How do truck drivers carrying a liquid load combat the force of the liquid moving around in the back of the truck when turning or braking?
In: Engineering
I used to drive tanker.
One day I had a load in a smoothbore tank. If I would let off the throttle, I would get a “push” from the surge. As I accelerated, I could feel a “tug.”
Because I’m a child, and just for funzies I had to at least once see what would happen if I could intensify that effect.
So every time I got the push, I’d accelerate, and every time I got the tug, I’d let off.
Push, go, tug, slow.
After a few cycles, we’ll say 5-7, on the last “push,” the liquid slammed so hard it felt like I got rear-ended by a freight train, and I could hear a loud BAM. I decided I’d pushed my luck enough. To this day I have to wonder if I could have created enough force to detach the trailer.
Another time, I was pulling a load out of Missouri, in the hills and the hollars south of St. Louis. I had a stop with a left hand turn that went uphill, and I was driving a manual transmission. Every time I would clutch to grab the next gear, the surge would practically stop the truck. So I had to crawl about half a mile up the hill in 2nd gear because I couldn’t make the shift.
Also, last one, fun fact. If I was on a scale, the sloshing would throw off the weight and I would have to wait for it to settle. I found the quickest fix was to release the brake and let the truck roll free. The scale was completely level. The free movement countered the surge and after a few waves everything would stabilize.
Good times.
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