The Manufacturing of CSI Fiberglass FRP Tanks: Our tanks are the product of precision engineering and forward thinking.
Process:
The process by which our fiberglass tanks are manufactured speaks volumes about their quality, integrity, safety and longevity.
Since the very first non-corrosive tank was designed back in the 1960s, we have maintained the highest quality standards and have leveraged promising technologies to engineer and build the world’s premier fiberglass storage tank.
Our tanks are made on steel molds from the inside out:
We
use steel mandrels (cylindrical steel molds) and build
our tanks from the inside out. Steel molds provide us
with a firm and consistent surface upon which we apply
materials to make our tank. The rotation of the mandrel
and the application of the materials are controlled
by a computer, custom designed to manufacture underground
tanks. As the mandrel rotates, resin, glass and specially
treated silica are precisely metered onto the mandrel
from above. The result is a closely controlled process
and a very consistent tank wall composition and thickness.
After the tank wall is made, its thickness is precisely determined. An instrument that magnetically senses the metal mold surface through the fiberglass reinforced plastic laminate is used to accurately measure the thickness of the laminate at many points all over the surface of the tank wall. This method of thickness measurement with a metal mold is quick, easy and more exact than the ultrasonic methods used by other manufacturers.
Stronger tanks, inside and out:
The inside-out approach to building the tank wall has some other advantages as well. The first layer of materials forms the inside surface of the tank. Because of the smooth steel mold, the inside surface of the tank is very smooth and free of surface variations. The inside surface is not exposed to air as it cures, which eliminates the air inhibited surface cure problems sometimes associated with other methods. The result is a well cured and very smooth tank interior that will be exposed to the fuel in the tank.
By applying materials
to the outside of the tank, we can easily add additional
thickness, reinforcing ribs, filament winding glass
in tension, glass woven roving, glass mat, or any other
materials in specific locations on the tank wall. With
this capability, we use the most efficient materials
in the most efficient locations to meet the design requirements
of the finished tank. Additional wall thickness is added
exactly where it is needed. Ribs are applied in optimal
locations, made in the most efficient shapes, and constructed
of the most efficient reinforcing materials. If a different
rib shape or height or location would be better, the
form or the location of the rib can be changed. If the
rib form shape was a part of the mandrel, these changes
could not be made without changing the mandrel itself.
Engineered and tested corrosion resistance:
The Containment Solutions’ tank wall is composed of resin, glass and a specially treated silica that together result in a composite matrix that is compatible with petroleum products, including gasoline, jet fuel, av-gas, motor oil, kerosene, diesel fuel and fuel oil, and up to 100% ethanol and/or methanol blends and oxygenated motor fuels.
Containment Solutions pioneered and perfected the use of a specially treated silica that is a part of our laminate matrix. The addition of this material has been proven to increase and improve the performance of our laminate in all fuels, including alcohols.
Our laminate has been thoroughly tested to meet the requirements of UL 1316. Additional long-term corrosion testing continues at our Research and Development Center. This testing is done in conditions that match actual installation conditions. This results in data that can be used to accurately predict the long-term properties needed for accurate tank designs. Data has been accumulated for current fuels and blends as well as its effects on the laminate after a number of years. This data includes tests on current fuels and blends and other oxygenates. We are constantly testing new products that can be stored in our tanks in the future.
Our R&D Center never stops asking questions:
We could never maintain our position on the leading edge of fiberglass tank design without an uncompromising commitment to research and development. Our newly expanded R&D Center gives us the ability to look at new and promising ways to improve our products, expand our capabilities and better serve our customer’s ever-changing needs.
Our underground tank test pit helps us perfect our product:
Containment Solutions is the only fiberglass tank manufacturer that studies tanks in all buried conditions and configurations. To do this, we constructed a full-scale test pit at our Conroe, Texas R&D Center, which allows us to test various tank designs with different backfill materials, anchoring methods, groundwater conditions and many other variables.
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