Procurement and Operations of Agricultural NH3 Nurse Tanks and/or Running Gear Specimens

BACKGROUND: The U.S DOT's Volpe National Transportation Systems Center (Volpe) is currently conducting a research study to analyze the fatigue life of agricultural anhydrous ammonia (NH3) nurse tanks of interest/concern under normal operations. The purpose of the research is to determine if NH3 nurse tank requirements dictated by the hazardous materials regulations (HMR) provide an equivalent level of safety as the requirements for other cargo tanks. The HMR currently allows specification cargo tanks to operate indefinitely if periodic inspection and requalification of cargo tanks are met through 49 CFR Part 180. Some cargo tanks have been operating for 30+ years, without incident; however, no information or data exists on whether these cargo tanks would exceed the tanks useful life (i.e., the endurance limit) for the remainder of their operations. Nurse tanks, a subset of cargo tanks, are exempt from 49 CFR Part 180 if they meet American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) code specifications and commodity limitation requirements. In recent years, the performance of NH3 nurse tanks has been questioned. There have been cases where nurse tanks have failed and caused significant hazardous materials (hazmat) release to the environment and affected public safety. Information on nurse tank performance is limited, since the current HMR exempts nurse tanks from periodic hydrostatic tests at test pressure during periodic intervals and no cyclic tests are required for these tanks. The ultimate goal of this study is to use simulation and modeling technologies to analyze the fatigue life of NH3 nurse tanks of interest/concern to inform the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) on whether potential changes to the HMR are needed to protect public safety. It is anticipated that the study will include obtaining NH3 nurse tanks and running gear test specimens from manufacturers, retailers, or current owners of such equipment, conducting full-scale nondestructive and destructive testing, and developing finite element (FE) engineering models of nurse tanks using data collected from the full-scale testing. A subsequent phase is expected to include using the FE models to evaluate the performance of nurse tanks under a variety of conditions. The type and quantity of tests to be performed in this study are both currently unknown. Some potential types of tests include: nondestructive hydrostatic testing with instrumented (e.g. strain gages, pressure transducers) NH3 nurse tanks, destructive hydrostatic testing (e.g. hydrostatic burst testing of tanks) with instrumented NH3 nurse tanks, and actual or simulated service conditions (e.g. filling/emptying, on-road and off-road dynamic loads, etc.) for a nurse tank mounted on running gear. The availability of tanks of various designs (e.g. varied capacity, materials of construction, vintage, manufacturer, etc.) with or without running gear are unknown. Due to the potential large and diverse fleet of nurse tank designs, Volpe seeks to subject a variety of NH3 nurse tanks of different ages and design details to a variety of tests, as practical. Performing a variety of tests on a variety of NH3 nurse tanks is planned to help determine whether nurse tanks of different designs exhibit similar behaviors under a variety of conditions that may be encountered during service. SCOPE: Volpe is seeking information from manufacturers, retailers, or owners of NH3 nurse tanks and/or NH3 nurse tank running gear on their willingness, ability and requirements to provide Volpe with the physical specimens and information needed to conduct the above described study. All interested parties are invited to respond to this RFI. Responses may address the following items that Volpe finds critical to conduct the agricultural NH3 nurse tank study: Your capacity and ability to provide (donate/sell) NH3 nurse tanks conforming to the technical requirements set forth in HMR of a variety of capacities. Your willingness to provide (donate/sell) NH3 nurse tanks as customized test specimens that exceed the technical requirements set forth in the HMR (e.g. post-weld heat treated (PWHT) / non-PWHT tanks, tanks with and without pads between legs and tank shell, etc.). Your capacity and ability to provide technical information in support of creating engineering models of NH3 nurse tanks and/or NH3 nurse tank running gear of a variety of designs. Information on the nurse tank fleet makeup (e.g. number of tanks built/sold/in use of various capacities). Availability of pre-owned nurse tanks of various vintages and designs for use as test specimens. Information on typical or commonplace running gear for use as test specimens. Information related to NH3 nurse tank design changes that have occurred over time. Information on when and how NH3 nurse tanks are typically removed from service. Information on industry practices related to NH3 nurse tank operations (e.g. filling, operating pressures, transport). Information on requirements, limitations, and costs associated with procuring NH3 (e.g. seasonal limitations, certifications, locations, distances). Recommendations on test requirements, number of repeated tests to establish repeatability, instrumentation, and post-test examination for non-destructive (e.g. hydrostatic) tests (see related RFI on testing - Notice I.D. 326-01 - https://beta.sam.gov/opp/ec8ed92efe7e4a39bf1c55e47752b20c/review). Recommendations on test requirements, types of component level tests to be conducted, number of repeated tests to establish repeatability, instrumentation, and post-test examination for destructive (e.g. burst) tests (see related RFI on testing - Notice I.D. 326-01 - https://beta.sam.gov/opp/ec8ed92efe7e4a39bf1c55e47752b20c/review) Recommendations on test requirements, spectrum of load conditions, critical inputs, duration to establish repeatability, instrumentation, and post-test examination for in-service or simulated service condition tests (see related RFI on testing - Notice I.D. 326-01 - https://beta.sam.gov/opp/ec8ed92efe7e4a39bf1c55e47752b20c/review) Respondents need not provide information on all of the above items, partial responses will be appreciated as well. Any other comments that can help Volpe better define the research scope and direction and ultimately yield technical data beneficial to both the government and the industry are welcome. Please note the related RFI on procuring testing services and simulated service environments for agricultural NH3 nurse tanks - Notice I.D. 326-01 - (https://beta.sam.gov/opp/ec8ed92efe7e4a39bf1c55e47752b20c/review) This is a long term requirement with both immediate and future needs. As such, Volpe encourages respondents to submit their information by June 18, 2021, so that the information may be immediate, but also encourages responses through the end of November 2021. This is a Request for Information (RFI) to be used for market research purposes only. This is not a Request for Quote (RFQ). This notice is issued solely for informational and planning purposes and it does not constitute a promise to issue an RFQ in the future. Responses to this RFI are not considered offers or proposals and the Government will not award a contract based on this RFI. The Government is not soliciting for proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Respondents are advised that the Government will not pay for the information submitted in response to this RFI or any costs incurred in responding to this RFI. All costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested parties' expense. It is the responsibility of the potential responder to monitor the website for additional information pertaining to this requirement. All responses must be sent electronically via email to the Primary Point of Contact and the Secondary Point of Contact listed on this posting. Any other responses, such as mail or telephone, will not be accepted.