Simulation study of impact dynamics during LNG transportation

Abstract: In this study, the Fluent software is utilized to simulate the lateral impact force on a tank during liquid sloshing when the tank is subjected to turns under varying steering accelerations and filling rates. It is observed that at a steering acceleration of 0.5g, the overall force vector pointing in the lateral direction of the tank body significantly increases the likelihood of tipping. A clear trend arises when steering acceleration is held constant; as filling rates range from 0.6 to 0.85, lateral impact forces due to tank liquid sloshing progressively increase with rising filling rates, whereas a decrease in force occurs between filling rates of 0.85-0.9. This analysis reveals that tanker truck safety is relatively high during turning maneuvers when the filling rate is between 0.85 and 0.9 and the steering acceleration is in the range of 0.1-0.4g.