Although there are many types of tank trucks, they all use a monolithic load-bearing structure. Most tank truck bodies consist of two main components: the tank body and the underframe. Therefore, the following only describes the tank body and underframe.
Tank Body
The tank body of a tank truck is a horizontal cylindrical structure, welded together from an upper plate, a bottom plate, and end plates. The upper plate is made of 9mm thick steel plate rolled into shape. The bottom plate, due to its greater stress, uses 11mm thick steel plate and occupies approximately 1/4 of the total circumference of the cylinder. The end plates are 11mm thick steel plates hot-pressed into spherical convex panels with transitional rounded sections.
Tank Truck Underframe
Because the tank body itself has high rigidity, the weight of the liquid inside is primarily borne by the tank body, and then transferred to the bogie via brackets and bolster beams. Therefore, the tank truck underframe mainly bears the horizontal longitudinal traction impact force. The center beam is generally made of two channel steels, with an 8mm thick upper cover plate covering the central part. A lower saddle plate of the tank body is welded onto the cover plate. An oil collection hole or drain valve hole is opened in the center of the cover plate, and drain pipe holes are located at both ends (when a heating jacket is present). A reinforcing lower cover plate is welded to the part of the center beam near the core plate. The bolster beam generally adopts a box-shaped cross-section, on which a tank body support is mounted. It consists of webbed plates and wooden blocks. The webbed plates are riveted or welded to the steel plate of the bolster beam, molded, and welded into a channel shape.
Underframe-less Tank Cars
Because the tank body of a tank car is a single cylindrical structure with high strength and rigidity, the tank body can not only bear the weight of the liquid it contains but may also bear the longitudinal forces acting on the tank car, thus eliminating the need for an underframe.
