SD70Dude ballast, which of course contains limestone.
I was thinking of limestone being in pebbles contained within the cement itself....forgot about the ballast.
I heard from an inside source that there was indeed a neutralization accident while a acid tank car was being dragged out of the tunnel, a sizeable quantity of acid spilled and ran into the ballast, which of course contains limestone.
Apparently it was quite the performance to watch, multiple side-boom CATs and a whole gang of workmen sprinting out of the tunnel, being chased by a very large cloud of smoke!
All the little explosions and fires outside the tunnel were from the gas tanks and batteries on crushed automobiles.
Greetings from Alberta
-an Articulate Malcontent
It is well that the tunnel has a good lining; when concentrated sulfuric acid finds water, it gobbles water up and releases heat. 61 years ago, I was rinsing acid bottles and, for some disremembered reason, ran only a little bit into one sulfuric acid bottle. When I lifted the bottle up to empty it, the bottom stayed in the sink, with a nice round edge--the heat of hydration broke the glass at the top of the liquid level.
Johnny
If you spill Sulphuric Acid in such a large quantity..........doesn't that impact the integrity of the concrete tunnel lining? I would think there would be some corrosive action there to the concrete tunnel lining. None of the articles about the derailment have mentioned that at all. So that is why I asked.
Also what about the rail cars impacting the tunnel walls during the derailment itself, wouldn't that also remove chunks of concrete or result in cracks?
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