USA Banner

Official US Government Icon

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure Site Icon

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

U.S. Department of Transportation U.S. Department of Transportation Icon United States Department of Transportation United States Department of Transportation

General

Subscribe to General

Computer Simulation of Tank Car Head Puncture Mechanisms

A number of railroad accidents have been aggravated by couplers puncturing the shell head of hazardous material tank cars. Development of means for identifying possible puncture mechanisms and quantifying the coupler forces involved is the subject of this report. A mathematical model, capable of...

An Analysis of the Job of Railroad Train Dispatcher

This report constitutes a detailed study of the job of railroad train dispatcher, conducted to provide a data base for the derivation of criteria of job knowledge, skills and training consonant with safe operations. Documentation was reviewed; specialists were consulted, and selected dispatching...

A Study to Reduce the Hazards of Tank Car Transportation

The report details the findings of a 4-month study contract directed at reducing the hazards of tank car transportation. Principal objectives were to (1) define thermal inputs and associated vapor generation rates for hazardous materials transported in tank cars when subjected to fire exposure...

Thermal Boundary Conditions from Engulfing Fires

Determination of a realistic fire boundary condition provides cask designers with a tool to predict accurately the response of a cask in a fire. In one approach to determining this thermal input, data were analyzed from previous engulfing fire experiments on cask-like objects. In another approach...