RAILCARS FOR TRANSPORTING GRANULATED METALLIC UNITS, AND ASSOCIATED SYSTEMS, DEVICES, AND METHODS
Railcars for transporting granulated metallic units, and associated systems, devices, and methods are disclosed herein. For example, a reinforced railcar apparatus includes a container envelope and a reinforcement liner. The container envelope includes side walls and end walls extending from a floor of the railcar. The side walls are a first length and the end walls are a second length less than the first length. Top portions of the rigid side walls and end walls define an opening of the container envelope through which granulated metallic units are discharged into the railcar assembly. The railcar assembly includes angled interior walls coupled to the bottom surface and extending from a top portion of the end walls to the bottom surface. The reinforcement liner is disposed over a portion of the bottom surface and the angled interior walls. In some embodiments, the railcar assembly includes an open-topped box layered with impact-absorbing material.
1 . A reinforced railcar assembly used for the transport of granulated metallic units (GMUs), the assembly comprising:
a container envelope comprising:
a bottom surface;
rigid side walls extending from the bottom surface, wherein the rigid side walls each have a first length and are approximately perpendicular to the bottom surface;
rigid end walls extending from the bottom surface and between the rigid side walls, wherein the rigid end walls have a second length less than the first length; and
angled interior walls, wherein each of the angled interior walls is coupled to the bottom surface, the rigid side walls, and one of the rigid end walls,
wherein top portions of each of the rigid side walls and rigid end walls define an opening of the container envelope configured to receive the GMUs; and
a reinforcement material disposed over a portion of the bottom surface and/or the angled interior walls.
2 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement material is a removeable liner from the container envelope.
3 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement material is coupled to the container envelope via one or more of: tack welding, bolting, fastening, clamping, clipping, and hanging to the container envelope.
4 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement material is comprised of one or more rigid plates.
5 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement material is comprised of one or more of: metal, metal alloy, metal cladding, refractory lining, and polyurethane.
6 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the reinforcement material is further disposed over a portion of the rigid side walls.
7 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the container envelope further includes an impact pad configured to absorb the impact of GMUs dropped from a height.
8 . The railcar assembly of claim 7 , wherein the impact pad is positioned at approximately a center point along the length of the container envelope.
9 . The railcar assembly of claim 7 , wherein the impact pad is an open-topped container containing a layer of GMUs.
10 . The railcar assembly of claim 9 , wherein the layer of GMUs is granulated pig iron (GPI).
11 . The railcar assembly of claim 1 , wherein the bottom surface includes a gate configured to discharge GMUs contained in the container envelope.
12 . The railcar assembly of claim 11 , wherein (i) the gate is a first gate, (ii) the bottom surface includes a second gate configured to discharge GMUs contained in the container envelope, and (iii) the first gate is a first distance in a first direction from a center point of the bottom surface and the second gate is a second distance in a second direction, opposite the first direction, from the center point of the bottom surface.
13 . The railcar assembly of claim 12 , wherein a section of the reinforcement material spans the distance between the first and second gates.
14 . A reinforced railcar container for receiving industrial product, the container comprising:
a floor comprising an impact pad configured to absorb the impact of industrial product dropped from a height, the impact pad positioned at an intermediate region along a length of the container, wherein the impact pad is an open-topped box containing a layer of granulated metallic units (GMUs);
rigid side walls extending from the floor, wherein the rigid side walls each have a first length and are approximately perpendicular to the floor; and
rigid end walls extending from the floor and between the rigid side walls, wherein the rigid end walls each have a second length less than the first length;
wherein top portions of the each of the rigid side walls and rigid end walls define an opening through which industrial product is deposited into the container.
15 . The container of claim 14 , further comprising a reinforcement liner disposed over a portion of the floor and a portion of the rigid end walls.
16 . The container of claim 15 , wherein the reinforcement liner is disposed over a portion of the rigid side walls.
17 . The container of claim 14 , wherein the industrial product and the layer of GMUs includes GPI.
18 . The container of claim 14 , wherein a first section of a reinforcement liner extends from approximately the top portion of a first rigid end wall and couples to the floor at a first angle, and a second section of the reinforcement liner extends from approximately the top portion of a second rigid end wall and couples to the floor at a second angle different than the first angle.
19 . A method of loading granulated metallic units (GMUs) into a reinforced railcar assembly, the method comprising:
obtaining the railcar assembly, the railcar assembly including:
a bottom surface,
rigid side walls coupled to the bottom surface,
rigid end walls coupled to the bottom surface and the rigid side walls, and
angled interior walls (i) coupled to the bottom surface, rigid end walls, and/or rigid end walls, and (ii) angled relative to the rigid side walls and/or rigid end walls, wherein the bottom surface, rigid side walls, rigid end walls, and angled interior walls form a container envelope with an open top, and wherein the bottom surface and/or the angled interior walls comprise a reinforcement material; and
loading GMUs into the railcar assembly via the open top of the container envelope.
20 . The method of claim 19 , wherein the container envelope further includes an open-topped box in contact with the bottom surface inside the container envelope, and the method further comprises filling the open-topped box with a layer of GMUs.