I remember seeing that in the report, industry standards are adequate for an undisturbed pipeline. In other words, the standards assumed the major stress on the pipe would be the hoop stress from the interior pressure.
The standards called for steel with a yield strength 79% of the ultimate tensile strength, while the pipe in question had a yield strength 89% of the ultimate tensile strength. IIRC, the AAR prohibited use of materials with yield strength in excess of 80% of the UTS in the primary structure (e.g. center sill, bolsters) of a railroad car. This ruled out all aluminum cars. The point of the ARR rule was that a ductile sill would deform but otherwise remain intact under a high impact, where the brittle material would fail catastrophically.
(A perfect piece of glass has a significantly higher tensile strength than steel. Just rubbing a finger over such a piece of glass can reduce the tensile strength by a factor of 10 due to the microcracks.)
In the case of the Calnev pipeline, the forces imposed by the derailment and heavy equipment in the cleanup would have caused the pipe to further work harden and reduce the margin between yielding and brittle fracture. My guess is that the gouges from the backhoes caused a stress concentration in the pipe which led to a developing crack that got worse with each train passing over it due to the brittle steel. A ductile steel would have yielded and thus minimized the stress concentration.
FWIW, a similar issue is present with pressure vessels for nuclear reactors, where neutrons escaping the core cause an increase in the brittle transition temperature. Th e pressure vessels have coupons that are removed periodically and tested to ensure that the metal stays within spec.
NTSB's Finding 26: "Calnev's pipeline met the industry-recommended safety requirements in effect when it was constructed; no State or Federal regulations were in effect at that time."
The report also says that it was pressurized to over 1,600 psig.
https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/AccidentReports/Reports/RAR9002.pdf
"No soup for you!" - Yev Kassem (from Seinfeld)
Overmod Erik_Mag Think MC was referring to yours truly, though I am a little confused if Calnev was an SP or UP owned company. References I have are to UP; if I'm not mistaken the refineries of product were UP 'first'.
Erik_Mag Think MC was referring to yours truly, though I am a little confused if Calnev was an SP or UP owned company.
References I have are to UP; if I'm not mistaken the refineries of product were UP 'first'.
I suspected UP as it had the ROW to Las Vegas. FWIW, the San Diego pipeline is a fair distance away from the Surf Line through most of San Diego county south of Camp Pendleton.
Both the pipeline construction and accident happened before UP bought the SP. Definitely different ownership of the railroad and pipeline at that time (you, MC and I were either in Jr High or High school when the pipeline was originally constructed. BTW,the "Kinder" in Kinder Morgan (current Calnev owner) is Rich Kinder who bailed out of Enron a couple of years before it imploded.
I did a couple of quick looks at the NTSB report, one interesting point was that the yield strength and ultimate tensile strength of the pipe was higher than what the specifications called for (usually a good thing). Spec's were 52kpsi for yield strength and 66kpsi for UTS, testing showed yield strength at 66kpsi and UTS at 74.3kpsi. The reduction in spread between yield strength and UTS suggests a more brittle steel...
My perhaps imperfect understanding of rules for placing pipelines under RR tracks is that the pipe needs to be placed in a casing, with such casing to prevent this type of accident. This is something where MC would be much more authoritive source.
Overmod I was thinking that high-octane had a higher vapor pressure ... but on reflection, I think I am indeed reporting a comparatively unimportant but highly prejudicial innuendo about the 'high-octane' detail.
I was thinking that high-octane had a higher vapor pressure ... but on reflection, I think I am indeed reporting a comparatively unimportant but highly prejudicial innuendo about the 'high-octane' detail.
The innuendo that has been an all too common in news reports about gasoline fires... OTOH, one relatively inexpensive way of improving octane rating is increasing the butane content, but this works best for winter fuels.
Yes, I am aware of the primary purposes of higher-octane fuel
I had no doubt about that - you've demonstrated that you have a very good understanding of combustion.
Erik_MagThink MC was referring to yours truly, though I am a little confused if Calnev was an SP or UP owned company.
ISTR a discussion in one of the "Government" discussions that Calnev came down the mountain partly in its own ROW, only followed the railroad ROW a comparatively little distance, and ran across the SP in the Duffy Street area. I will keep looking as I have time.
See for example the sketch-map in figure 3.4.1 here:
https://www.fema.gov/media-library-data/20130726-1514-20490-8772/fema_225_pt_2.pdf
Why this map does not show railroads explicitly I do not know, but it would not be tough to overlay.
Overmod mudchicken Someone not catching on that the railroad and the pipeline operation were owned by one of the same? I don't think I did! Time to review... Thought UP didn't own SP until ~7 years after Duffy Street. And that they'd sold Calnev to GATX Terminal about a year before...
mudchicken Someone not catching on that the railroad and the pipeline operation were owned by one of the same?
I don't think I did! Time to review...
Thought UP didn't own SP until ~7 years after Duffy Street. And that they'd sold Calnev to GATX Terminal about a year before...
Think MC was referring to yours truly, though I am a little confused if Calnev was an SP or UP owned company. My impression was that SP's ppipelines were in general laid of SP ROW, one exception that I'm aware of was the joint AT&SF/SP pipeline from LA to San Diego.
Having had experience with the working of large companies, it certainly wouldn't surprise me that the left hand didn't know what the right hand was doing.
mudchickenSomeone not catching on that the railroad and the pipeline operation were owned by one of the same?
Someone not catching on that the railroad and the pipeline operation were owned by one of the same?
I was thinking that high-octane had a higher vapor pressure ... but on reflection, I think I am indeed reporting a comparatively unimportant but highly prejudicial innuendo about the 'high-octane' detail. Note that saying "premium" would not have the same implication. I'll be watching more carefully for sneaky rhetorical bias the next time I read these sources...
Yes, I am aware of the primary purposes of higher-octane fuel, and of its progressively lower overall heat content per unit weight compared to higher-carbon-content fuels. You might not guess that from the wording I adopted...
ericsp Overmod I have not yet figured out how, even in Gray Davis' California, people conceived of the idea of a pressurized high-octane gasoline pipeline going through a residential neighborhood. Let alone adjacent to a known dangerous railroad curve on a known severe railroad grade. Let alone at a depth, and of a construction, susceptible to nicking or impact damage from casual use of construction equipment. Octane ratings are a measure of the gasoline's likelihood not to pre-detonate in the cylinder. It is completely irrelevant here.
Overmod I have not yet figured out how, even in Gray Davis' California, people conceived of the idea of a pressurized high-octane gasoline pipeline going through a residential neighborhood. Let alone adjacent to a known dangerous railroad curve on a known severe railroad grade. Let alone at a depth, and of a construction, susceptible to nicking or impact damage from casual use of construction equipment.
I have not yet figured out how, even in Gray Davis' California, people conceived of the idea of a pressurized high-octane gasoline pipeline going through a residential neighborhood. Let alone adjacent to a known dangerous railroad curve on a known severe railroad grade. Let alone at a depth, and of a construction, susceptible to nicking or impact damage from casual use of construction equipment.
Octane ratings are a measure of the gasoline's likelihood not to pre-detonate in the cylinder. It is completely irrelevant here.
Agreed on octane ratings as irrelevant, as high octane gasoline by definition requires a higher ignition temperature. OTOH, gasoline has the lowest flash point of any major petroleum product that is liquid at standard atmospheric pressure and temperature.
As an aside, the accident occurred during Deukmejian's second term and the pipeline was built during Reagan's first term. As the Calnev pipeline was an interstate pipeline it presumably would have been built under ICC rules although Cal PUC might have had some say. The pipeline WAS built after the Colton cut-off, so the onus was on the pipeline company to make sure that it could be safely operated under the SP tracks. MC may have a few things to say about how to do this correctly.
OM did have a valid point that a pipeline built through a heavily populated area should NOT be operated at a high pressure and allowing such a design was a failure on the part of the agencies approving the pipeline's design.
:) I am sure we were six feet apart at all times!!
rdamon Thanks for the info. I thought they bought up all the homes in the area after the wreck, but it looks like a few stayed.
Thanks for the info.
I thought they bought up all the homes in the area after the wreck, but it looks like a few stayed.
Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.
rdamonI thought they bought up all the homes in the area after the wreck, but it looks like a few stayed.
Looking at Google Earth™ history pictures, it appears a couple of houses were built after the "clearing" including one on the west side of Duffy Street.
OvermodTestimony to Congress puts pipeline construction circa 1970. There is no excuse.
Froim RAR9002, the NTSB report on the incident, starting at page 81, a presumably more accurate summary of the development timeline:
Development of Land Adjacent to the SP Railroad and the Calnev Pipeline. -- The area affected by the May 12 derailment and the May 25 pipeline rupture was planned in 1955 for residential use, and the subdivision plat was recorded with San Bernardino County on November 10, 1955. On October 1, 1957, the subdivision was annexed by the City of San Bernardino and incorporated within the city limits. In 1967, the SP constructed the portion of its railroad where the train derailment occurred, and at that time, no houses were located on Duffy Street.
By October 1967, houses had been constructed within the eastern portion of the subdivision, but no houses were on either side of that portion of Duffy Street that paralleled the proposed railroad. In 1969 and 1970, when the Calnev pipeline was constructed along the eastern edge of the SP right-of-way, no houses had yet been erected on that portion of Duffy Street that paralleled the railroad; only a few houses had been built within the subdivision. According to recollections of long-term residents, intensive construction within the area occurred from 1970 to 1972.
The City of San Bernardino's General Plan for land use is a policy document that establishes goals, objectives, and policies for the future. The specific standards for a development are to be guided by this Plan and included in the zoning ordinances or development codes. The subject of land use control because of its proximity to railroad mainline tracks or to high pressure liquid or other pipelines is not specifically addressed.
Before these accidents, the City had developed a proposed revision to its Plan, subsequently conducted public hearings on the proposal, and approved a revised plan. A statement with the proposal advised that, in part, this plan is a foundation policy document that defines the framework for decisions by the City on the use of its land for the protection of residents from natural and human-caused hazards. Neither the proposal nor the newly adopted plan specifically addressed the use of land near mainline railroads or high pressure pipelines.
ChuckCobleighThe housing development probably went in between 1960 and 1970, judging by the houses, probably closer to 1960 with the one-car garages. Pipeline probably predated that.
https://books.google.com/books?id=dG1pE5dns1IC&pg=PA326
OvermodI have not yet figured out how, even in Gray Davis' California, people conceived of the idea of a pressurized high-octane gasoline pipeline going through a residential neighborhood. Let alone adjacent to a known dangerous railroad curve on a known severe railroad grade. Let alone at a depth, and of a construction, susceptible to nicking or impact damage from casual use of construction equipment.
The housing development probably went in between 1960 and 1970, judging by the houses, probably closer to 1960 with the one-car garages. Pipeline probably predated that. SP rail line in 19th century no doubt predated the pipeline by many decades. Figure the pipeline going in after Las Vegas "took off" as a metro area.
Just as an aside, that all occurred in something other than Grey Davis' California, long before that development. (I was going to add the Chester A. Riley "revolting" to that, but I left it out not because it was inappropriate but rather to restrain from a direct political commentary on the state of our state.)
rdamon Overmod I have not yet figured out how, even in Gray Davis' California, people conceived of the idea of a pressurized high-octane gasoline pipeline going through a residential neighborhood. Let alone adjacent to a known dangerous railroad curve on a known severe railroad grade. Let alone at a depth, and of a construction, susceptible to nicking or impact damage from casual use of construction equipment. My guess is that the pipe was there first
My guess is that the pipe was there first
When the rail line was constructed - gasoline wasn't even a product, let alone a product to be transported by pipeline.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
mudchickenRoadmasters hate seeing Hulcher/Filsinger/Corman et all show up. Track damage doubles (or worse) and then the operating bubbas can't figure out why the damage figures zoom beyond the FRA reportable levels. (the cat skinners and yellow cowboys destroy everything with their cat tracks)
If you need Hulcher's - chances are you already blew past the reportable level.
It's been fun. But it isn't much fun anymore. Signing off for now.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.t fun any
ericsp rdamon When I worked at a company that had lots of fiber optic cable on the ROW we had much more of a risk during cleanup vs. the actual derailment. Just like the Cal-Nev pipeline at Duffy Street
rdamon When I worked at a company that had lots of fiber optic cable on the ROW we had much more of a risk during cleanup vs. the actual derailment.
When I worked at a company that had lots of fiber optic cable on the ROW we had much more of a risk during cleanup vs. the actual derailment.
Just like the Cal-Nev pipeline at Duffy Street
That is a textbook case.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Bernardino_train_disaster
mudchicken Roadmasters hate seeing Hulcher/Filsinger/Corman et all show up. Track damage doubles (or worse) and then the operating bubbas can't figure out why the damage figures zoom beyond the FRA reportable levels. (the cat skinners and yellow cowboys destroy everything with their cat tracks)
Roadmasters hate seeing Hulcher/Filsinger/Corman et all show up. Track damage doubles (or worse) and then the operating bubbas can't figure out why the damage figures zoom beyond the FRA reportable levels. (the cat skinners and yellow cowboys destroy everything with their cat tracks)
Watched Hulcher change out a GE frozen traction motor on a siding with an idler . The damage to the main was unbelievable. About 3(?) months later one rail of the Main was replaced for about 50 - 60 feet at that location. Had to wonder why the tracked units could not have rubber treads that I've seen on identical yellow vehicles ?
jeffhergertI bet Hulcher likes those calls. The clock starts as soon as they pick up the phone. Jeff
Jeff
Hulcher, Cranemasters and all the other wreck clearance contractors.
Having had the opportunity to be involved in working derailments both with the normal wreck train and their heavy lift crane as well as working a comparable deraiment with Hulcher - it is no wonder the carriers have moved to contractor with off track equipment for wreck clearance.
I bet Hulcher likes those calls. The clock starts as soon as they pick up the phone.
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