Plastics in the transportation industry – a smoother ride all round

Plastic liners in railcars. Plastic liners in barges.
Plastic fendering on freshwater and saltwater
docks. Plastic pads on rotary dump walls.
Plastic liners in railcar receiving hoppers.
Plastic components on locomotives.
Forty years ago the use of plastics for rail
and marine applications was unheard of. Steel
was the answer for just about every
requirement. If carbon steel didn’t fit the bill,
then stainless steel was used. Even though its
weight reduced the amount of bulk material
that could be transported and the fact that steel
corrodes when subjected to caustic chemicals
was an issue. Also, steel absorbs moisture and
bulk materials freeze to it in cold weather.
Disregarding that bulk materials like coal, iron
ore, aggregates and many others would rathole
and bridge over the discharge opening. Steel
was still the only thing that ‘made sense’.
Fast-forward to the present and look at the
improvements brought about by innovations in
the plastic industry. Quadrant Engineering
Plastics Products has been quietly living up to
its slogan ‘You inspire…we materialize®’. The
number of applications for plastic used in the
transportation of bulk materials over land and
water has grown astronomically.
Self-unloading ocean-going vessels and
barges are now lined with TIVAR® marine-grade
liners that are FDA- and USDA-approved. The
ultra-low coefficient of friction (COF) enables
the vessels to be designed with lower wall
angles making room for more grain, coal,
gypsum and other cargo they are transporting.
Storage tanks for shipment of caustic chemicals
by sea are now lined with Quadrant’s Symalit® fluoropolymers
eliminating corrosion and eventual leaks. When the ship arrives
at the dock, it no longer is exposed to
damage created by steel or wood fendering.
Instead it glides easily along the dock surface
lined with Quadrant’s TIVAR® DockGuard.
DockGuard also sheds mussels and
barnacles and is impervious to marine bore
worms.
Railcars now have light weight TIVAR® 88
liners (1/8th the weight of steel). TIVAR®
polymers exhibit an ultra-low coefficient of
friction, outwear stainless steel in many applications, and won’t
absorb moisture. The result; a railcar that lasts longer, can haul
larger payloads, and release the load in a matter of seconds
when it arrives at the customer’s site, regardless of the weather.
Locomotives are fitted with Quadrant’s Nylatron® nylon wear
parts including pedestal liners, center plate liners, bolster wear
plates and other components that require a material with exceptional wear
characteristics.
When the railcar arrives at its destination, discharge of the bulk material is
Railcar shakers that caused unnecessary
structural damage are no longer needed.
Rotary dump stations are lined with TIVAR® 88 pads that
eliminates structural damage and increased maintenance repair
costs that used to happen to aluminium railcars in the process
of being rotated upside-down. Railcars now pass smoothly over
the wall without damage. The railcar receiving hopper is lined
with Quadrant’s TIVAR® 88 w/BurnGuard. This specially
formulated plastic not only self-extinguishes when subjected to
spontaneously ignited coal, but has a lower coefficient of friction
than stainless steel.
In today’s world many technologies have surfaced to make
our lives easier, our businesses more efficient and our
knowledge greater. Forty years ago seems like ancient history
for many. Much has changed and the assimilation of plastics into
the transportation industry has only just begun.