Composite Tank Truck Section with Mechanical Fastening Interfaces
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing self-supporting tank vehicles face challenges in achieving a balance between mechanical strength, lightweight design, and ease of manufacture, particularly due to the complexity and weight of stainless steel tanks and the complexity of composite material tanks with large dimensions.
Innovation Solution
A section made of composite material with an annular wall, featuring mechanical fastening interfaces and a sandwich structure with foam insulation, allowing for modular assembly and reduced longitudinal dimensions, facilitating manufacture, transport, and handling, while transmitting tensile forces effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a stainless steel tank body is used, then mechanical strength and food safety are improved, but weight increases and thermal insulation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials consisting of a fabric of fibers impregnated with a matrix to manufacture the tank body sections. This composite material provides sufficient mechanical strength while being significantly lighter than stainless steel, directly resolving the contradiction between strength and weight.
2Strength
If a stainless steel tank body is used, then mechanical strength is improved, but thermal insulation deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The composite material structure with fabric fibers and matrix provides inherent thermal insulation properties while maintaining mechanical strength, resolving the contradiction between strength and thermal insulation.
Solution Approach 2:
The matrix material in the composite structure acts as an intermediary that provides thermal insulation between the fiber reinforcement layers, preventing direct heat transfer while maintaining structural integrity.
3Weight of moving object
If a composite material tank body with large dimensions is used, then weight is reduced, but manufacturing complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tank body is divided into multiple sections that can be manufactured separately and then assembled together. This segmentation reduces the manufacturing complexity of individual sections while maintaining the overall lightweight advantage of composite materials.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a longitudinal dimension to the segmentation, dividing the tank along its length into manageable sections that are easier to manufacture and assemble, rather than creating one large complex piece.
4Stability of the object's composition
If a one-piece composite material tank body is used, then structural integrity is improved, but manufacturing and handling complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tank body is segmented into multiple sections with mechanical fastening interfaces that maintain structural integrity while enabling easier manufacturing and handling of individual sections.
Solution Approach 2:
Multiple sections are merged together through mechanical fastening interfaces to form a complete tank body that maintains structural integrity equivalent to a one-piece construction, while benefiting from the manufacturability of smaller sections.
5Ease of operation
If a composite material tank body is cut into two halves, then handling is improved, but manufacturing complexity increases due to large longitudinal dimensions of halves
Solution Approach 1:
The tank is segmented into sections with limited longitudinal dimensions rather than cutting into two large halves, making both manufacturing and handling easier while maintaining assembly capability.
Data Source
Figure 1~3
Figure 4~6
AI summary
The section (7) has a composite annular wall presenting a revolution symmetry around a longitudinal axis (2), where the composite material of the wall comprises matrix impregnated fiber fabric. Mechanical fixation interfaces are provided in each one of annular longitudinal ends of the section. The fibers are selected from carbon, glass, silicon carbide, aluminum, aramid, vegetal fibers or cellulose. Each interface has a set of inserts inserted in the foam of a sandwich structure of the section.