{"operation":"document","citation":"98-0273","title":"Arctic Foundations, Inc. — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"1998-09-21","effective_on":null,"summary":"98-0273 response to Arctic Foundations, Inc. concerning 173.306.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-98-0273.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-98-0273.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-98-0273","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/1998/980273.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\n400 Seventh Street, S.W.\nWashington, D.C. 20590\nResearch and\nAdministration\nSpecial Programs\n•\nSEP 2 | 1993\nMr. Edward Yarmak, Jr., P.E.\nChief Engineer\nArctic Foundations, Inc.\n•\n98-0273\n5621 Arctic Boulevard\nAnchorage, Alaska 99518-1667\nDear Mr. Yarmak:\nThis is in response to your letter dated September 8, 1998 requesting clarification of the\nrequirements in § 173.306 (e), under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR parts\n171-180). Specifically, you ask whether your devices, which you refer to as Thermopiles and\nhermoprobes, meet the defining criteria for refrigeration machines.\nThe HMR govern the transportation of hazardous materials in commerce. Under § 173.22, it is\nthe shipper's responsibility to properly classify a hazardous material or determine that it does not\nmeet a hazard class definition in Part 173. If your devices conforms to the defining criteria\nidentified in § 173.306 (e), it is the opinion of this office that they would be considered to be\nRefrigerating machines.\nIf we can be of further assistance, please feel free to contact us.\nSincerely,\nHattie L. Mitchell, Chief\nRegulatory Review and Reinvention\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\n:\nARCTIC FOUNDATIONS, INC.\nBetts\n8173.306\nSeptember 8, 1998\nRyan Posten\nTransportation Regulation Specialist\nRegulatory Review and Reinvention\nU.S. Department of Transportation\nResearch and Special Programs Administration\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards - DHM10\nWashington, DC 20590\nRe:\nInterpretation of 173.306 (e) with regard to Thermopiles and Thermoprobes\nDear Mr. Posten:\nOn August 31, 1998, Mr. Ron Abis and Mr. David Robertson of the USDOT met with us\nconcerning the shipping of the products that we manufacture. We believe that they fall\nunder a standard exception, and that is 173.306(e) for refrigeration machines. We will\nbelief is correct.\ndetail our products to you so that you can make an interpretation as to whether our\nArctic Foundations, Inc. manufactures passive refrigeration devices that are used to\nfreeze soil. These devices are generally known as thermosyphons and use natural\ntemperature differentials between the cold winter air and the soil to operate. There are\ndescription follows:\nno external energy inputs required for the devices to properly operate. A detailed\nThermosyphons are typically constructed using pipe tubing with closed ends. The\nsealed vessel is charged with a fixed quantity of working fluid so that there are\npredetermined volumes of vapor and liquid fractions contained in the vessel. The\nportion of the thermosyphon exposed to the air is the condenser and the buried portion\nis the evaporator. In normal applications, the evaporator is not completely full of\nliquid. Whenever the condenser end of the thermosyphon is cooler than the evaporator\nondensate evaporates from the side of the vessel before reaching the bottom. Th\nna, the vapor condenses and returns by gravity to the evaporator. Most of th\nlatent heat absorbed on evaporation of the liquid and subsequently released upon\ncondensation of the vapor is responsible for the high heat transfer conductances typical\nof thermosyphons.\n562 | Arctic Boulevard • Anchorage, Alaska 99518-1667\nPhone: (907) 562-2741 • Fax: (907) 562-0153 • Internet: arcfnd@alaska.net\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\nArctic Foundations, Inc.\nSeptember 4, 1998\nPage 2\nMore specifically, Arctic Foundations, Inc. builds thermosyphons in accordance with\nSection VIII, Division 1 of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. Fill ratios are\ngenerally less than 10% and usually approach 3% for most units. Welded construction\nis used with standard pipe and semi-elliptic ends. Carbon Dioxide, R-744, is our\nrefrigerant of choice; however, various other refrigerants have been used including R-\n11, K-12, K-22, K-290, and R-600. Thermosyphons charged with carbon dioxide are\ntypically designed for a maximum allowable working pressure of 750psi. Materials of\nconstruction are generally mild steel. Fabrication is by welding. These units are\nshipped from our plant to the project site where they are installed. Shipping may be by\ntruck, rail, barge or air. Once installed, the units are anchored to the earth, providing\nsubgrade refrigeration for the facility to prevent permafrost degradation.\nShould you require additional information, please contact us at your convenience.\nVery truly yours,\nChlay of\nEdward Yarmak, Jr., P. E.\nChief Engineer\nEX/rlp\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\n1.\n(:))\nSEP 9 98\n.·0.32\nARCTIC FOUNDATIONS, INC.\n5621 Arctic Boulevard • Anchorage, Alaska 99518-1667\nRyan Posten\nTransportation Regulation Specialist\nRegulatory Review and Reinvention\nU. S. Department of Transportation\nResearch and Special Programs Administration\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards - DHM10\n400 Seventh Street, S. W.\nWashington, DC 20590\n-. -\n....-\n....","truncated":false,"body_characters":4857}