- Splitters
- Dividers
- Bulkheads
- Baffles
From The CDL Manual
Bulkheads:
Some liquid tanks are divided into several smaller tanks by bulkheads. When loading and unloading the smaller tanks, the driver must pay attention to weight distribution. Do not put too much weight on the front or rear of the vehicle.
- Biffles
- Scrabbles
- Perforations
- Baffles
From The CDL Manual
Baffled tanks:
Baffled liquid tanks have bulkheads in them with holes that let the liquid flow through. The baffles help to control the forward and backward liquid surge. Side-to-side surge can still occur. This can cause a roll over.
- Sand
- Gasoline
- Heating oil
- Food products
From The CDL Manual
Unbaffled tanks:
Unbaffled liquid tankers (sometimes called “smooth bore” tanks) have nothing inside to slow down the flow of the liquid. Therefore, forward-and-back surge is very strong. Unbaffled tanks are usually those that transport food products (e.g., milk). (Sanitation regulations forbid the use of baffles because of the difficulty in cleaning the inside of the tank.)
Be extremely cautious (slow and careful) in driving smooth bore tanks, especially when starting and stopping.
- Only when it's below 65 degrees outside
- Only on trips of less than 500 miles
- When carrying food products
- You should never fully load a cargo tank
From The CDL Manual
How Much to Load —
Never load a cargo tank totally full. Liquids expand as they warm and you must leave room for the expanding liquid. This is called “outage.” Since different liquids expand by different amounts, they require different amounts of outage. You must know the outage requirement when hauling liquids in bulk.
- Storage space
- Outage
- Headroom
- Clearance
From The CDL Manual
How Much to Load —
Never load a cargo tank totally full. Liquids expand as they warm and you must leave room for the expanding liquid. This is called “outage.” Since different liquids expand by different amounts, they require different amounts of outage. You must know the outage requirement when hauling liquids in bulk.
- The liquid's weight
- How much the liquid will expand
- The legal weight limits
- The viscosity of the liquid
From The CDL Manual
A full tank of dense liquid (such as some acids) may exceed legal weight limits. For that reason, you often may only partially fill tanks with heavy liquids. The amount of liquid to load into a tank depends on:
- The amount the liquid will expand in transit.
- The weight of the liquid.
- Legal weight limits.
- Clean bore
- Smooth tank
- Hollow bore
- Smooth bore
From The CDL Manual
8.2.5 – Un-baffled Tanks
Unbaffled liquid tankers (sometimes called "smooth bore" tanks) have nothing inside to slow down the flow of the liquid. Therefore, forward-and-back surge is very strong. Unbaffled tanks are usually those that transport food products (e.g., milk). (Sanitation regulations forbid the use of baffles because of the difficulty in cleaning the inside of the tank.) Be extremely cautious (slow and careful) in driving smooth bore tanks, especially when starting and stopping.
- Double the normal stopping distance
- Special permits
- A wet pavement endorsement
- Re-routing around towns
From The CDL Manual
8.3.4 – Stopping Distance
Keep in mind how much space you need to stop your vehicle. Remember that wet roads double the normal stopping distance. Empty tank vehicles may take longer to stop than full ones.
- 5 or more
- 4
- 2
- 0
From The CDL Manual
Unbaffled liquid tankers (sometimes called "smooth bore" tanks) have nothing inside to slow down the flow of the liquid. Therefore, forward-and-back surge is very strong.
- Legal weight limits
- The pumping capacity of the rear pump
- The weight of the liquid
- The amount the liquid will expand in transit
From The CDL Manual
A full tank of dense liquid (such as some acids) may exceed legal weight limits. For that reason, you may often only partially fill tanks with heavy liquids. The amount of liquid to load into a tank depends on:
- The amount the liquid will expand in transit.
- The weight of the liquid.
- Legal weight limits