Thermal Protection System Evaluation for DOT-117 Hazardous Materials Car Tanks

The Federal Railroad Administration sponsored a research team from Engineering Services, Inc. to perform an analysis of the effectiveness of the thermal protection system on a DOT-117 rail car as a fire protection measure. This research was carried out between February 2022 and March 2023 at multiple ESi locations; the experimental tests were performed at ESi’s Houston, Texas office. The objective of this work was to evaluate the performance of the thermal protection system in rail cars as a risk mitigation control to prevent a catastrophic thermal event. The research group also analyzed the heat transfer from a fire to rail car contents to understand the effectiveness of a potential fire response from a local fire department.