초록 ▼

An injection-molded load line connection spillage container for catching and retaining liquid spilled when liquids are pumped between storage tanks and tankers provides an injection-molded reservoir and an injection-molded cover attached to the reservoir by hinges. Reinforcing ribs molded into the r

An injection-molded load line connection spillage container for catching and retaining liquid spilled when liquids are pumped between storage tanks and tankers provides an injection-molded reservoir and an injection-molded cover attached to the reservoir by hinges. Reinforcing ribs molded into the reservoir provide strength and ruggedness without the need for reinforcing steel collars and saddles. Gussets molded into the reservoir hinge brackets ensure repeated stresses produced by energetic opening of the cover does not result in failure of the hinge brackets. An optional load line mounting assembly permits secure mounting of the load line container directly onto the load line. An optional cleanout assembly provides a valved suction line for removing retained spillage, and an optional sampling assembly provides a valved sample line for sampling the liquid being transferred.

대표청구항 ▼

What is claimed is: 1. A injection molded load line connection spillage container for catching and retaining liquid spilled when liquids are pumped between storage tanks and tankers, wherein the transfer line from the storage tank is characterized as a load line and the transfer line from the tanke

What is claimed is: 1. A injection molded load line connection spillage container for catching and retaining liquid spilled when liquids are pumped between storage tanks and tankers, wherein the transfer line from the storage tank is characterized as a load line and the transfer line from the tanker is characterized as an unloading line, the load line connection spillage container comprising: an injection molded reservoir having a bottom and upstanding walls defining an opening therein, the upstanding walls being further characterized as a rear upstanding wall portion, a front upstanding wall portion, a left upstanding wall portion, and a right upstanding wall portion, the rear upstanding wall portion having a load line throughway therein and the front upstanding wall portion having a channel therein generally aligned with the load line throughway in the rear upstanding wall portion, and wherein reinforcing ribs are molded into the rear upstanding wall portion; wherein the upstanding wall portions terminate in an outwardly turned J-shaped lip containing integrally molded gussets to strengthen and reinforce the reservoir opening, the J-shaped lip having an integrally molded lock recess and a bore therethrough; an injection molded reservoir cover having a circumferential lip and an integrally molded lock bracket on the circumferential lip, so that the integrally molded lock bracket on the lip mates with the integrally molded lock recess on the reservoir and the bores in the molded lock bracket of the reservoir cover and in the integrally molded lock recess are aligned when the reservoir cover is placed on the reservoir; hinge means for hingedly attaching the reservoir cover to the reservoir; and wherein, with the reservoir cover open, the load line from the storage tank is received through the load line throughway in the rear upstanding wall portion, the unloading line from the tanker is received in the channel in the front upstanding wall portion, and the connection between the load line from the storage tank and the unloading line from the tanker is made within the reservoir so any spillage is caught and retained within the reservoir. 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the reservoir cover is generally circular with a central dome portion and a circumferential downwardly extending lip, the cover has an integrally molded handle adjacent the lip generally centered over a downwardly projecting arcuate member; and wherein the hinge means further comprises: rearwardly projecting cover hinge members diametrically opposite the downwardly projecting arcuate member, each rearwardly projecting cover hinge member having a generally horizontal reservoir cover hinge member pin bore therethrough for receiving a hinge pin; integrally molded rearwardly projecting reservoir hinge brackets projecting rearwardly from the top portion of the rear upstanding wall portion of the reservoir, each rearwardly projecting hinge bracket having a generally horizontal reservoir hinge bracket pin bore therethrough for receiving a hinge pin, each integrally molded rearwardly projecting reservoir hinge bracket having an integrally molded reinforcing gusset extending between the reservoir hinge bracket pin bore and the rear upstanding wall portion to reinforce and strengthen the integrally molded reservoir hinge brackets, so that, when the reservoir cover is in the closed position on the reservoir, the rearwardly projecting reservoir cover hinge members and the rearwardly projecting reservoir hinge brackets cooperate to receive hinge pins; hinge pins disposed within the aligned reservoir cover hinge bracket pin bores and reservoir hinge bracket pin bores; and wherein, when the reservoir cover is in the open position, the extent to which the reservoir cover will open is limited, by contact of the reservoir cover hinge members with the bottom sides of the integrally molded reservoir hinge brackets, to an opening angle of about 110 to 130 degrees. 3. The device of claim 2, wherein the reinforcing ribs molded into the rear upstanding wall portion extend downwardly and across the bottom of the injection molded reservoir. 4. The device of claim 3, further comprising load line mounting means for mounting the load line container directly on the load line, the load line mounting means further comprising: a plurality of throughway bores spaced around the load line throughway in the rear upstanding wall portion; and a length of pipe having a flange located between threaded pipe ends, the flange having a plurality of spaced flange bores, so one threaded pipe end extends through the throughway for attachment to the load line, the flange bores mate with the throughway bores to receive fasteners which secure the flange to the reinforced rear upstanding wall portion of the reservoir, and the other threaded pipe end is attached to the unloading line. 5. The device of claim 4, wherein the fasteners are bolts with self-locking nuts. 6. The device of claim 4, further comprising a cleanout assembly attached to the length of pipe of the load line mounting means, the cleanout assembly further comprising: a valve connected at one end by pipe fittings to the length of pipe of the load line mounting assembly at the other end to a suction line extending from the valve to just above the bottom of the reservoir so that, while the unloading line is in place and a pump is pumping tank contents from the storage tank into the tanker, opening of the valve causes any liquid which has accumulated in the reservoir to be transferred to the tanker. 7. The device of claim 3, further comprising a bottom drain assembly attached to the bottom of the load line container, the bottom drain assembly comprising: a valve connected at one end by pipe fittings to the bottom of the reservoir; and a drain line extending downwardly from the other end of the valve so that, when the valve is opened, any liquid collected within the reservoir of the load line container. 8. The device of claim 3, wherein the injection reservoir and the reservoir cover are molded from a thermoplastic material. 9. The device of claim 3, wherein the reservoir and the reservoir cover are molded from a thermosetting plastic material. 10. The device of claim 8, wherein the thermoplastic material is polyethylene. 11. The device of claim 10, wherein the polyethylene is medium density polyethylene. 12. The device of claim 10, wherein the polyethylene is high density polyethylene. 13. The device of claim 3, wherein the reservoir and the reservoir cover are molded from a thermoplastic material reinforced with fibers. 14. The device of claim 3, wherein the reservoir and the reservoir cover are molded from a polyamide. 15. The device of claim 3, wherein the reservoir and the reservoir cover are molded from ABS plastic. 16. The device of claim 4, further comprising a backing plate having a cutout and spaced backing plate bores around the cutout, so that the backing plate is placed over the rearward projecting threaded end of the pipe length of the load line mounting assembly and secured to the rear upstanding wall portion of the reservoir opposite the load line mounting assembly and to the load line mounting assembly flange by fasteners disposed in aligned bores spaced around the load line throughway, backing plate bores, and flange bores. 17. The device of claim 4, further comprising a sampling assembly for sampling liquid transferred between the storage tank and the tanker, the sampling assembly further comprising: a short pipe fitting attached to the load line mounting assembly within the reservoir, the short pipe having a generally horizontal pipe-threaded bore, therein; and a valve connected at one end to the generally horizontal pipe-threaded bore in the short pipe and at the other end to a goose-neck sample tap. 18. The device of claim 4, further comprising an enclosed main valve attached to a threaded end of the short pipe of the load line mounting assembly within the reservoir. 19. The device of claim 4, further comprising: a saddle having a cutout for receiving the rearwardly projecting threaded end of the short pipe length of the load line mounting assembly, the saddle extending from the rear upstanding wall portion downwardly and across the bottom of the reservoir, the saddle having spaced saddle bores which align with the bores spaced around the load line throughway of the rear upstanding wall portion and the flange bores in the flange of the load line mounting assembly so that fasteners disposed in the aligned bores secure the rear upstanding wall portion of the reservoir between the flange of the load line mounting assembly and the saddle. 20. The device of claim 4, further comprising a flow meter assembly attached to a transfer line.