the tank car.

6. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the fluid of the fluid-containing outer shell comprises a flame-retardant fluid.

7. The railroad train car of claim 6, there the flame-retardant fluid comprises water or antifreeze.

8. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the train car is mounted on a truck and attached to the truck via truck support arms, wherein the wheel base of the truck is about 2-3 feet wider than the standard wheel base.

9. The railroad train car of claim 8, wherein the truck is connected to another truck via a heavy duty coupler that swings from right to left with spring on either side.

10. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the exterior of the outer shell is painted a reflective color or material.

11. The railroad train car of claim 10, wherein the reflective color comprises white.

12. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the exterior of the outer shell is painted an adsorbing color or material.

13. The railroad train car of claim 12, wherein the color comprises black.

14. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the combustible fluid comprises oil.

15. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the outer shell comprises an inner wall that is 2-6 inches thick and an outer wall that is 6-10 inches thick.

16. The railroad train car of claim 15, wherein the inner wall is 5 inches thick.

17. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the railroad train car is bolted to a truck, which is bolted to wheels or a wheel base.

18. The railroad train car of claim 17, wherein the railroad train car is bolted to the truck via truck support arms.

19. The railroad train car of claim 1, wherein the train car is attached to one or more train cars via a train car coupler that comprises one or more springs on each side of the coupler.

20. A railroad train car comprising: a tank car comprising a combustible fluid and an inlet located on top of the tank for injecting and removing the combustible fluid from the tank; a fluid-containing outer shell that is 2-10 inches thick surrounding the tank car and connected to the tank car via one or more connector arms, wherein the outer shell comprises an inner wall that is 2-6 inches thick and an outer wall that is 6-10 inches thick; and one or more connector arms comprising 2-4-inch thick perforated walls that are spaced 3-12 inches apart around the tank car connecting the outer shell to the tank car; wherein the train car is mounted on a truck and attached to the truck via truck supports, wherein the wheel base of the truck is about 2-3 feet wider than the standard wheel base

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] FIG. 1 is an angled side view drawing of the invention showing the claimed modified tank car with the outer shell attached to a truck.

[0033] FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional side view of the end of the modified tank car that shows the inner shell and the outer shell connected via connector arms.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0034] A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The train car (1) in FIG. 1 comprises a modified tank car (2) with an outer shell (3) designed to greatly reduce the potential for an explosion if a train car (1) carrying a tank car (2) derails. The cylindrical tank car (2) consists of a generally sized, shaped, and styled conventional tank. The tank car (2) features a protective outer shell (3) that can be filled with a fluid (20), such as water, antifreeze, or other appropriate fluid, to form a fluid-filled outer shell (3) around the tank car (2). The outer shell (3) can measure 2-10, or 4-6, or in a preferred embodiment, 5, inches thick. The tank car (2) is mounted on a truck (4) and attached to the truck via truck supports (5). The wheel base (7) of the truck (4) is about 2-3 feet wider than the normal or standard wheel base of existing trucks. A heavy duty coupler (10) connects trucks (4) together and swings from right to left with springs (11) on either side to give the coupler resistance and flexibility going around curves, thus reducing the stress on each truck (4) and tank car (2) as it goes around curves of railroad tracks. There is an inlet (8) on the top part of the outer shell that serves as the oil or fluid inlet that is being transported by the tank car (2). A separate inlet (9) for filling the outer shell (3) with water or other flame-retardant fluid is included. The outside of the tank car (2) can be painted white or some other reflective color or material to reflect sunlight for cooling. Alternatively, it can be painted black or some other appropriate color or material in the winter to absorb heat. Oil or any combustible fluid can be transported.

[0035] As shown in FIG. 2, the modified tank car (2) has an outer shell (3) that is surrounded by a flame-retardant fluid that eliminates sparks resulting from derailment that could cause the oil or other combustible fluid (12) contained by the tank car (2) to combust and burn. Furthermore, the tank car (2) is made safer during hot temperatures or the summer because it is encased by the outer shell (3) that is made of a heat reflective material or painted with a reflective paint on the outside of the outer shell (3) that deflects heat instead of absorbing it. Absorbed heat could cause the oil or other combustible fluid (12) in the tank car (2) to be more combustible. The inside of the tank car (12) is made of or coated with a non-corrosive material such as non-corrosive steel.

[0036] A standard tank car can be retrofitted with the outer shell (3) design of this invention. An outer shell (3) that is about 2-10 inches thick, from the edge of the tank car (13) to the edge of the outer shell (14) can be built to encase an existing tank car. The thickness of the outer shell (3) determines the amount of fluid (18) that can be contained and the amount of fluid that would spill out in the event of a puncture in the outer shell (3) caused by derailment or some other event. The thickness of wall (13) is about 2-6, or in a preferred embodiment, 5 inches. The thickness of wall (14) is about 6-10 inches.

[0037] To retrofit an existing tank car, galvanized steel or some other non-corrosive material is added to the outside of the existing tank car, and an outer shell made of galvanized steel or some other non-corrosive material is built around it. To attach, connect and support the outer shell (3) on the existing, unmodified tank car, connector arms (15) made of galvanized steel or some other non-corrosive material are used, similar to the spokes on a wheel. The connector arms (15) have perforated walls (16) with holes of any shape sufficient to allow the fluid (18) to freely flow throughout the entire outer shell (3). The amount of perforation in the walls (16) of the connector arms (15) is optimized to allow the fluid to flow freely in the outer shell. The connector arms (15) are spaced approximately every 3-12 inches around the existing tank car, as shown in FIG. 2, but that spacing distance is dependent on the amount of support required to support the outer shell (3) on the existing tank car. In a preferred embodiment, the connector arms (15) are spaced at approximately every 6 inches. The connector arms (15) are approximately 2-4 inches thick. This thickness is optimized based on the amount of support required to support the outer shell (3) on the tank car.

[0038] Anti-freeze or some other type of non-combustible fluid (18) is the ideal fluid to be used in the outer shell (3), but water could also be used. The fluid (18) can be any fluid that prevents sparks so that the flammable fluid that is being transported does not ignite if the wall (13) of the tank car (2) is punctured, pierced, or compromised in some way. When this occurs, the fluid (18) should spill out and prevent any type of spark in order to eliminate any combustion reaction or explosion. The fluid (18) in the outer shell (3) will require maintenance and replacement when the viscosity of the fluid (18) decreases.

[0039] Usually, derailment causes a tank car (2) to be punctured or pierced. A tank car (2) can be punctured or pierced when it slides off the truck (4). By way of example, a tank car (2) sits on a pin on top of a truck (4). A tank car (2) is not bolted down to the truck (4) that it is riding on, and the truck (4) is not bolted down to the wheels (6) or the wheel base (7). The weight of the tank car (2) alone keeps the tank car (2) on top of the truck (4). This is called an air ride system. When the train derails, the tank car (2) becomes detached from the truck (4) and the wheels (6) on the truck (4) become loose. Therefore, the tank car (2) can be pierced by the wheels (6) on the truck (4) because they are not bolted down on the truck (4).

[0040] Bolting the wheels (6) and the tank car (2) to the truck (4) solves the problem of the wheels (6) piercing the tank car and would be an added safety feature. This safety feature outweighs the fact that the air ride system is commonly used because it makes it easy and fast to change out the wheels and perform other necessary maintenance. Also, the tank car (2) can be easily lifted off the truck (4) and moved to a different truck or replaced with a different tank car. Eliminating the use of the air ride system does not completely eliminate all potential causes of potential damage, but it significantly decreases them. Although fixedly attaching the tank car (2) to the truck (4) makes performing maintenance on the truck difficult, this safety feature is important to avoid punctures to the tank car and explosions. Securely bolting the tank car (2) to the truck (4) via truck support arms (5), as shown in FIG. 1, and bolting the wheels (6) to the truck (4) makes hauling the tank car (2) safer. In order to perform maintenance on the wheels (6) or the wheel base (7), the wheels (6) would have to be unbolted. However, this added inconvenience is inconsequential compared to the inconvenience of an explosion and the loss of expensive commodities.

[0041] In a preferred embodiment, the wheels (6) would be securely attached or bolted to the truck (7) but also relatively easy to detach for maintenance purposes. Additionally, the tank car (2) should be attached to the truck (4) via truck support arms (5) but also relatively easy to detach for easy removal of the tank car (2) from the truck (4).

[0042] The train cars (1) are attached by couplers (10) that have air hoses (not shown). These air hoses act as a safety mechanism to disconnect the couplers (10) so a derailed train car (1) does not act to derail a neighboring train car (1) during derailment. Additionally, the air hoses signal to the conductor that there is a problem with the train, namely a derailment, because the pressure that runs air through to the end of the train is lost. As a result, the train automatically stops by itself. Based on the preferred embodiment above, no puncture will occur when there is a derailment, and the conductor will learn of a derailment due to lack of pressure, not an explosion that has occurred.

[0043] An additional feature of the invention is a train car coupler (10) with springs (11) on each side so the coupler (10) can move freely. The movement allowed by the springs (11) would prevent derailment that could occur when a train was going around a curve. This is especially beneficial when train cars are of different weights, such that a heavier car going around a curve that gets derailed could not derail a lighter or empty car that is connected. The springs (11) eliminate the stress on the attached car by absorbing the stress because the arm of the coupler (10) will move according to the curve.

[0044] The outer shell (3) of the instant invention has the additional advantage of preventing tank cars (2) whose outer shells have been pierced or that have exploded from causing explosions in other tank cars (2). If a tank car (2) is pierced and the impact cannot be controlled by the fluid (18) leaking out of the outer shell (3), the damaged tank car will not set off a chain reaction in other undamaged tank cars (2) because of the outer shells (3) protecting the other tank cars (2). However, a punctured tank car actually exploding is unlikely due to the flame-retardant fluid (18) that leaks out of the outer shell (3) when such a puncture occurs, thereby smothering any sparks and eliminating the possibility of an explosion. Even if the puncture goes through the wall (14) of the outer shell (3) and the wall (13) to reach the inside of the tank car (12), the flame-retardant fluid (18) should still smother any sparks and prevent any explosions. Furthermore, it should be safer for the environment to have a flame-retardant fluid leak out than oil or some other combustible fluid.

[0045] The above-listed sections and included information are not exhaustive and are only exemplary of the invention. The particular sections and included information in a particular embodiment may depend upon the particular implementation and the included devices and resources. Although a system and method according to the present invention have been described in connection with the preferred embodiments, it is not intended to be limited to the specific form set forth herein, but, on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as can be reasonably included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.