Acf Industries, Incorporated

John A Hrinsin

Gunter R Behle

At least one ball valve segment is located within a partial valve cage mounted within a tank. The cage is integral with a valve housing removably mounted within a tank mounting flange. The housing includes an inclined sealing surface which the ball valve segment engages in closed position. A lading outlet chamber is located below the inclined sealing surface. An operating shaft is inclined with respect to the outlet chamber. Inclined openings are provided in the valve housing and in the outlet chamber through which the operating shaft passes. The operating shaft includes an eccentric head which is located within a non-round slot in the ball valve segment. Rotation of the operating shaft rotates the eccentric head which drives the valve segment between open and closed positions. Preferably a pair of ball valve segments located approximately 180.degree. apart are connected with supports or ribs. The valve segment which closes the opening into the discharge chamber is larger. The contour of the eccentric head is such that the smaller valve segment is located outwardly from the center of the discharge opening in the valve housing when the larger valve segment is in open position to minimize flow restriction. The smaller valve segment is cam shaped to urge the larger portion into closed and sealed position.

Wedgeball valve

A tank car stub sill support structure is provided in which a half ring is attached to the inner end of a stub center sill at each end of the car. The half ring includes a top cover plate which engages the lower half of the tank, and a lower cover plate which is vertically spaced below the top cover plate. A vertical web joins the top cover plate and the bottom cover plate. The height of the vertical web and the distance between the top cover plate and the bottom cover plate varies in accordance with the bending moment applied to the ring by the tank and lading in the car. Thus the height of the vertical web is maximum at the centerline of the car and decreases to a minimum at the sides of the car. The stub sill is welded to the upper cover plate, bottom cover plate and to the vertical web on the outboard side of the vertical web. The coupler impact loads are thus transmitted into the upper cover plate and into the tank substantially entirely in shear. Applying the coupler impact loads to the tank shell in shear is a desirable way of dissipating the impact load into the tank shell, and prevents distortion and deformation of the circular cross section of the tank shell, thus making the shell more resistant to buckling.

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St. Louis, MO, United States of America

John A Hrinsin