Electrical heated Tank Container
Tankcon has many years of experience in supplying electrical heated tank containers in various specifcations: Standard ISO as well as swap body tanks fitted with an electrical water glycol heating unit. Units supplied by various suppliers like, Holvrieka, Klinge and Loebbe. The water glycol mixture is pumped through the steam channels of the tank container.
Standard ISO tanks fitted with a full electric system supplied by Eltherm. These tanks containers are fitted with steam channels as a back-up system. Heating the discharge valve is to be considered for all heating solutions, including steam.
In the event there is no power connection possible, the tank container can be fitted with a generator set. As easy as this sounds there are a few important details to consider with our staff.
Is there a need to keep the product in a certain temperature range during transit or is there only a need to heat up the product before loading.
Important to know the required product temperature, the specific heat of the product, the melting point and the expected ambient temperature during transit of the tank. With this information a good solution can be offered with regards to which unit to use, the required insulation of the tank and the medium to be used (water glycol or pure glycol) . maybe a high temperature tank with thermal oil heat unit could needed.
Water glycol Heated tank containers
The principle of this heating option is rather easy. The tank container will be fittted with a heat unit. This unit heats the water glycol mixture which is pumped through the channels that are welded under the tank barrel.
Most tank containers are equipped with steam channels in various layouts and number of channels. In the event a new tank is build including a water glycol heat unit the layout of the steam channels can be welded in an ideal configuration and if needed channels can be added on the ends of the vessel. In most cases a water glycol unit is fitted on a standard tank container equipped with 8, 10 or 12 steam channels. It is advisable to include the manufacturer of the heat unit and the builder of the tank container in the project to discuss the best flow direction of the heated glycol.
Position of the control box and electrical cable, standard is the control box placed at the rear of the tank container. There are situations where a position on the side is preferable for better access.
In the event there is deap-sea traffic involved it is recommendable to consult the shipping line to be sure that the reefer unit can be mounted on one of the sides and the control box can be mounted on the rear of the container. Our friendly staff is more than willing to assist.
Expansion tank, each water glycol system will have an expansion tank n top of the tank, there are options in stainless steel and plastic. Venting, adding a venting on the 2 highest steam channels is advisable, it makes filling of the system much easier but there is a costs to it since the cladding and insulation needs to “ opened” for the fitment of the ventlines.
Full electric Heating
The water glycol heating systems gives flexibility since it can be taken of the container when the unit is past its technical life and the tank can be used as a standard tank container. The unit can also put on an other tank container. A permanent solution and a higher investment is the 100% electric solution where electrical cables are attached to the tank barrel before the insulation is placed. This makes it expensive for existing tank containers (the cladding and insulation have to be taken of during fitment). It is mostly used on new to build tank containers.
This system has important pro’s to consider:
- there are no moving parts like pumps leading to less maintenance costs and less failures.
- the electric cables can be attached on the complete barrel, even the front and rear are no problem.
- the system is built with various power groups, in the event there is a problem with a cable, one power group can be switched off where the remining groups will still be powerful enough to maintain the temperature of the loaded product.
- the tank containers steam channels are free to use and can be used as a back-up. If the electrical system fails there is still an option to heat the product prior discharge.
An alternative to the cable heating are the silicon mats supplied by Dirac Industries, these mats can be made for a dedicated tank container, see sample, picture 1:
We work with first class suppliers of the heating like Loebbe and Klinge plus world class manufactures of tank container. With the combined expertise we can offer the best possible solution for your product. These pictures are electrical heat systems supplied by Eltherm.
