The twenty-foot equivalent unit (abbreviated TEU or teu ) is a general unit of cargo capacity, often used for container ships and container ports . It is based on the volume of a 20-foot-long (6.1 m) intermodal container , a standard-sized metal box that can be easily transferred between different modes of transportation, such as ships, trains, and trucks.
13-503: MV Pacific Mariner , formerly MV Pacific Adventurer , is a 1123 TEU geared multi-purpose container ship that gained notoriety after causing Queensland's largest oil spill on the east coast of Australia in March 2009. The ship is owned by Swire Shipping and registered in Hong Kong . She has also sailed under the names, Pacific Challenger , and Changsa . As MV Pacific Adventurer ,
26-618: A combination is within the limits of national road regulations in many countries, requiring no special permission. As some road regulations allow longer trucks, there are also variations of the standard 40-foot container; in Europe and most other places a container of 45 feet (13.72 m) may be pulled as a trailer. Containers with a length of 48 feet (14.63 m) or 53 feet (16.15 m) are restricted to road and rail transport in North America. Although longer than 40 feet, these variants are put in
39-477: A maximum weight of 67,200 pounds (30,500 kg), an empty weight of 5,290 pounds (2,400 kg), and a net load of 61,910 pounds (28,080 kg). Tare weight Tare weight / ˈ t ɛər / , sometimes called unladen weight , is the weight of an empty vehicle or container. By subtracting tare weight from gross weight ( laden weight ), one can determine the weight of the goods carried or contained (the net weight ). The word tare originates from
52-445: A volume range of 680 to 1,520 cubic feet (19 to 43 m ) for one TEU. While the TEU is not itself a measure of mass, some conclusions can be drawn about the maximum mass that a TEU can represent. The maximum gross mass for a 20-foot (6.1 m) dry cargo container is 24,000 kilograms (53,000 lb). Subtracting the tare mass of the container itself, the maximum amount of cargo per TEU
65-547: Is defined as two TEU. It is common to designate a 45-foot (13.7 m) container as 2 TEU, rather than 2.25 TEU. The most common twenty-foot container occupies a space 20 feet (6.1 m) long, 8 feet (2.44 m) wide, and 8 feet 6 inches (2.59 m) high, with an allowance externally for the corner castings ; the internal volume is 1,172 cubic feet (33.2 m ). However, both 9-foot-6-inch-tall (2.90 m) High cube and 4-foot-3-inch (1.30 m) half height containers are also reckoned as 1 TEU. This gives
78-465: Is reduced to about 21,600 kilograms (47,600 lb). Similarly, the maximum gross mass for a 40-foot (12.2 m) dry cargo container (including the 9-foot-6-inch (2.90 m) High cube container) is 30,480 kilograms (67,200 lb). After correcting for tare weight, this gives a cargo capacity of 26,500 kilograms (58,400 lb). Twenty-foot "heavy tested" containers are available for heavy goods such as heavy machinery. These containers allow
91-539: Is slightly more than twice as long: 40-foot (12.19 m), dubbed a forty-foot equivalent unit (often FEU or feu ). The reason the smaller container is 1.5 inches short of 20 feet is to allow it to be stacked efficiently with 40-foot containers. The twistlocks on a ship are set so that two standard 20-foot containers have a gap of three inches, allowing a single 40-foot container to fit precisely on top. The 40-foot containers have found wider acceptance, as they can be pulled by semi-trailer trucks . The length of such
104-468: The Middle French word tare 'wastage in goods, deficiency, imperfection' (15th c. ), from Italian tara , from Arabic طرح ṭarḥ , lit. 'thing deducted or rejected', from taraha 'to reject'. This can be useful in computing the cost of the goods carried for purposes of taxation or for tolls related to barge, rail, road, or other traffic, especially where the toll will vary with
117-499: The same class of forty-foot equivalent units. The carrying capacity of a ship is usually measured by mass (the deadweight tonnage ) or by volume (the net register tonnage ). Deadweight tonnage is generally measured now in metric tons ( tonnes ). Register tons are measured in cu. ft, with one register ton equivalent to 100 cubic feet (2.83 m ). As the TEU is an inexact unit, it cannot be converted precisely into other units. The related unit forty-foot equivalent unit , however,
130-411: The spill reached $ 34 million. Twenty-foot equivalent unit The standard intermodal container is 19 feet 10.5 inches (6.058 m) long and eight feet (2.44 m) wide. The height of such containers is most commonly 8 feet 6 inches (2.59 m) but ranges from 4 feet 3 inches (1.30 m) to 9 feet 6 inches (2.90 m). Another standard container
143-464: The value of the goods carried ( e.g. , tolls on the Erie Canal ). Tare weight is often published upon the sides of railway cars and transport vehicles to facilitate the computation of the load carried. Tare weight is also used in body composition assessment when doing underwater weighing. Tare weight is accounted for in kitchen scales, analytical (scientific) and other weighing scales which include
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#1732844077029156-532: The vessel was sailing from Newscastle to the Port of Brisbane . During rough seas created by Cyclone Hamish 230 tonnes of fuel oil, 30 tonnes of other fuel and 31 shipping containers (620 tonnes) of ammonium nitrate spilled into the Coral Sea , off the coast from Cape Moreton . 100,000 litres of oil washed up on the coasts of Queensland resulting in the area being declared a disaster zone by Premier Anna Bligh . The leak
169-681: Was contained before reaching Hamilton Wharf in Brisbane , the nearest port. The ship then leaked oil while docked in the Brisbane River which caused another 500 m long oil slick. After the Australian Maritime Safety Authority inspected the ship and declared her seaworthy it left Brisbane in April 2009 with a new captain at the helm. In August 2009 the ships owners agreed to pay $ 25 million compensation. Totals costs for cleaning up after
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