Locomotive Fuel Tank Structural Safety Testing Program: Passenger Fuel Tank Side Impact Load Test

This report represents a passenger fuel tank load test simulating a Side Impact Collision. The test is based on the Federal Railroad Administration’s (FRA) requirements for locomotive fuel tanks in the Title 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 238, Appendix D. This test covers Section (a) (3) of Appendix D, which states that in a side impact collision by an 80,000-pound Gross Vehicle Weight tractor/trailer at the longitudinal center of the fuel tank, the fuel tank shall withstand, without exceeding the ultimate strength, a 200,000-pound load (2.5g) distributed over an area of 6 inches (in) by 48 in (half the bumper area) at a height of 30 in above the rail (standard DOT bumper height). This report presents the test data, which showed that the resulting displacement of the tank sidewall corresponding to a maximum side impact load of nearly 300 kilopounds was approximately 0.5 in. This comprised of mostly elastic deformation and very little plastic deformation. Upon unloading, no local residual plastic deformation was noticeable to the naked eye although plotted test data revealed a small residual plastic deformation of 0.1 in. No crack or tank breach was observed near the side impact load application zone or elsewhere in the tank. Therefore, from the FRA regulatory perspective, the tank is considered to have satisfied the structural integrity requirement set forth in 49 CFR Part 238, Appendix D, Section (a) (3).

• Record URL:
  • https://railroads.dot.gov/elibrary/locomotive-fuel-tank-structural-safety-testing-program-passenger-fuel-tank-side-impact
• 
• Record URL:
  • https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/61175
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://www.fra.dot.gov
• Corporate Authors:

  Foster-Miller Associates, Incorporated

  350 Second Avenue
  Waltham, MA  United States  02254

  Federal Railroad Administration

  Office of Research and Development, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
  Washington, DC  United States  20590
• Authors:
  • Zaouk, Abdullatif K
  • Parida, Basant
  • Silver, Mark
• Publication Date: 2010-8

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Digital/other
• Edition: Final Report
• Features: Appendices; Figures; Photos; References;
• Pagination: 44p

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Fuel tanks; Load tests; Locomotives; Railroad safety; Regulations; Side crashes; Structural analysis; Structural tests; Tractor trailer combinations
• Subject Areas: Railroads; Safety and Human Factors; Vehicles and Equipment; I91: Vehicle Design and Safety;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01361174
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: DOT/FRA/ORD-10/09
• Files: NTL, TRIS, USDOT
• Created Date: Jan 25 2012 2:22PM