North American Car Company began producing these unique "pressure differential" covered hoppers in 1970. The cars are pressurized and the contents are blown out through the discharge pipes located along the bottom of the hopper outlets. NACC leased these cars to several railroads as well as to a number of small industries. Many wore plain NAHX reporting marks, although a few had more interesting company-specific graphics.
These cars are designed to carry a variety of bulk powdered commodities that are sensitive to moisture or that must be kept clean and free from outside contaminants. Such materials include bentonite, calcium carbonate, caustic soda (sodium hydroxide), cement, fly ash, lime, limestone pellets, salt, sand, and talc (just to name a few). The materials are often transferred to a receiving silo or hopper. In today's world of intermodal transload facilities, unloading a PD-3000 into one or more pressure discharge type highway trailers is a common practice.
Features -
- 19 Separate Injection Molded Parts
- Etched Metal Roofwalk
- 100 Ton Roller Bearing Trucks
- Fox Valley Metal Wheelsets
- Body-Mounted, Magnetic Knuckle Couplers