WHAT IF A 100 ETHANOL LOADED TANKER TRAIN DERAILED GOING 50 MPH?? and a dozen or so derailed,and caught fire and exploded …would this cause a chain reaction and all hell break loose or are their safeguards to keep this from hapening?? THERE IS GOING TO BE THOUSANDS OF THESE TANKERS ON RAILS WHEN THE NEW 100 PLANTS COME ON LINE NEXT YEAR PRODUCING HIGH FLAMIBLE GASSES…REAL SCARREY HARRY[oX)]
Isn’t there a 40 mph restriction for hazardous chemicals, such as ethonol?
Also, there was a recent derailment of an NS unit ethenol train. Although 9 cars did catch fire, the whole train did not go.
Gabe
I seem to recall DM&E derailing an ethanol train a couple of years ago(?) around Lake Benton, MN., and that wasn’t the end of the world as we know it.
NS derailed an ethanol train outside of Pittsburgh a couple of months ago. A few of the cars caught fire and they just let them burn themselves out.
I would have more concerns about LPG. One car of that stuff going makes several cars of ethanol look like a campfire.
Too bad we have all this endorsement of ethanol while continuing to demonize the less expensive (and more plentiful) coal-to-liquids fuels. Synthetic diesel at least can move by pipeline, unlike ethanol. And pipelines don’t derail!
bio-desiel is where its at…100 car unit train of used french-fry oil…safe for everybody
*diesel…sorry
Pipelines don’t derail…they just leak or break or get damaged in construction projects and spew their contents into the enviornment or into the local ground water. There is no perfect transportation medium.
I thought that was you demonizing coal-to-liquids, or at least the involvement of BNSF in a proposed Montana endeavor.
The speed limit for haz-mat (key) trains is 50 mph.
Plenty of other dangerous stuff gets transported by rail, (800,000 carloads a day) why worry about this now?
On the contrary, I am all for coal to liquids. In fact, it is one of the cornerstones of my energy policy wish list.
As for that BNSF/Montana thing…
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I questioned why the Montana Guv would present the idea to BNSF rather than an energy company, and…
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I questioned why BNSF actually is engaging the Guv in discussions on that proposal.
Would BNSF be the 2nd largest user of diesel in the USA, after UP ? I believe BN was 2nd, behind the US Navy, 20 years ago.
Could they produce enough diesel from Montana coal to meet all of their needs ?
I remember reading something just last week that BNSF was the nation’s largest user of diesel (behind the Navy, of course). If you’d like, I can see if I can find the source for that, but I suspect it came from BNSF’s web site.
I know nothing about a 40mph restriction i run them 50 mph just like the other stuff. and I never seen a 100 car tank train. most i pulled was 70 cars. I really dont think the things would go up that quick. but if it does there is no polution from it. that stuff burns clean. and clear no color just heat.
As for me, I worry about anhydrous ammonia a lot more. [:(!] – al-in-chgo
Yes, a unit ethanol train is limited to 50 mph per DOT. No, it would not be a chain-reaction unless you had multiple cars open and or explode. As long as the fumes remained inside the cars, no flammability. Now if an adjacent car was burning, and heated up the next car, the vent may cause fumes to be released. This is why they mist and try to deluge the cars involved in such a situation to prevent that.
As a commodity, it has a decent safety record so far, outside of the NS incident in the last four years. We get an occasional bad top seal, but the plant comes out within a few hours and repairs same. Our District handles hundreds of loads a day, without incident.
Not being a wise acre, but I worry more about that semi tanker truck doing 75 to 80, ten feet off my rear bumper! … in the rain… at night…
I base my posts upon CN here in Canda …
Unless its a ceratin type of car … all dangerous cars are track speed … 65mph max unless they are special dangerous where they can’t go faster than 35mph in areas with more than 50000 people. A special dangerous is good for 65mph anywhere where there is 0-49,999 people.
Some railroads have speed restrictions on unit trains … but CN got rid of that.
If I remember correctly, LPG tankcars were required to be insulated after the Kingman, AZ BLEVE. I don’t remember if this also applies to tankcars that carry flammable liquids, if so, then it would take a little while for the ethanol to heat up.