United States Department of Transportation
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Evaluation of semi-empirical analyses for railroad tank car puncture velocity, part 2 : correlations with engineering analysis
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2001-11-01
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Edition:Final Report ¿August 1998
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Abstract:This report is the second in a series focusing on methods to determine the puncture velocity of railroad tank car shells. In this
context, puncture velocity refers to the impact velocity at which a coupler will completely pierce the shell and puncture the tank.
In the first report in this series, a set of semi-empirical equations was evaluated by comparing calculated puncture velocities with data
from tank car impact tests. These equations were originally developed by the RPI-AAR Tank Car Safety Committee and later
modified by the industry to account for head shield protection and jacket insulation. The semi-empirical equations generally
produced reasonable and conservative estimates of puncture velocity when compared with the experimental data. However,
differences between the calculated and observed results become more widespread when the tank is pressurized or when shield
protection is present. Moreover, alternative methods to determine puncture velocity may be observed by the industry to avoid overdesign.
In this report, methods to predict puncture velocity based only on engineering mechanics principles (i.e., no empiricism) are
developed and described. Results from the semi-empirical approach are compared with results from the engineering methods. These
methods rely on both analytical and computational tools to examine the structural behavior of tanks with ellipsoidal shapes. These
tools include finite element and dynamic lumped mass models.
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