TESTING OF UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY ATLAS TRAIN–PHASE 5 REPORT

As part of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Atlas Railcar Project, the Atlas and Buffer railcars were developed to meet the need for future large-scale rail transport of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. The DOE collaborated with the United States Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program (NNPP) to purchase a rail escort vehicle (REV). MxV Rail, a subsidiary of the Association of American Railroads (AAR), performed certification testing and modeling on these railcars. Tests were performed in several locations including the Transportation Technology Center (TTC) in Pueblo, Colorado; the Pueblo Chemical Depot (PCD) in Pueblo, Colorado; BNSF railroad tracks between Avondale, Colorado, and Folsom, New Mexico; and Union Pacific (UP) railroad tracks between Avondale, Colorado, and Scoville, Idaho.

Testing and modeling were performed according to the certification requirements in the AAR Manual of Standards and Recommended Practices (MSRP), Standard S-2043, “Performance Specification for Trains Used to Carry High-Level Radioactive Material (HLRM).” This report summarizes the multiple-car testing steps taken to obtain Standard S-2043 certification for the
Atlas train. The work was performed as part of Phase 5 under DOE Contract 89243218CNE000004/P00022.

The test train consisted of a leading Buffer railcar, a 12-axle cask railcar, a trailing Buffer railcar, and a REV. The 12-axle cask railcar, known as Atlas, is equipped with fittings to accommodate cradles and end stops designed to allow the railcar to carry various casks used for the transportation of spent nuclear fuel and high-level radioactive waste. Depending on the test requirements, the Atlas railcar was loaded with either the minimum test load (198,975 pounds) or the maximum test load (490,400 pounds). The Buffer railcars were four-axle flatcars with permanent loads attached to achieve a gross rail load of 263,000 pounds. The REV was a four-axle railcar with facilities for personnel to escort the shipment.

During the course of multiple-car testing, a modification was made to improve car performance. The wheel tread profile on the train was changed from AAR-1B narrow flange to AAR-2A narrow flange to improve curving performance.

As part of the research process, the AAR Equipment Engineering Committee (EEC) reviewed and accepted 1) the multiple car test report (Appendix A), 2) the multiple car post-test analysis report (Appendix B), and 3) the final report (Appendix C). In addition, the EEC issued a letter granting conditional approval for the train on May 28, 2024, (Appendix D).