Smart Tank contains tanks filled with water and surfactants to render flammable liquids save in emergencies. Courtesy of the University of Toronto.
It feels like we can’t go 3 months without hearing of a railway disaster. From last year’s Canadian Lac-Mégantic train explosion, to the derailment in West Virginia; safety concerns make many prefer the Keystone Pipeline option. But what if these disasters were adverted at the moment of impact?
In Iman Chalabi’s concept the crude oil cargo in the train would be rendered non-flammable during an emergency. This third year Electrical Engineering student from the University of Toronto believes he has designed a “Smart Tank”.
Chalabi’s system uses collision and rolling sensors similar to those used in the automobile industry. When an incident is detected, water and surfactants (sorbitant esters) are sprayed into the fuel at high pressure. The water and surfactant turn the mix with the fuel into an emulsion, rendering it non-flammable. Even leaks exposed to a spark are less likely to ignite after the emulsion process.
To minimize leaks, the tank then releases an organic compound named norbornene. This chemical mixes with the emulsion to increase the viscosity. Once gelled, the fuel will be easier to clean and have less contact with the environment.
Finally, the tank includes a pressure sensor and release valve which will avoid explosions due to gas build up.
As we all know, even good ideas are hard to implement when a set of infrastructure is already in place. Thankfully, Chalabi designed his system to work inside retrofitted DOT-111 and DOT-112 tanker cars already used by the rail industry. He has even included an economic analysis proving the viability of the project.
Chalabi entered his design into the Minerva Canada James Ham Safe Design award where he won first place.
“I’ve always wanted to participate in the Minerva competition and have had several ideas over the past few years,” said Chalabi. “But just recently I was reading a news article about the accident in Quebec, and I decided I wanted to work on that problem.”
“Our awards committee liked this concept,” said Tony Pasteris, President and CEO of Minerva Canada Safety Management Education. “Iman’s design is a practical approach that could reduce the consequences of an incident.”
But why must this system stop at railway tankers? There are also trucks filled with everything from crude oil to gasoline to jet fuel. Imagine all of these highway accidents rendered moot. Or why not implement the system in our pipelines, to improve safety and ease NIMBY concerns?
What do you think? Where should we implement this safety design? Do you still support pipelines if railway transport is made safer? Comment below.
With notes from Marit Mitchell