NAK Azot to add Tikhvin-produced tank cars for transporting methanol to its fleet

By the end of this year a batch of 60 tank cars fitted with a 25 t axle load bogies for transporting methanol will be delivered to Novomoskovskiy Azot (NAK Azot, a member entity of the EuroChem Group), ranking among Russia’s largest chemical manufacturers by nitrogen fertiliser and urea production volumes. The railcars will be produced by a Tikhvin production site on the basis of TikhvinChemMash, a subsidiary of the UWC Holding¹, Russia’s largest manufacturer of freight cars².

The new generation 1-T tank car (15-6880 model) for methanol and its derivatives shows improved technical and economic performance compared with standard models available in the market. In UWC’s product line the 15-6880 railcar has been presented since 2016 and has already proven to be a valuable addition to the freight fleets of major chemical enterprises. Transporting methanol in a TikhvinChemMash-produced tank car allows freight owners and operators not only to reduce transport costs and expenditures on maintaining their rolling stock fleets, but also to increase the efficiency of freight transportation.

The freight car has a loading capacity of 73 t which, when also taking into account the increased tank volume of 88 m³, makes it possible to load each car with up to 2 tons of extra freight compared with standard models. A train consisting of 80 model 15-6880 cars can therefore be loaded with up to 160 tons of additional freight, reducing the required fleet size of tank cars and the costs associated with loading and discharge operations.

The design of the tank car and the locations of its main joints improve usability, making the car more efficient to operate, especially during inspections, servicing and repairs, as well as offering greater protection for people and the environment from exposure to hazardous freight. For example, the upper part of the tank is installed with a modern safety valve with a rupture disc made from a foil-coated material, and in the event of an emergency the valve prevents any build up of pressure inside the tank, reducing the likelihood of methanol and its vapours being released by the tank car into the environment. A protective casing on the car prevents unauthorised access to the loading and discharge equipment and hazardous freight. The ”bent axis” tank design ensures maximum discharge of freight.

The overhaul mileage of the tank cars has been increased by almost three times up to 1 million km (or eight years) thanks to the model 18-9855 bogie with a 25 t axle load. Standard tank car models on the market are sent for their first depot repair after running 210,000 km (or two years), with subsequent repairs carried out every 110–160,000 km (or two years). TikhvinChemMash-produced tank cars have a service life of 32 years, compared with 24 years for standard models.

¹MOEX: UWGN

²Data sourced from INFOLine-Analytics: https://infoline.spb.ru/news/?news=162724