Preparing for LNG by Rail Tank Car: A Readiness Review (2022) / Chapter Skim
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Pages 81-88
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From page 81... ...
81 7 Summary Assessment and Advice As the domestic production of natural gas and demand from export markets has grown over the past decade, so too has demand for producing and shipping liquefied natural gas (LNG)
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82 PREPARING FOR LNG BY RAIL TANK CAR (Task Force) charged with assessing the risks of transporting LNG by rail and for gaining a better understanding of how these risks can be prevented or managed.
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SUMMARY ASSESSMENT AND ADVICE 83 For these purposes, the preceding chapters have reviewed the hazards associated with LNG's cryogenic and flammable properties and the safety features required of portable tanks and upgraded cryogenic tank cars to account for these properties. The report also reviews the experience with shipping LNG by truck and ship and the safety assurance frameworks established for ensuring that LNG and other hazardous materials shipments are transported without incident.
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84 PREPARING FOR LNG BY RAIL TANK CAR not possible to know whether and to what degree trains will transport LNG in shipments consisting of large or small blocks of rail tank cars and on a well-defined or more dispersed set of routes. LNG Combines the Hazards of a Cryogenic Liquid and Flammable Gas Unlike all cryogenic commodities commonly shipped in bulk by rail in the United States, with the exception of ethylene,1 LNG combines the hazards of a cryogenic liquid with the hazards of a flammable gas.
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From page 85... ...
SUMMARY ASSESSMENT AND ADVICE 85 when desired temperatures and pressures are not maintained. These systems must function under high-temperature conditions in the event of an incident and must be made from materials suitable for the temperature of the cargo in liquid and vapor phases.
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86 PREPARING FOR LNG BY RAIL TANK CAR and lack of anticipation by regulators, shippers, railroads, and emergency responders of the attendant hazards. After dozens of derailments and other accidents involving these shipments, regulators, shippers, railroads, and tank car builders and fleet owners had to make major changes to the safety assurance system, from the introduction of more crashworthy and thermalresistant tank car designs and maximum train operating speeds to new protocols for track inspection and for providing guidance and information to emergency planners and responders.
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From page 87... ...
SUMMARY ASSESSMENT AND ADVICE 87 initial plans for and early patterns of LNG traffic activity, including the locations and routes of shipments, the number and configuration of tank cars in trains, and reports of incidents involving a tank car or train carrying LNG. The initiative would enable the more timely and targeted development and dissemination of resources, direction, and guidance, with interventions as necessary, to ensure that • Emergency responders in communities expected to have high levels of LNG rail traffic activity have the needed guidance, training, and specialized resources to respond to potential incidents; • Personnel engaged in the transfer and transportation of LNG by rail are qualified and properly trained for safe shipment handling, operations, and emergency actions; • Protocols for train makeup, handling, and operations are suited to LNG shipping patterns, such as in single cars, large blocks, or unit trains, for instance, as informed by the results of longitudinal train dynamics and operation simulation software; • Track inspection protocols are appropriate for, and targeted to, routes with significant LNG traffic; and • The risk assessment and management analyses required by regulation (49 CFR § 172.820, Additional planning requirements for transportation by rail)
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From page 88... ...
88 PREPARING FOR LNG BY RAIL TANK CAR Recommendation 2: PHMSA and FRA should review the DOT113C120W9 tank car specification to ensure that it adequately accounts for the cryogenic and thermal properties of LNG that could contribute to a tank release and cascading impacts. In particular, the agencies should obtain data needed to assess • The capacity of the pressure relief devices to vent sufficient LNG when the tank car is engulfed in an LNG fire, taking into account derailment conditions, such as a rollover, that could degrade this capacity; • The effects of adding more and different types of insulation in the annular space to ensure sufficient performance of the multilayer insulation system when the tank car is exposed to heat flux and direct flame impingement from an LNG fire; and • The potential for the outer tank to experience cryogenic brittle failure and loss of vacuum insulation when exposed to an LNG pool.
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