The story said the car dribbled phosphoric acid for 1000 miles. As long as nobody got splashed with the stuff, I guess the biggest effect will be heavier than normal weed growth between the rails–for 1000 miles.
Rich
The concentration is probably high enough to kill the weeds.
1000 litres dripped out into the yard? How come nobody noticed this?
Does anybody know who the tanker was leased to or it’s reporting marks? I’m thinking WACX or RPBX.
Concentrated phosphoric acid will disolve many ballasts - especially limestone or dolomite. It will passivate steel against rust (pickled steel) or remove rust from rusted steel but it is not generally effective as a fertilizer.
dd
Junctionfan… walk the walk…I sense that you have never been in a yard at 0300…
I checked an MSDS for phosphoric acid, it is odorless.
I beleve the the car leaked 1,000 gallons not 1,000 liters. If “nobody noticed this” why do we no about the leak?
Not without a flashlight I wouldn’t.
Phosphoric acid? Look at the ingredient label on that can of soda you are drinking…
Did you ever try to hold some soda (pepsi, coke, etc) under your tongue? First few seconds aren’t too bad, but after a while…ouch! Phosphoric acid at work…
Can you imagine if some poor switchman stepped in that?
I used phos-acid on my Alcoa aluminum wheels, on rainy days, in the Bone Valley, FL phoshate region, since I had eighteen of 'em, and wished to keep them looking as shiney as the WR Grace trucks, which got the alumi prep, acid, which I got whilst on my various visits to my home terminal, in Auburndale, FL, by the gallon.
I used a welders brush, and cleaned them, usually after the afternoon rainstorms had passed.
It wasn’t as good as the stuff I carried out of Comcar Industries Home office truck wash, by the gallon jug, on the saddle-bag tanks, but it did the job in a pinch.
The test was, when I rounded an intersection, the trailer wheels gleemed at me!
Damn right, I enjoyed that!
ACJ.