CA2328660A1 - Insulated coil car - Google Patents
Insulated coil car Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CA2328660A1 CA2328660A1 CA002328660A CA2328660A CA2328660A1 CA 2328660 A1 CA2328660 A1 CA 2328660A1 CA 002328660 A CA002328660 A CA 002328660A CA 2328660 A CA2328660 A CA 2328660A CA 2328660 A1 CA2328660 A1 CA 2328660A1
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- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- car
- thermal insulation
- slope sheets
- trough
- rail road
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B61—RAILWAYS
- B61D—BODY DETAILS OR KINDS OF RAILWAY VEHICLES
- B61D3/00—Wagons or vans
- B61D3/16—Wagons or vans adapted for carrying special loads
-
- Y—GENERAL TAGGING OF NEW TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENTS; GENERAL TAGGING OF CROSS-SECTIONAL TECHNOLOGIES SPANNING OVER SEVERAL SECTIONS OF THE IPC; TECHNICAL SUBJECTS COVERED BY FORMER USPC CROSS-REFERENCE ART COLLECTIONS [XRACs] AND DIGESTS
- Y02—TECHNOLOGIES OR APPLICATIONS FOR MITIGATION OR ADAPTATION AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE
- Y02T—CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES RELATED TO TRANSPORTATION
- Y02T30/00—Transportation of goods or passengers via railways, e.g. energy recovery or reducing air resistance
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- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Transportation (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Railway Tracks (AREA)
Abstract
A railcar unit has a pair of deep sidewalls and a cradle mounted between t he sidewalk for carrying coils. The sidewalk span the distance between the two railcar trucks, and act as a pair of deep beams for carrying vertical loads. The dee p sidewalls are arranged to extend above and below the centre sill of the cradle and to give vertical stiffness to the car. The centre sill is a straight through sill for carryin g buff and draft loads between the couplers. The cradle is made from a set of cross bearers welded to the centre sill to form a series of segmented beams, covered by slope sheets. Cushioning material is mounted to the slope sheets, and non-flammable thermal insulatio n and wear plates are also mounted to overlie the cushioning members. The end bulkheads of the trough are provided with non-flammable thermal insulation, and with wear plates against which coils can sit.
Description
INSULATED COIL CAR STRUCTURE
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to improvements in the structure railway cars for carrying metal coils, commonly referred to as coil cars, and more particularly to coil cars having insulation to permit the carriage of warm coils.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Coils of steel sheet are often carried by rail cars. Coils can be mounted either longitudinally or transversely. In a longitudinal mounting, the axis of revolution of the coil is aligned to be substantially parallel with the rolling, or longitudinal, direction of the rail car. A longitudinal mounting often has the appearance of a single long trough with a number of moveable intermediate dividers called coil stops. In a transverse mounting, the axis of revolution of the coil is aligned across the tracks, that is, perpendicular to the rolling direction of the rail car. Transverse mounting cars have a number of parallel bunks, rather than one long trough. A bunk is generally V-shaped, and the coil sits in the bunk with the outer circumference of the coil tangent to the V at two points such that it is discouraged from rolling. The V-shaped bunks are generally lined with wood decking to act as cushioning, thereby discouraging damage to the coils during loading or travel.
In earlier times flat cars were converted to function as coil cars by adding bunks on to the flat car deck to prevent the coils from rolling off the deck during transport from the rolling mill to the customer. The basic structure of a flat car includes a main center sill that is box shaped in cross-section. The center sill of this kind of car is the main structural member of the car and runs from one end coupling of the car to the other. The center sill is the primary load path of the car both for longitudinal buff and draft loads from coupler to coupler, and for carrying the vertical load bending moment between the trucks. A wide deck is mounted above the center sill of this kind of car.
Often, alternating cross-bearers and cross ties extend outwardly from the central sill. The cross bearers tend to be of deeper section and provide the majority of the support for the outboard regions of the deck.
Over time, the size and weight of coils that can be carried has increased. The flat car design has evolved to have stronger and bigger main sills, sometimes reinforced by doubled sections. Further, the central sill may not necessarily be of constant section, but 20530060.1 may have a "fish belly" profile. That is, the depth of section of the centre sill can increase toward the mid-section of the railcar to correspond to the increase in bending moment at mid-span between the rail car trucks. Further, longitudinal stringers, in the form of I-beams or wide flange beams have been located above the deck level to form the upper lip of the longitudinal bunk. In another step in the evolution of the flat car design, some or all of the flat decking can be replaced by canted decking to form the V-shaped trough. In more recent times the flat decking has been removed entirely, to leave a railcar having a dominant centre sill, a pair of elevated outboard longitudinal beams, cross-bearers cantilevered out from the centre sill like ribs; and V-shaped decking to form the trough.
However, rather than having a dominant center sill, the inventor employs a pair of outboard beams of relatively deep section. The coil carrying bunk is then supported at its lateral ends to extend between the two deep side beams. A car with a pair of deep beams, well separated also has superior lateral bending resistance to a narrower car.
In terms of fabrication, it is advantageous to reduce the number of different parts used in an assembly. To that end, it would be advantageous to replace the traditional arrangement of alternating cross-ties and cross-bearers with a single design of cross-bearer. When the cross-bearer is designed conceptually as a cantilevered arm or rib, it is not uncommon for the root of the arm to be of a deeper section than the tip, reflecting the relatively large moment that must be carried at the root of the arm. However, a tapered section is not as convenient as a section of constant depth. A section of constant depth can be produced by a rolling mill, and is less likely to have welding defects or irregularities than a fabricated section. By contrast, when the cross-bearer is in concept more akin to a beam supported at two ends, the use of a section of constant depth is not inappropriate.
The use of a deep side beam presents the opportunity for improving the connection at the outboard tips of the cross-bearers. Formerly, the use of I-beam or wide flange beams at the upper and outer lips of the trough did not always present a convenient welding arrangement. The cross-bearer end could be trimmed to match the profile of the I-beam web, or the flange of the I-beam could be trimmed back locally to accommodate the cross-bearer tip. In either case the cross-bearer tip would butt against the I-beam section. When deep side beams are used, the beams themselves have intermediate vertical stiffeners to discourage the relatively thin webs of the beams from buckling. At the same time, the stiffeners present a flat surface, in the same plane as the plane of the web of the cross-bearer, against which a lap joint can be formed. Not only can a better joint be formed, but the fit-up process in manufacturing is, in the view of the present inventor, easier. That is, the pre-existing vertical stiffener of the beam acts as a 20530060.1 longitudinal stop for the outboard tip of the cross-bearer, automatically locating it in the correct position.
Access for brake maintenance on a car with deep side walls may be limited. To address this concern the present inventor has eased the downward profile of the side beams to permit improved access to the brakes between the trucks and the mid-span portion of the car.
A coil of steel can be formed by reeling hot rolled sheet. The coil may leave the rolling mill at a very high temperature at which the steel is still glowing, and may have to be cooled for a significant period of time to reach temperatures at which it can be handled for railway transport purposes. A heavy coil can require a several hours of cooling before it falls to a temperature of 500 - 600 F and can be moved, and may take longer still to reach a temperature below 150 F. Depending on the length and nature of the journey, it may be desirable to be able to move a coil while it is still relatively warm. That is, rather than sitting as inventory at the rolling mill, some of the cooling time can include time spent in transit to the next processing operation. It may be that the coils can be loaded in coil cars and shunted at the mill to a location that will not impeded further coil production and left to sit until fully cooled to a desired temperature. Alternatively, for short journeys and subsequent operations that require re-heating of the coil, there may be an energy saving by delivering the coil in a warm condition, rather than cooled to ambient temperatures. As the coils cool, they will develop a temperature gradient, being relatively cooler on the outer circumference of the coil, and relatively warmer on the inner circumference surface at the internal bore of the coil (i.e., at the donut-hole surface). Warm in this context is still quite hot as compared to ambient temperatures, and may entail an internal bore surface temperature of the order of 500 or 600 F. It is possible that more severe temperatures may be encountered in service.
Carriage of hot rolls requires a suitable car. First, the car must be able to accommodate a warm coil, and second, the presence of a warm coil, or coils, in the car should tend not to impair car operation. For example, brake fittings or hydraulic fittings should not tend to be unduly adversely affected. It is also undesirable for portions of the railcar body to become unduly hot to touch. In general then, it is desirable to discourage heat transfer from the coils into the body of the railcar.
Given that the principle path for heat transfer by conduction into the structure of the rail car body is through the points of contact, namely the points of tangency of the coils with the trough slope sheets, one way to deter heat loss through the car structure is to insulate the slope sheets. If the slope sheets of the trough are to be insulated, then the manner of 20530060. I
.. -4-insulation must be such as to permit the heavy weight of the steel coils to continue to be supported. To this end, insulating material, such as a thermally insulating ceramic or ceramic-like material can be placed over the oaken baulks that customarily provide a cushioning in the trough for the coils. A ceramic, or ceramic like material, may tend to have S suitable thermal insulation properties and a relatively high crush strength suitable for supporting the weight of a coil. Ceramics, or ceramic-like materials, may not tend to perform well if subject to abuse or accidental damage from impact loads. A
steel load spreader plate, or liner, can be placed over the insulation material to spread the load and to reduce the tendency of the coils to crack or crush a ceramic or ceramic-like thermal insulation substrate, given the relatively high local stress concentration that would otherwise be observed at the points of tangent contact of the coil with the slope sheets of the trough, and given the possibility of accidental damage during coil handling operations.
In addition, the present inventors have observed that, in addition to heat loss through I 5 the floor of the trough, there is significant heating of the end bulkheads of the trough. When large warm, or hot, coils are placed over the trucks, they tend to be placed in a position abutting the end bulkheads, such that the end bulkheads perform the function of fixed position coil stops. As such the heat transfer from the coils to the end bulkheads can be quite high. For example, in one test the external end bulkhead temperature was observed to be in excess of 200 F when a steel coil at over 500 F was placed against the inside face of the bulkhead. It would be desirable to have a lower external surface temperature.
Furthermore, both the end bulkheads and the coil stops provided to discourage longitudinal motion of the coils once loaded, are customarily provided with pads suitable for snug placement against the end face of the coil. Recently these pads have been made of plastic materials, such as high density nylon. When hot coils are used, it is desirable that materials that melt, char or burn relatively easily, be supplanted by more fire resistant materials. More generally, the sides of the coil stop and the faces of the end bulkheads are most advantageously suited to high temperature operation (i.e., to about 600 F, if not more).
The inventors have also noted that when an insulated floor is used, it is possible to dispense with the wooden baulks, or planks previously used. That is, rather than resting upon the wooden members, the thermally insulating ceramic or ceramic-like material are permitted to lie directly on the deck plates. Should an excessively hot coil be placed in the trough, such that the temperature on the underside of the insulating material should approach, or reach, the combustion temperature of the wood, the removal of wood from underneath the insulating panel removes an element that might otherwise char or burn.
20530060.1 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a rail car for carrying metal coils, comprising a - pair of end structures each mounted on a rail car truck, a pair of side beams extending between the end structures, and a transverse cradle, for cradling metal coils, mounted between the side beams. The cradle has a longitudinally extending low central portion.
The lowest point of the low central portion lies at a height that is at least as high as the lowest extremity of the side beams. The trough structure is insulated.
In another aspect of the invention there is a rail road car coil car comprising a trough structure mounted on rail car trucks for rolling operation in a longitudinal direction, the trough structure having a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets co-operable to cradle a coil, and a pair of end walls mounted transversely relative to the slope sheets to define end bulkheads of the trough structure, the end bulkheads having thermal insulating materials mounted thereto.
In an additional feature of that aspect of the invention, the slope sheets also have thermal insulation mounted thereto. In a further additional feature, the end bulkheads each have a face oriented inwardly toward the trough, and the thermal insulation is mounted to the inwardly oriented face. In a still further feature, a liner is mounted to the thermal insulation material, the liner being mounted to face coils carried in the trough structure. In an alternative additional feature, the thermal insulation material is mounted between the inwardly oriented face of the bulkhead and a wear plate.
In another feature, the slope sheets also have thermal insulation material mounted thereto, and the thermal insulation material mounted to the slope sheets is overlain by a liner. In a further feature, the thermal insulation material mounted to the slope sheets overlies wooden planking. In a yet further feature, the thermal insulation material mounted to the slope sheets is in direct contact with the slope sheets. In another feature the thermal insulation material meets the slope sheet on a planar interface free of intervening layers. In still another feature, the thermal insulation material is non-flammable to at least 600 F.
In another aspect of the invention there is a rail car coil car comprising a trough structure mounted on rail car trucks for rolling operation in a longitudinal direction. The trough structure has a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets co-operable to cradle a coil, and the slope sheets have non-flammable thermal insulating materials mounted directly thereto.
In another feature of that aspect of the invention, the thermal insulation material is 20530060.1 operable at temperatures at least as high as 600 F. In a further feature the trough structure includes a pair of transversely mounted walls defining end bulkheads of the trough structure, and the end bulkheads also have thermal insulation mounted thereto.
In a still further feature, the thermal insulation mounted to the slope sheets is overlain by a load bearing liner. In still another feature the trough structure includes a pair of transversely mounted walls defining end bulkheads of the trough structure, the end bulkheads also having thermal insulation mounted thereto, and the thermal insulation of each of the end bulkheads is shielded by a wear plate. In a yet further feature, the thermal insulation mounted to the slope sheets is operable to at least 600 F, and the thermal insulation mounted to the end bulkheads is also operable to at least 600 F.
In another aspect of the invention there is a rail road coil car having a trough structure carried upon rail car trucks in a longitudinal rolling direction.
The trough structure includes a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets defining sides of a trough, and a pair of transversely extending end walls defining end bulkheads of the trough.
The slope sheets each have with a layer non-flammable structural thermal insulation mounted thereabove, the non-flammable insulation being overlain by a wear plate. Each of the end bulkheads is provided with a layer of non-flammable insulation material mounted thereto facing inwardly into said trough. The layer of insulation material mounted to each of the end bulkheads is shielded by a wear plate.
In an additional feature of that aspect of the invention, the insulation material above the slope sheets, and the insulation material mounted to the end bulkheads being non-flammable to at least 600 F. In a further feature, the non-flammable insulation material lies directly in contact with the slope sheets. In yet another feature, the trough structure is supported by a plurality of cross members mounted along the car, and the trough structure is slung between a pair of side sills whose depth of section exceeds that of the trough.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example to the accompanying drawings, which show an apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention and in which:
Figure 1 is a top view of a prior art coil car;
Figure 2 is a side view of the prior art coil car of Figure 1;
Figure 3a is a cross-sectional view on section '3a-3a' of the prior art coil car of Figure 1;
Figure 3b is the other cross-sectional view on section '3b-3b' of Figure 1;
20530060.1 _7_ Figure 4 is a sectional view on section '4-4' of the prior art coil car of Figure 1;
Figure 5a is top view a rail car according to the present invention;
Figure Sb is a top view of the rail car of Figure Sa with decking removed to show the skeletal structure of the rail car;
Figure 6 is a side view of half of the rail car of Figures 5a and 5b;
Figure 7 is a cross section of the rail car of Figures Sa and Sb at mid span;
Figure 8a is a cross section of the rail car of Figure Sa at the main bolster;
Figure 8b is a cross sectional view of the rail car of Figure 5b toward the end bulkhead;
Figure 9a is a cross section of a coil car such as the coil car of Figure 8a having an insulated deck and insulted end bulkhead;
Figure 9b shows an enlarged detail facing the end bulkhead with a portion of the bulkhead shield plate removed to reveal an insulation member;
Figure 9c shows a detail of on section '9c - 9c' of Figure 9b; and 1 S Figure 10 shows an alternate deck insulation arrangement to that of Figure 9b.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The description that follows, and the embodiments described therein, are provided by way of illustration of an example, or examples of particular embodiments of the principles of the present invention. These examples are provided for the purposes of explanation, and not of limitation, of those principles and of the invention.
In the description that follows, like parts are marked throughout the specification and the drawings with the same respective reference numerals. The drawings are not necessarily to scale and in some instances proportions may have been exaggerated in order more clearly to depict certain features of the invention.
In terms of general orientation and directional nomenclature, for each of the rail road cars described herein, the longitudinal direction is defined as being coincident with the rolling direction of the car, or car unit, when located on tangent (that is, straight) track. In the case of a car having a center sill, whether a through center sill or stub sill, the longitudinal direction is parallel to the center sill, and parallel to the side sills, if any.
Unless otherwise noted, vertical, or upward and downward, are terms that use top of rail TOR as a datum. The term lateral, or laterally outboard, refers to a distance or orientation relative to the longitudinal centerline of the railroad car, or car unit, indicated as CL - Rail Car. The term "longitudinally inboard", or "longitudinally outboard" is a distance taken relative to a mid-span lateral section of the car, or car unit.
For the purposes of better understanding the present invention, a number of 20530060.1 _$-illustrations of a prior art rail car are included by way of comparison. The prior art rail car is indicated generally in Figures 1, 2, 3a, 3b and 4 as P20. It has a pair of rail car end structures P22 and P24, each having a main bolster P26. A main center sill is indicated as P28. Ribs branch outwardly from main center sill P28 and are indicated as cross-bearers P30 and thinner cross-ties P32. The outer tips of cross-bearers P30 and cross ties P32 meet with one or other of a pair of wide flange beams P34 and P36. A
generally V-shaped deck P38 runs the length of the car, spanning the pitches between cross-beams P30 and cross-ties P32 to terminate at end bulkheads P40 and P42. Main center sill P28 has a generally box-shaped rectangular section that has a deep central belly P44, shown in Figures 3a and 3b. Main center sill P28 has an upper flange P46 and a thick central lower flange P48.
In the particular embodiment illustrated the overall depth of main center sill at central belly P44 is 28 inches. The weight of main center sill P28 is 150 lbs per lineal foot, and its width is 22 inches over the lower flange P48. The thickness of bottom flange P48 is 1 inch and the thickness or the remainder of main center sill P28 is 3/8 inches thick. Wide flange beams P34 and P36 are 13.8 inches deep at 34.3 lbs. per lineal foot each. The overall weight of section is roughly 261 lbs. per lineal foot with a neutral axis in bending located 22.9 inches above top of rail, undeflected design height.
The local neutral axis of main center sill P28 is located about 23.3 inches TOR, and the local neutral axis of each of the wide flange beams is located about 56.8 inches above TOR.
The second moment of area of the section shown in Figure 3a is about 24,300 in4. Of this, 50 % can be attributed to the influence of main center sill P28.
At the mid-span line of car P20, it is expected conceptually that a large coil, such as an 84 inch diameter coil, will tend to place the top flange of cross bearers P30 in tension and the lower flange in compression.
In Figure 3a, wide flange P36 has been trimmed locally to admit the distal tip of cross-bearer P30, such that the end of the tapered web P52 and upper flange P54 of cross-bearer P30 abut the vertical web of wide flange beam P36. Cross beam P30 and wide flange P36 are fillet welded together in this orientation. A similar arrangement is shown in Figure 3b for cross-tie P32 and wide flange P34.
For the purposes of conceptual explanation the embodiments illustrated in Figures Sa, Sb, 6, 7, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 9c, 9d and 10, the major structural elements are both symmetrical about the longitudinal centerline of the car (as designated by axis CL) and symmetrical about the mid-span transverse section of the car, indicated as TS.
In reality a number of brake fittings, handrails, brackets, cables and other ancillary features that do 20530060.1 not have appreciable effect on the structural performance of the car may not necessarily be symmetrical about either centerline.
A rail car is indicated generally as 20. It has a pair of end structures 22 and 24 for mounting on a pair of rail car trucks 26 and 28 respectively. A pair of left and right hand side beams 30 and 32 extend between end structures 22 and 24, and form the main longitudinal structural elements of rail car 20 for resisting gravitational loads. A cradle 34 is hung between beams 30 and 32. Cradle 34 resembles a trough, and is shaped to cradle steel coils, or other similar loads, between its inwardly and downwardly sloping shoulders 36. Shoulders 36 are lined with wooden decking 37 placed to accommodate coils ranging between 30 and 84 inches in diameter. When coils are loaded in cradle 34 they are discouraged from longitudinal sliding by end bulkheads 35 and by moveable bulkheads 38 whose locating pins seat in the indexed apertures of left and right hand locating plates 39.
The structure of cradle 34 includes a center sill, 40, cross-bearers 42 extending between center sill 40 and one or the other of side beams 30 and 32, and deck plates 44.
Deck plates 44 include right and left hand slope plates 46, and 48 of shoulders 36, welded to the upper flanges of cross-bearers 42 and to the upper flange 50 of center sill 40.
Center sill 40 includes, in addition to upper flange 50, a pair of parallel vertical webs 52 and 54 and a lower flange 56. Center sill 40 is a through-center-sill, that is, it runs from one end of rail car 20 to the other, and is of substantially constant section throughout its length. Internal gussets 57 are welded inside center sill 40 to provide web continuity at each cross-bearer location. Center sill 40 has an overall depth of 12.719 inches. Upper flange 50 is 15 inches wide and 0.50 inches thick. Lower flange 56 is 16 inches wide and 0.50 inches thick. Vertical webs 52 and 54 are each 11.719 inches high and 0.375 inches thick. The overall weight of the section is 82.3 lbs per lineal foot, and its local moment of inertia in longitudinal bending, that is its second moment of area about its transverse neutral axis, is 664 in4.
Since rail car 20 is symmetrical, for the purposes of the present description it will be understood that the structure of side beams 30 and 32 is identical. Each has an upper flange assembly 70, a lower flange assembly 72, and webbing 74. Examining each of these in turn, upper flange assembly 70 has a top chord member in the nature of a hollow rectangular steel tube 76, upon which pin locating plate 39 is mounted. Plate 39 has an inwardly extending perforated tongue, 80, the perforations having a constant pitch, and being of a size and shape suitable for engagement by the locating pins of moveable bulkheads 38. Also located intermittently along a more outboard region of plate 39 are tie-down eyes 84 for locating a cowling or cover to protect coils mounted on coil car 20 20530060.1 from being exposed to the rain and snow. Lower flange assembly 72 includes a main lower sill member in the nature of a hollow rectangular tube 86 to which a 3/4" thick steel lower sill reinforcement 88 has been added. Webbing 74 includes a substantially vertical steel web 90 welded at lap joints to the respective outer faces of steel tube 76 and rectangular tube 86. Vertical braces 92 extend between tubes 76 and 86 along the inner face of web 90 at regular spacings along the length of beams 30 and 32. A
cantilevered walkway 94 is mounted on brackets 98 located on the outboard face of web 90.
Over the mid span section of car 20, that is, the portion of car 20 at which side beams 30 and 32 have their maximum depth, the overall second moment of area of each side beam 30 or 32 is about 14,800 in4. The weight of each side beam section is about 100 lbs. per lineal foot. Each of side beams 30 and 32 provides just over 45 %
of the total second moment of area of the mid span section of car 20.
The joining of cradle 34 to each of side beams 30 or 32 is typically as shown in Figure 7. Deck Plate, 44 has a vertical upturned lip 102 that is welded along the inwardly facing side of steel tube 76. The web 104 of cross bearer 42 extends beyond the ends of its upper and lower flanges 106 and 108 and is cut on a mitre to yield a substantial tab 110 suitable for welding in a lap joint to the longitudinally facing side 112 of vertical brace 92. The joint is welded at a fillet along the corner of vertical brace 92 on one face of tab 110, and at a fillet along the distally extreme edge of tab 110 to side 112. In this way the joint is intended to place the weldmetal predominantly in shear. Web 104 also has intermediate gussets 114 to provide reinforcement in the region of wooden decking 37. Wooden decking 37 is provided for the known purpose of cushioning metal coils loaded in car 20, as noted above.
Considering the side view of car 20 shown in Figure 6, moving away from the mid span centerline of car 20 on Transverse Section TS, the section of greatest depth ends at a point designates as 'X'. Lower sill reinforcement 88 ends, and hollow rectangular tube 86 is obliquely truncated and welded to a doglegged upsweep flange 120. Flange follows the lower edge of web 90 as it narrows in a transition portion 121 from the deep, mid span portion, 122 to the narrow, or shallow, end structure portion 124, the upward sweep of flange 120, reaching a height sufficient to clear trucks 26 and 28, as the case may be. The upper portion 130 of the dog leg has an exaggerated, or extended, reach to yield a relief, or accessway, indicated generally as 132 between the near wheel 134 of truck 26 or 28, and the truncated end of lower sill tube 86. This extended recess facilitates maintenance and repair of operating mechanisms of car 20, such as brake linkages. It also makes for a more efficient use of material since the depth of section 20530060.1 required at mid span is generally greater than that required near the ends of the span for a simply supported beam. This permits a saving in weight.
Moving still further toward the end of car 20, the accumulated vertical shear load S in side beams 30 and 32 is carried to trucks 26 and 28 of end structures 22 and 24, as shown in the sectional view of Figure 8a. Main bolster 140 has the form of a laterally extending irregular box with a pair of spaced apart, substantially parallel webs 142 and 144 of significant depth. Webs 142 and 144 extend fully between a stepped lower flange and a sloped upper flange 146 underlying deck plate 36. Webs 142 and 144 have an extending tab 148 that reaches under and supports upper flange assembly 70, abuts the inside face of web 90, and also abuts the top face of upswept flange 120.
In alternative embodiments of the invention to that shown, it would be possible to design a car having a cradle with either a steeper or a shallower slope, with consequent I S alteration of the height of the center sill relative to the side beams.
However, given the relatively higher pliability of the center sill under vertical bending loads as compared to the side beams, it is undesirable for the chord of maximum stress (and therefore strain) to be in the lower flange of the center sill. To that end, the lower flange of the center sill, that is, its lowest extremity, is no lower than the lowest extremity of the side beams, that is, the bottom chord of the side sills. Similarly, the highest compressive stress due to vertical load will occur in the highest portions to top chord assembly 70.
In terms of carrying compressive longitudinal loads between coupler ends, it is advantageous to retain a straight through sill. This implies a relatively high sill since standard coupler height is 33 inches above top of rail to the center of the coupler. In the embodiment illustrated, the centroid of area of car 20 is at a height just below the top of top flange 50, within the profile of center sill 40. As such, center sill 40 plays only a small role in resistance to vertical bending.
It is possible to benefit from simplified production when all the cross bearers are of the same design, but some benefits can be obtained even when some cross ties remain, whether they are half as numerous, two thirds as numerous, one third as numerous as the cross bearers or some other fraction.
3 S Figures 9a, 9b, and 9c show portions of a rail road coil car 150 whose structural elements are as described above in the context of rail car 20, and where those elements are common, the same identification numerals are employed. Coil car 150 differs from car 20 by having an insulated trough structure. Figure 9a shows a staggered cross-section of coil car 150 taken above one of the trucks, looking toward end bulkhead 152. The left hand side of Figure 9a is taken looking at the main bolster, the right hand side is taken 20530060.1 looking at the cross bearer longitudinally outboard of the main bolster. Coil car 150 has left and right hand sloped sheets 154 and 156 that overlie an array of cross-bearers such as cross bearers 42 to define a longitudinally extending trough, indicated generally as 158. Trough 158 is lined with coil cushioning members in the nature of wooden planking 160, generally similar to decking 37 noted above, held in place with retaining brackets 162.
A layer of load supporting insulating material is indicated as 164. It is advantageous that this material be a ceramic or ceramic-like material having relatively low thermal conductivity as compared to steel, and a relatively high crush strength suitable for supporting the relatively concentrated load exerted under tangent contact of large steel coils. This material is a calcium silicate panel material identified as Marinite I, (t.m.) supplied by BNZ Materials, Inc., of 400 High Street, Iron Horse Park, North Billerica, MA 01862. Insulating layer 164 is roughly 3/4 inches thick, and can be used, according to BNZ product literature, in contact with objects in excess of 1000 F.
Insulating layer 164 is overlain by a load spreading protective layer in the nature of a wear liner 166, made of a bent steel plate of'/2 inch thickness.
Insulating layer 164 is nailed to planking 160. Wear liner 166 has a minor bent leg 168 formed to lie against the most outboard, upward face of planking 160, and is engaged by the bolts of retaining brackets 162. The major leg of wear liner 166 presents an engagement, or bearing surface 170 to coils positioned in trough 158, the size of leg 170 measured along the slope being sufficient to accommodate the range of coil sizes for which the car is designed.
In addition to the deck insulation thus described, car 150 has insulation mounted to end bulkhead, 152. In the section of Figure 9c, the top chord of the side sill is indicated as 76, as above. An upper cross-member 172 in the form of an I-beam turned on its side extends across car 150 from top chord to top chord. The endmost inclined cross member is a channel indicated as 174. Channel 174 is mounted on its side, with toes inward against a trough endwall panel member in the nature of a bulkhead sheet 176.
Channel 174 runs on the same slope as cross-bearers 42 from center sill 40 to side sill top chord 76, the outboard tip being mitred to locate against vertical web 90 and underneath top chord 76 in a manner similar to cross-bearer member 178 shown in Figure 9b.
Bulkhead sheet 176 extends across the width of coil car 150 from web 90 of one side sill, to web 90 of the other side sill, is trimmed to accommodate top chord 76, and has an upwardly extending lip 180 that stands proud of (that is, higher than) the top flange of top chord 76, lapping against the longitudinally inboard facing surface of the inboard flange of upper cross member 172.
20530060.1 A layer of insulating material, again in the nature of a ceramic or ceramic-like material is indicated as 182. It is preferred that insulating material 182 be a calcium silicate structural insulation, such as Marinite I (t.m.) noted above., and that the layer be formed, or trimmed to match the sloped profile of slope sheets 154 and 156, the top flange of center sill 40, and the upper edge of end bulkhead sheet 176. In contrast to bulkhead sheet 143 of Figure 86, bulkhead sheet 176 does not have cushioning material like cushioning material 145 in the nature of a high molecular weight polymer that might be prone to melting or catching fire. Rather, insulating material 182 is captured between bulkhead sheet 176 and an end bulkhead liner, or wear plate, 184, that has a bent lip, or leg 186 welded to the uppermost tip of the innermost flange of cross member 172. Wear plate 184 has a major portion, being a depending sheet terminating at, abutting and attached to, slope sheets 154 and 156. Wear plate 184 may tend to protect insulating layer 182 from accidental damage due to coil mis-handling, and presents a smooth, hard surface free of flammable or meltable materials toward coils carried in trough 158.
In the embodiment of Figure 10, a rail road coil car 200 has the same construction as rail road car 150, except insofar as wooden cushioning planking is not employed.
Rather, an insulating layer of structural thermal insulation, indicated as 202 is mounted directly on slope sheet 204, and a wear plate 210 is mounted directly above thermal insulation 202. A stop strip 212 is provided in an abutting position against the lower edge of thermal insulation 202, to discourage thermal insulation 202 from migrating down the slope of sheet 204 toward center sill 40. The upper margin of plate 210 is formed into a downward tab 214, and tab 214 is bolted to slope sheet 204. In this way thermally insulative material having sufficient structural strength to bear the load of coils is placed directly upon the slope sheets, the assembly so formed being free of an intermediate layer of wooden planks. That is, the non-flammable thermally insulative material is directly in contact with the slope sheets. Unlike the wooden planks, the thermally insulative layer is non-flammable to a temperature of at least 600 F. A thermally insulative gasket is used between tab 214 and slope sheet 204, and between the nut and sheet 204. Coil car 200 also has insulted end bulkheads, as described above.
A preferred embodiment has been described in detail and a number of alternatives have been considered. As changes in or additions to the above described embodiments may be made without departing from the nature, spirit or scope of the invention, the invention is not to be limited by or to those details, but only by the appended claims.
20530060.1
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to improvements in the structure railway cars for carrying metal coils, commonly referred to as coil cars, and more particularly to coil cars having insulation to permit the carriage of warm coils.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Coils of steel sheet are often carried by rail cars. Coils can be mounted either longitudinally or transversely. In a longitudinal mounting, the axis of revolution of the coil is aligned to be substantially parallel with the rolling, or longitudinal, direction of the rail car. A longitudinal mounting often has the appearance of a single long trough with a number of moveable intermediate dividers called coil stops. In a transverse mounting, the axis of revolution of the coil is aligned across the tracks, that is, perpendicular to the rolling direction of the rail car. Transverse mounting cars have a number of parallel bunks, rather than one long trough. A bunk is generally V-shaped, and the coil sits in the bunk with the outer circumference of the coil tangent to the V at two points such that it is discouraged from rolling. The V-shaped bunks are generally lined with wood decking to act as cushioning, thereby discouraging damage to the coils during loading or travel.
In earlier times flat cars were converted to function as coil cars by adding bunks on to the flat car deck to prevent the coils from rolling off the deck during transport from the rolling mill to the customer. The basic structure of a flat car includes a main center sill that is box shaped in cross-section. The center sill of this kind of car is the main structural member of the car and runs from one end coupling of the car to the other. The center sill is the primary load path of the car both for longitudinal buff and draft loads from coupler to coupler, and for carrying the vertical load bending moment between the trucks. A wide deck is mounted above the center sill of this kind of car.
Often, alternating cross-bearers and cross ties extend outwardly from the central sill. The cross bearers tend to be of deeper section and provide the majority of the support for the outboard regions of the deck.
Over time, the size and weight of coils that can be carried has increased. The flat car design has evolved to have stronger and bigger main sills, sometimes reinforced by doubled sections. Further, the central sill may not necessarily be of constant section, but 20530060.1 may have a "fish belly" profile. That is, the depth of section of the centre sill can increase toward the mid-section of the railcar to correspond to the increase in bending moment at mid-span between the rail car trucks. Further, longitudinal stringers, in the form of I-beams or wide flange beams have been located above the deck level to form the upper lip of the longitudinal bunk. In another step in the evolution of the flat car design, some or all of the flat decking can be replaced by canted decking to form the V-shaped trough. In more recent times the flat decking has been removed entirely, to leave a railcar having a dominant centre sill, a pair of elevated outboard longitudinal beams, cross-bearers cantilevered out from the centre sill like ribs; and V-shaped decking to form the trough.
However, rather than having a dominant center sill, the inventor employs a pair of outboard beams of relatively deep section. The coil carrying bunk is then supported at its lateral ends to extend between the two deep side beams. A car with a pair of deep beams, well separated also has superior lateral bending resistance to a narrower car.
In terms of fabrication, it is advantageous to reduce the number of different parts used in an assembly. To that end, it would be advantageous to replace the traditional arrangement of alternating cross-ties and cross-bearers with a single design of cross-bearer. When the cross-bearer is designed conceptually as a cantilevered arm or rib, it is not uncommon for the root of the arm to be of a deeper section than the tip, reflecting the relatively large moment that must be carried at the root of the arm. However, a tapered section is not as convenient as a section of constant depth. A section of constant depth can be produced by a rolling mill, and is less likely to have welding defects or irregularities than a fabricated section. By contrast, when the cross-bearer is in concept more akin to a beam supported at two ends, the use of a section of constant depth is not inappropriate.
The use of a deep side beam presents the opportunity for improving the connection at the outboard tips of the cross-bearers. Formerly, the use of I-beam or wide flange beams at the upper and outer lips of the trough did not always present a convenient welding arrangement. The cross-bearer end could be trimmed to match the profile of the I-beam web, or the flange of the I-beam could be trimmed back locally to accommodate the cross-bearer tip. In either case the cross-bearer tip would butt against the I-beam section. When deep side beams are used, the beams themselves have intermediate vertical stiffeners to discourage the relatively thin webs of the beams from buckling. At the same time, the stiffeners present a flat surface, in the same plane as the plane of the web of the cross-bearer, against which a lap joint can be formed. Not only can a better joint be formed, but the fit-up process in manufacturing is, in the view of the present inventor, easier. That is, the pre-existing vertical stiffener of the beam acts as a 20530060.1 longitudinal stop for the outboard tip of the cross-bearer, automatically locating it in the correct position.
Access for brake maintenance on a car with deep side walls may be limited. To address this concern the present inventor has eased the downward profile of the side beams to permit improved access to the brakes between the trucks and the mid-span portion of the car.
A coil of steel can be formed by reeling hot rolled sheet. The coil may leave the rolling mill at a very high temperature at which the steel is still glowing, and may have to be cooled for a significant period of time to reach temperatures at which it can be handled for railway transport purposes. A heavy coil can require a several hours of cooling before it falls to a temperature of 500 - 600 F and can be moved, and may take longer still to reach a temperature below 150 F. Depending on the length and nature of the journey, it may be desirable to be able to move a coil while it is still relatively warm. That is, rather than sitting as inventory at the rolling mill, some of the cooling time can include time spent in transit to the next processing operation. It may be that the coils can be loaded in coil cars and shunted at the mill to a location that will not impeded further coil production and left to sit until fully cooled to a desired temperature. Alternatively, for short journeys and subsequent operations that require re-heating of the coil, there may be an energy saving by delivering the coil in a warm condition, rather than cooled to ambient temperatures. As the coils cool, they will develop a temperature gradient, being relatively cooler on the outer circumference of the coil, and relatively warmer on the inner circumference surface at the internal bore of the coil (i.e., at the donut-hole surface). Warm in this context is still quite hot as compared to ambient temperatures, and may entail an internal bore surface temperature of the order of 500 or 600 F. It is possible that more severe temperatures may be encountered in service.
Carriage of hot rolls requires a suitable car. First, the car must be able to accommodate a warm coil, and second, the presence of a warm coil, or coils, in the car should tend not to impair car operation. For example, brake fittings or hydraulic fittings should not tend to be unduly adversely affected. It is also undesirable for portions of the railcar body to become unduly hot to touch. In general then, it is desirable to discourage heat transfer from the coils into the body of the railcar.
Given that the principle path for heat transfer by conduction into the structure of the rail car body is through the points of contact, namely the points of tangency of the coils with the trough slope sheets, one way to deter heat loss through the car structure is to insulate the slope sheets. If the slope sheets of the trough are to be insulated, then the manner of 20530060. I
.. -4-insulation must be such as to permit the heavy weight of the steel coils to continue to be supported. To this end, insulating material, such as a thermally insulating ceramic or ceramic-like material can be placed over the oaken baulks that customarily provide a cushioning in the trough for the coils. A ceramic, or ceramic like material, may tend to have S suitable thermal insulation properties and a relatively high crush strength suitable for supporting the weight of a coil. Ceramics, or ceramic-like materials, may not tend to perform well if subject to abuse or accidental damage from impact loads. A
steel load spreader plate, or liner, can be placed over the insulation material to spread the load and to reduce the tendency of the coils to crack or crush a ceramic or ceramic-like thermal insulation substrate, given the relatively high local stress concentration that would otherwise be observed at the points of tangent contact of the coil with the slope sheets of the trough, and given the possibility of accidental damage during coil handling operations.
In addition, the present inventors have observed that, in addition to heat loss through I 5 the floor of the trough, there is significant heating of the end bulkheads of the trough. When large warm, or hot, coils are placed over the trucks, they tend to be placed in a position abutting the end bulkheads, such that the end bulkheads perform the function of fixed position coil stops. As such the heat transfer from the coils to the end bulkheads can be quite high. For example, in one test the external end bulkhead temperature was observed to be in excess of 200 F when a steel coil at over 500 F was placed against the inside face of the bulkhead. It would be desirable to have a lower external surface temperature.
Furthermore, both the end bulkheads and the coil stops provided to discourage longitudinal motion of the coils once loaded, are customarily provided with pads suitable for snug placement against the end face of the coil. Recently these pads have been made of plastic materials, such as high density nylon. When hot coils are used, it is desirable that materials that melt, char or burn relatively easily, be supplanted by more fire resistant materials. More generally, the sides of the coil stop and the faces of the end bulkheads are most advantageously suited to high temperature operation (i.e., to about 600 F, if not more).
The inventors have also noted that when an insulated floor is used, it is possible to dispense with the wooden baulks, or planks previously used. That is, rather than resting upon the wooden members, the thermally insulating ceramic or ceramic-like material are permitted to lie directly on the deck plates. Should an excessively hot coil be placed in the trough, such that the temperature on the underside of the insulating material should approach, or reach, the combustion temperature of the wood, the removal of wood from underneath the insulating panel removes an element that might otherwise char or burn.
20530060.1 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a rail car for carrying metal coils, comprising a - pair of end structures each mounted on a rail car truck, a pair of side beams extending between the end structures, and a transverse cradle, for cradling metal coils, mounted between the side beams. The cradle has a longitudinally extending low central portion.
The lowest point of the low central portion lies at a height that is at least as high as the lowest extremity of the side beams. The trough structure is insulated.
In another aspect of the invention there is a rail road car coil car comprising a trough structure mounted on rail car trucks for rolling operation in a longitudinal direction, the trough structure having a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets co-operable to cradle a coil, and a pair of end walls mounted transversely relative to the slope sheets to define end bulkheads of the trough structure, the end bulkheads having thermal insulating materials mounted thereto.
In an additional feature of that aspect of the invention, the slope sheets also have thermal insulation mounted thereto. In a further additional feature, the end bulkheads each have a face oriented inwardly toward the trough, and the thermal insulation is mounted to the inwardly oriented face. In a still further feature, a liner is mounted to the thermal insulation material, the liner being mounted to face coils carried in the trough structure. In an alternative additional feature, the thermal insulation material is mounted between the inwardly oriented face of the bulkhead and a wear plate.
In another feature, the slope sheets also have thermal insulation material mounted thereto, and the thermal insulation material mounted to the slope sheets is overlain by a liner. In a further feature, the thermal insulation material mounted to the slope sheets overlies wooden planking. In a yet further feature, the thermal insulation material mounted to the slope sheets is in direct contact with the slope sheets. In another feature the thermal insulation material meets the slope sheet on a planar interface free of intervening layers. In still another feature, the thermal insulation material is non-flammable to at least 600 F.
In another aspect of the invention there is a rail car coil car comprising a trough structure mounted on rail car trucks for rolling operation in a longitudinal direction. The trough structure has a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets co-operable to cradle a coil, and the slope sheets have non-flammable thermal insulating materials mounted directly thereto.
In another feature of that aspect of the invention, the thermal insulation material is 20530060.1 operable at temperatures at least as high as 600 F. In a further feature the trough structure includes a pair of transversely mounted walls defining end bulkheads of the trough structure, and the end bulkheads also have thermal insulation mounted thereto.
In a still further feature, the thermal insulation mounted to the slope sheets is overlain by a load bearing liner. In still another feature the trough structure includes a pair of transversely mounted walls defining end bulkheads of the trough structure, the end bulkheads also having thermal insulation mounted thereto, and the thermal insulation of each of the end bulkheads is shielded by a wear plate. In a yet further feature, the thermal insulation mounted to the slope sheets is operable to at least 600 F, and the thermal insulation mounted to the end bulkheads is also operable to at least 600 F.
In another aspect of the invention there is a rail road coil car having a trough structure carried upon rail car trucks in a longitudinal rolling direction.
The trough structure includes a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets defining sides of a trough, and a pair of transversely extending end walls defining end bulkheads of the trough.
The slope sheets each have with a layer non-flammable structural thermal insulation mounted thereabove, the non-flammable insulation being overlain by a wear plate. Each of the end bulkheads is provided with a layer of non-flammable insulation material mounted thereto facing inwardly into said trough. The layer of insulation material mounted to each of the end bulkheads is shielded by a wear plate.
In an additional feature of that aspect of the invention, the insulation material above the slope sheets, and the insulation material mounted to the end bulkheads being non-flammable to at least 600 F. In a further feature, the non-flammable insulation material lies directly in contact with the slope sheets. In yet another feature, the trough structure is supported by a plurality of cross members mounted along the car, and the trough structure is slung between a pair of side sills whose depth of section exceeds that of the trough.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
For a better understanding of the present invention and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example to the accompanying drawings, which show an apparatus according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention and in which:
Figure 1 is a top view of a prior art coil car;
Figure 2 is a side view of the prior art coil car of Figure 1;
Figure 3a is a cross-sectional view on section '3a-3a' of the prior art coil car of Figure 1;
Figure 3b is the other cross-sectional view on section '3b-3b' of Figure 1;
20530060.1 _7_ Figure 4 is a sectional view on section '4-4' of the prior art coil car of Figure 1;
Figure 5a is top view a rail car according to the present invention;
Figure Sb is a top view of the rail car of Figure Sa with decking removed to show the skeletal structure of the rail car;
Figure 6 is a side view of half of the rail car of Figures 5a and 5b;
Figure 7 is a cross section of the rail car of Figures Sa and Sb at mid span;
Figure 8a is a cross section of the rail car of Figure Sa at the main bolster;
Figure 8b is a cross sectional view of the rail car of Figure 5b toward the end bulkhead;
Figure 9a is a cross section of a coil car such as the coil car of Figure 8a having an insulated deck and insulted end bulkhead;
Figure 9b shows an enlarged detail facing the end bulkhead with a portion of the bulkhead shield plate removed to reveal an insulation member;
Figure 9c shows a detail of on section '9c - 9c' of Figure 9b; and 1 S Figure 10 shows an alternate deck insulation arrangement to that of Figure 9b.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
The description that follows, and the embodiments described therein, are provided by way of illustration of an example, or examples of particular embodiments of the principles of the present invention. These examples are provided for the purposes of explanation, and not of limitation, of those principles and of the invention.
In the description that follows, like parts are marked throughout the specification and the drawings with the same respective reference numerals. The drawings are not necessarily to scale and in some instances proportions may have been exaggerated in order more clearly to depict certain features of the invention.
In terms of general orientation and directional nomenclature, for each of the rail road cars described herein, the longitudinal direction is defined as being coincident with the rolling direction of the car, or car unit, when located on tangent (that is, straight) track. In the case of a car having a center sill, whether a through center sill or stub sill, the longitudinal direction is parallel to the center sill, and parallel to the side sills, if any.
Unless otherwise noted, vertical, or upward and downward, are terms that use top of rail TOR as a datum. The term lateral, or laterally outboard, refers to a distance or orientation relative to the longitudinal centerline of the railroad car, or car unit, indicated as CL - Rail Car. The term "longitudinally inboard", or "longitudinally outboard" is a distance taken relative to a mid-span lateral section of the car, or car unit.
For the purposes of better understanding the present invention, a number of 20530060.1 _$-illustrations of a prior art rail car are included by way of comparison. The prior art rail car is indicated generally in Figures 1, 2, 3a, 3b and 4 as P20. It has a pair of rail car end structures P22 and P24, each having a main bolster P26. A main center sill is indicated as P28. Ribs branch outwardly from main center sill P28 and are indicated as cross-bearers P30 and thinner cross-ties P32. The outer tips of cross-bearers P30 and cross ties P32 meet with one or other of a pair of wide flange beams P34 and P36. A
generally V-shaped deck P38 runs the length of the car, spanning the pitches between cross-beams P30 and cross-ties P32 to terminate at end bulkheads P40 and P42. Main center sill P28 has a generally box-shaped rectangular section that has a deep central belly P44, shown in Figures 3a and 3b. Main center sill P28 has an upper flange P46 and a thick central lower flange P48.
In the particular embodiment illustrated the overall depth of main center sill at central belly P44 is 28 inches. The weight of main center sill P28 is 150 lbs per lineal foot, and its width is 22 inches over the lower flange P48. The thickness of bottom flange P48 is 1 inch and the thickness or the remainder of main center sill P28 is 3/8 inches thick. Wide flange beams P34 and P36 are 13.8 inches deep at 34.3 lbs. per lineal foot each. The overall weight of section is roughly 261 lbs. per lineal foot with a neutral axis in bending located 22.9 inches above top of rail, undeflected design height.
The local neutral axis of main center sill P28 is located about 23.3 inches TOR, and the local neutral axis of each of the wide flange beams is located about 56.8 inches above TOR.
The second moment of area of the section shown in Figure 3a is about 24,300 in4. Of this, 50 % can be attributed to the influence of main center sill P28.
At the mid-span line of car P20, it is expected conceptually that a large coil, such as an 84 inch diameter coil, will tend to place the top flange of cross bearers P30 in tension and the lower flange in compression.
In Figure 3a, wide flange P36 has been trimmed locally to admit the distal tip of cross-bearer P30, such that the end of the tapered web P52 and upper flange P54 of cross-bearer P30 abut the vertical web of wide flange beam P36. Cross beam P30 and wide flange P36 are fillet welded together in this orientation. A similar arrangement is shown in Figure 3b for cross-tie P32 and wide flange P34.
For the purposes of conceptual explanation the embodiments illustrated in Figures Sa, Sb, 6, 7, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 9c, 9d and 10, the major structural elements are both symmetrical about the longitudinal centerline of the car (as designated by axis CL) and symmetrical about the mid-span transverse section of the car, indicated as TS.
In reality a number of brake fittings, handrails, brackets, cables and other ancillary features that do 20530060.1 not have appreciable effect on the structural performance of the car may not necessarily be symmetrical about either centerline.
A rail car is indicated generally as 20. It has a pair of end structures 22 and 24 for mounting on a pair of rail car trucks 26 and 28 respectively. A pair of left and right hand side beams 30 and 32 extend between end structures 22 and 24, and form the main longitudinal structural elements of rail car 20 for resisting gravitational loads. A cradle 34 is hung between beams 30 and 32. Cradle 34 resembles a trough, and is shaped to cradle steel coils, or other similar loads, between its inwardly and downwardly sloping shoulders 36. Shoulders 36 are lined with wooden decking 37 placed to accommodate coils ranging between 30 and 84 inches in diameter. When coils are loaded in cradle 34 they are discouraged from longitudinal sliding by end bulkheads 35 and by moveable bulkheads 38 whose locating pins seat in the indexed apertures of left and right hand locating plates 39.
The structure of cradle 34 includes a center sill, 40, cross-bearers 42 extending between center sill 40 and one or the other of side beams 30 and 32, and deck plates 44.
Deck plates 44 include right and left hand slope plates 46, and 48 of shoulders 36, welded to the upper flanges of cross-bearers 42 and to the upper flange 50 of center sill 40.
Center sill 40 includes, in addition to upper flange 50, a pair of parallel vertical webs 52 and 54 and a lower flange 56. Center sill 40 is a through-center-sill, that is, it runs from one end of rail car 20 to the other, and is of substantially constant section throughout its length. Internal gussets 57 are welded inside center sill 40 to provide web continuity at each cross-bearer location. Center sill 40 has an overall depth of 12.719 inches. Upper flange 50 is 15 inches wide and 0.50 inches thick. Lower flange 56 is 16 inches wide and 0.50 inches thick. Vertical webs 52 and 54 are each 11.719 inches high and 0.375 inches thick. The overall weight of the section is 82.3 lbs per lineal foot, and its local moment of inertia in longitudinal bending, that is its second moment of area about its transverse neutral axis, is 664 in4.
Since rail car 20 is symmetrical, for the purposes of the present description it will be understood that the structure of side beams 30 and 32 is identical. Each has an upper flange assembly 70, a lower flange assembly 72, and webbing 74. Examining each of these in turn, upper flange assembly 70 has a top chord member in the nature of a hollow rectangular steel tube 76, upon which pin locating plate 39 is mounted. Plate 39 has an inwardly extending perforated tongue, 80, the perforations having a constant pitch, and being of a size and shape suitable for engagement by the locating pins of moveable bulkheads 38. Also located intermittently along a more outboard region of plate 39 are tie-down eyes 84 for locating a cowling or cover to protect coils mounted on coil car 20 20530060.1 from being exposed to the rain and snow. Lower flange assembly 72 includes a main lower sill member in the nature of a hollow rectangular tube 86 to which a 3/4" thick steel lower sill reinforcement 88 has been added. Webbing 74 includes a substantially vertical steel web 90 welded at lap joints to the respective outer faces of steel tube 76 and rectangular tube 86. Vertical braces 92 extend between tubes 76 and 86 along the inner face of web 90 at regular spacings along the length of beams 30 and 32. A
cantilevered walkway 94 is mounted on brackets 98 located on the outboard face of web 90.
Over the mid span section of car 20, that is, the portion of car 20 at which side beams 30 and 32 have their maximum depth, the overall second moment of area of each side beam 30 or 32 is about 14,800 in4. The weight of each side beam section is about 100 lbs. per lineal foot. Each of side beams 30 and 32 provides just over 45 %
of the total second moment of area of the mid span section of car 20.
The joining of cradle 34 to each of side beams 30 or 32 is typically as shown in Figure 7. Deck Plate, 44 has a vertical upturned lip 102 that is welded along the inwardly facing side of steel tube 76. The web 104 of cross bearer 42 extends beyond the ends of its upper and lower flanges 106 and 108 and is cut on a mitre to yield a substantial tab 110 suitable for welding in a lap joint to the longitudinally facing side 112 of vertical brace 92. The joint is welded at a fillet along the corner of vertical brace 92 on one face of tab 110, and at a fillet along the distally extreme edge of tab 110 to side 112. In this way the joint is intended to place the weldmetal predominantly in shear. Web 104 also has intermediate gussets 114 to provide reinforcement in the region of wooden decking 37. Wooden decking 37 is provided for the known purpose of cushioning metal coils loaded in car 20, as noted above.
Considering the side view of car 20 shown in Figure 6, moving away from the mid span centerline of car 20 on Transverse Section TS, the section of greatest depth ends at a point designates as 'X'. Lower sill reinforcement 88 ends, and hollow rectangular tube 86 is obliquely truncated and welded to a doglegged upsweep flange 120. Flange follows the lower edge of web 90 as it narrows in a transition portion 121 from the deep, mid span portion, 122 to the narrow, or shallow, end structure portion 124, the upward sweep of flange 120, reaching a height sufficient to clear trucks 26 and 28, as the case may be. The upper portion 130 of the dog leg has an exaggerated, or extended, reach to yield a relief, or accessway, indicated generally as 132 between the near wheel 134 of truck 26 or 28, and the truncated end of lower sill tube 86. This extended recess facilitates maintenance and repair of operating mechanisms of car 20, such as brake linkages. It also makes for a more efficient use of material since the depth of section 20530060.1 required at mid span is generally greater than that required near the ends of the span for a simply supported beam. This permits a saving in weight.
Moving still further toward the end of car 20, the accumulated vertical shear load S in side beams 30 and 32 is carried to trucks 26 and 28 of end structures 22 and 24, as shown in the sectional view of Figure 8a. Main bolster 140 has the form of a laterally extending irregular box with a pair of spaced apart, substantially parallel webs 142 and 144 of significant depth. Webs 142 and 144 extend fully between a stepped lower flange and a sloped upper flange 146 underlying deck plate 36. Webs 142 and 144 have an extending tab 148 that reaches under and supports upper flange assembly 70, abuts the inside face of web 90, and also abuts the top face of upswept flange 120.
In alternative embodiments of the invention to that shown, it would be possible to design a car having a cradle with either a steeper or a shallower slope, with consequent I S alteration of the height of the center sill relative to the side beams.
However, given the relatively higher pliability of the center sill under vertical bending loads as compared to the side beams, it is undesirable for the chord of maximum stress (and therefore strain) to be in the lower flange of the center sill. To that end, the lower flange of the center sill, that is, its lowest extremity, is no lower than the lowest extremity of the side beams, that is, the bottom chord of the side sills. Similarly, the highest compressive stress due to vertical load will occur in the highest portions to top chord assembly 70.
In terms of carrying compressive longitudinal loads between coupler ends, it is advantageous to retain a straight through sill. This implies a relatively high sill since standard coupler height is 33 inches above top of rail to the center of the coupler. In the embodiment illustrated, the centroid of area of car 20 is at a height just below the top of top flange 50, within the profile of center sill 40. As such, center sill 40 plays only a small role in resistance to vertical bending.
It is possible to benefit from simplified production when all the cross bearers are of the same design, but some benefits can be obtained even when some cross ties remain, whether they are half as numerous, two thirds as numerous, one third as numerous as the cross bearers or some other fraction.
3 S Figures 9a, 9b, and 9c show portions of a rail road coil car 150 whose structural elements are as described above in the context of rail car 20, and where those elements are common, the same identification numerals are employed. Coil car 150 differs from car 20 by having an insulated trough structure. Figure 9a shows a staggered cross-section of coil car 150 taken above one of the trucks, looking toward end bulkhead 152. The left hand side of Figure 9a is taken looking at the main bolster, the right hand side is taken 20530060.1 looking at the cross bearer longitudinally outboard of the main bolster. Coil car 150 has left and right hand sloped sheets 154 and 156 that overlie an array of cross-bearers such as cross bearers 42 to define a longitudinally extending trough, indicated generally as 158. Trough 158 is lined with coil cushioning members in the nature of wooden planking 160, generally similar to decking 37 noted above, held in place with retaining brackets 162.
A layer of load supporting insulating material is indicated as 164. It is advantageous that this material be a ceramic or ceramic-like material having relatively low thermal conductivity as compared to steel, and a relatively high crush strength suitable for supporting the relatively concentrated load exerted under tangent contact of large steel coils. This material is a calcium silicate panel material identified as Marinite I, (t.m.) supplied by BNZ Materials, Inc., of 400 High Street, Iron Horse Park, North Billerica, MA 01862. Insulating layer 164 is roughly 3/4 inches thick, and can be used, according to BNZ product literature, in contact with objects in excess of 1000 F.
Insulating layer 164 is overlain by a load spreading protective layer in the nature of a wear liner 166, made of a bent steel plate of'/2 inch thickness.
Insulating layer 164 is nailed to planking 160. Wear liner 166 has a minor bent leg 168 formed to lie against the most outboard, upward face of planking 160, and is engaged by the bolts of retaining brackets 162. The major leg of wear liner 166 presents an engagement, or bearing surface 170 to coils positioned in trough 158, the size of leg 170 measured along the slope being sufficient to accommodate the range of coil sizes for which the car is designed.
In addition to the deck insulation thus described, car 150 has insulation mounted to end bulkhead, 152. In the section of Figure 9c, the top chord of the side sill is indicated as 76, as above. An upper cross-member 172 in the form of an I-beam turned on its side extends across car 150 from top chord to top chord. The endmost inclined cross member is a channel indicated as 174. Channel 174 is mounted on its side, with toes inward against a trough endwall panel member in the nature of a bulkhead sheet 176.
Channel 174 runs on the same slope as cross-bearers 42 from center sill 40 to side sill top chord 76, the outboard tip being mitred to locate against vertical web 90 and underneath top chord 76 in a manner similar to cross-bearer member 178 shown in Figure 9b.
Bulkhead sheet 176 extends across the width of coil car 150 from web 90 of one side sill, to web 90 of the other side sill, is trimmed to accommodate top chord 76, and has an upwardly extending lip 180 that stands proud of (that is, higher than) the top flange of top chord 76, lapping against the longitudinally inboard facing surface of the inboard flange of upper cross member 172.
20530060.1 A layer of insulating material, again in the nature of a ceramic or ceramic-like material is indicated as 182. It is preferred that insulating material 182 be a calcium silicate structural insulation, such as Marinite I (t.m.) noted above., and that the layer be formed, or trimmed to match the sloped profile of slope sheets 154 and 156, the top flange of center sill 40, and the upper edge of end bulkhead sheet 176. In contrast to bulkhead sheet 143 of Figure 86, bulkhead sheet 176 does not have cushioning material like cushioning material 145 in the nature of a high molecular weight polymer that might be prone to melting or catching fire. Rather, insulating material 182 is captured between bulkhead sheet 176 and an end bulkhead liner, or wear plate, 184, that has a bent lip, or leg 186 welded to the uppermost tip of the innermost flange of cross member 172. Wear plate 184 has a major portion, being a depending sheet terminating at, abutting and attached to, slope sheets 154 and 156. Wear plate 184 may tend to protect insulating layer 182 from accidental damage due to coil mis-handling, and presents a smooth, hard surface free of flammable or meltable materials toward coils carried in trough 158.
In the embodiment of Figure 10, a rail road coil car 200 has the same construction as rail road car 150, except insofar as wooden cushioning planking is not employed.
Rather, an insulating layer of structural thermal insulation, indicated as 202 is mounted directly on slope sheet 204, and a wear plate 210 is mounted directly above thermal insulation 202. A stop strip 212 is provided in an abutting position against the lower edge of thermal insulation 202, to discourage thermal insulation 202 from migrating down the slope of sheet 204 toward center sill 40. The upper margin of plate 210 is formed into a downward tab 214, and tab 214 is bolted to slope sheet 204. In this way thermally insulative material having sufficient structural strength to bear the load of coils is placed directly upon the slope sheets, the assembly so formed being free of an intermediate layer of wooden planks. That is, the non-flammable thermally insulative material is directly in contact with the slope sheets. Unlike the wooden planks, the thermally insulative layer is non-flammable to a temperature of at least 600 F. A thermally insulative gasket is used between tab 214 and slope sheet 204, and between the nut and sheet 204. Coil car 200 also has insulted end bulkheads, as described above.
A preferred embodiment has been described in detail and a number of alternatives have been considered. As changes in or additions to the above described embodiments may be made without departing from the nature, spirit or scope of the invention, the invention is not to be limited by or to those details, but only by the appended claims.
20530060.1
Claims (20)
1. A rail car coil car comprising a trough structure mounted on rail car trucks for rolling operation in a longitudinal direction, said trough structure having a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets co-operable to cradle a coil, and a pair of end walls mounted transversely relative to said slope sheets to define end bulkheads of said trough structure, said end bulkheads having thermal insulating materials mounted thereto.
2. The rail road coil car of claim 1 wherein said slope sheets also have thermal insulation mounted thereto.
3. The rail road coil car of claim 1 wherein said end bulkheads each have a face oriented inwardly toward said trough, and said thermal insulation is mounted to said inwardly oriented face.
4. The rail road coil car of claim 3 wherein a liner is mounted to said thermal insulation material, said liner being mounted to face coils carried in said trough structure.
5. The rail road coil car of claim 3 wherein said thermal insulation material is mounted between said inwardly oriented face of said bulkhead and a wear plate.
6. The rail road car of claim 1 wherein said slope sheets also have thermal insulation material mounted thereto, and said thermal insulation material mounted to said slope sheets is overlain by a liner.
7. The rail road car of claim 6 wherein said thermal insulation material mounted to said slope sheets overlies wooden planking.
8. The rail road car of claim 6 wherein said thermal insulation material mounted to said slope sheets is in direct contact with said slope sheets.
9. The rail road coil car of claim 6 wherein said thermal insulation material meets said slope sheet on a planar interface free of intervening layers.
10. The rail road car of claim 6 wherein said thermal insulation material is non-flammable to at least 600 F.
11. A rail car coil car comprising a trough structure mounted on rail car trucks for rolling operation in a longitudinal direction, said trough structure having a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets co-operable to cradle a coil, said slope sheets having non-flammable thermal insulating materials mounted directly thereto.
12. The coil car of claim 11 wherein said thermal insulation material is operable at temperatures at least as high as 600 F.
13. The rail road coil car of claim 11 wherein said trough structure includes a pair of transversely mounted walls defining end bulkheads of said trough structure, and said end bulkheads also have thermal insulation mounted thereto.
14. The rail road coil car of claim 11 wherein said thermal insulation mounted to said slope sheets is overlain by a load bearing liner.
15. The rail road coil car of claim 14 wherein said trough structure includes a pair of transversely mounted walls defining end bulkheads of said trough structure, said end bulkheads also having thermal insulation mounted thereto, and said thermal insulation of each of said end bulkheads is shielded by a wear plate.
16. The rail road coil car of claim 15 wherein said thermal insulation mounted to said slope sheets is operable to at least 600 F, and said thermal insulation mounted to said end bulkheads is also operable to at least 600 F.
17. A rail road coil car having a trough structure carried upon rail car trucks in a longitudinal rolling direction, said trough structure including a pair of opposed inclined slope sheets defining sides of a trough, and a pair of transversely extending end walls defining end bulkheads of the trough, said slope sheets each being provided with a layer non-flammable structural thermal insulation mounted thereabove, said non-flammable insulation being overlain by a wear plate, each of said end bulkheads being provided with a layer of non-flammable insulation material mounted thereto facing inwardly into said trough, said layer of insulation material mounted to each of said end bulkheads being shielded by a wear plate.
18. The rail road car of claim 18 wherein said insulation material above said slope sheets, and said insulation material mounted to said end bulkheads being non-flammable to at least 600 F.
19. The rail road coil car of claim 18 wherein said non-flammable insulation material lies directly in contact with said slope sheets.
20. The rail road coil car of claim 18 wherein said trough structure is supported by a plurality of cross members mounted along said car, and said trough structure is slung between a pair of side sills whose depth of section exceeds that of said trough.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002328660A CA2328660A1 (en) | 2000-12-15 | 2000-12-15 | Insulated coil car |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002328660A CA2328660A1 (en) | 2000-12-15 | 2000-12-15 | Insulated coil car |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2328660A1 true CA2328660A1 (en) | 2002-06-15 |
Family
ID=4167926
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA002328660A Abandoned CA2328660A1 (en) | 2000-12-15 | 2000-12-15 | Insulated coil car |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2328660A1 (en) |
-
2000
- 2000-12-15 CA CA002328660A patent/CA2328660A1/en not_active Abandoned
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