Kelso Technologies completed the commercial design and internal testing of its new bottom outlet valve (BOV). Kelso has submitted the final required application information to the Association of American Railroads (AAR) for service trial testing and the eventual commercial approval of the BOV.
The BOV involves detailed proprietary and engineering knowledge based on specific regulatory and customer specifications. The new BOV design features several materials and mechanical engineering innovations that are intended to lead to a ‘best available safety technology’ ranking for our BOV when it is AAR approved and released for commercial service use. The BOV addresses the persistent problems of ball corrosion and operating damage by using a high performance ceramic material for the ball. The BOV is designed to meet the latest FRA regulations requiring the removal of the operating handle during transit. The valve will fit all existing DOT 111 and CPC 1232 tank cars and the new DOT 117 cars that will be the new standard for shipment of crude oil, ethanol and other hazardous and non-hazardous chemicals.
The company filed its patent application for this unique BOV design in June 2013. The final patent will probably take 2 years or more to be granted and carry a 17-year life starting from the date the patent is granted.
