Effects of Partially-Filled Containers in Dynamic Behavior of Tanker Trains Traveling on Curved Tracks

Dynamic analysis of a partially-filled tanker train traveling on a curved track is studied in this paper. A partially-filled tanker is dynamically modeled when it is traveling along a real curved track. For three classes of tracks, rail irregularities are randomly generated by using Monte-Carlo simulation. An equivalent dynamic system is used to model sloshing motion of the fluid. Two derailment indexes i.e. derailment quotient and unloading ratio are obtained numerically as safety indicators. A parametric study is carried out to investigate how different parameters like the operational speed, fluid modeling, rail irregularities, and fluid density may affect the derailment potential. It is found that descending of the center of gravity and consequently reduction of the moment arms is more dominant than the oscillating forces due to sloshing motion.Copyright © 2008 by ASME