ASGCO Conveyor Impact Beds Provide Spillage Solutions for a Coal Peparation Plant
Fourthane® Provides Solution for Repairs of Conveyor Belt Covers and Mechanical Fasteners
Iron shipping terminal protects workers with ASGCO Conveyor Guarding & Safety Equipment
ASGCO 3-DEM Analysis
ASGCO_3-DEManalysis
Challenge
The driving force behind this project was initiated out of a safety issue. The existing bucket design would require 3 to 4 operators to manually flip the buckets, which would put the operators in a dangerous position, as the buckets are very heavy and could cause an injury during the process of flipping the bucket to change direction. Therefore, corrective actions resulting from an incident investigation were to redesign and re-engineer the bucket to enable the bucket wheel to change direction without flipping the buckets. Due to the split design of the new bucket, the challenge was to ensure the same tonnage would flow thru the bucket without any restriction.
Solution
The existing bucket wheel was modeled and a 3-DEM analysis was performed to establish a baseline of existing performance levels. We then incorporated the client’s models of the new split bucket design into the 3-DEM simulation and then compared the differences between the two designs and provided data to the client to show the results of the simulations. The client was able to view the results and make modifications to their design to improve the material flow and capacity.
Results
After the new split buckets were installed on the bucket reclaimer, they were able to realize the time-savings of not having the maintenance downtime to flip the buckets, while maintaining the same capacity. They also found another benefit to the split bucket was that it evened out the distribution of the material on the belt, previously with the original bucket, when the material was transferred to the conveyor belt it would leave piles of material on the belt and, with the split bucket the material was more evenly distributed on the belt. Therefore, reducing the impact and wear on the belt.
ASGCO® Safe-Guard™ Return Idler Cage Solves Safety Issues
Challenge
This coal mine facility faced many challenges, as all bulk handling facilities do. Overcoming obstacles in improving the safety of their conveyor system was a top priority. These type of conveyor systems have tendency to mis-track causing the belt to cut into the hanging metal brackets holding the return roller in place. If and when the bracket gives way, the large return roller will be sent tumbling downward, creating a dangerous safety hazard.
Recommendations
After a thorough inspection of the conveyor it was pointed out that in addition to resolving the belt mis-tracking issue, there needed to be further changes made to ensure safety in the workplace and to comply with OSHA and MSHA requirements. It was recommended that they install ASGCO Safe-Guard Return Idler Cages to protect the return rollers and objects from falling, preventing injuries to workers and equipment.
Results
ASGCO Safe-Guard Return Idler Cages were installed in the work areas and along the roadways to catch the return rollers if they fell. This brought the conveyors into compliance with MSHA title 30 regulations and helped the mine to reach its safety compliance goal! The customer was very pleased with the success.
ASGCO Tru-Trainer® Belt Tracking Idler Solves Tracking Problem on FGD Scrubbing Conveyor
Challenge
The customer is a larger coal burning power plant that has had FGD Scrubber Conveyors in service for many years to help control the plants emissions. The product that is being conveyed is a synthetic gypsum product that is either conveyed or shipped to a nearby gypsum board plant. This product is very sticky and corrosive and builds up on the conventional return idlers and return trainers. This causes the belt to mis-track and rub the conveyor structure.
Recommendations
After ASGCO representatives surveyed the conveyor and pointed out some of the problems that were causing the belt mis-tracking, the benefits of installing two return Tru-Trainers to help keep the conveyor belt centered on the conveyor were discussed.
Results
After installing the Tru-Trainers the belt immediately centered itself on the conveyor system. The customer watched the performance of the Tru-Trainer Flat Return Idlers and was extremely impressed.
ASGCO® Urethane Cast Products
In today’s manufacturing environments where the cost of downtime is measured in thousands of dollars per hour, polyurethane’s incredible durability actually increases your company’s profitability.
The diverse properties of castable polyurethane make it the leading choice of engineers looking for long lasting materials for their high load, high stress environments. Polyurethane routinely outperforms plastic, rubber and steel in its overall ability to resist harsh environmental factors such as abrasion, heat, solvents, oil and acid. In addition, polyurethane‘s noise abatement ability makes it the preferred material in chain-drive designs, conveyor belt systems and assembly line environments.
Advantages of a Custom Molded Urethane Part:
- Prints are not required. We can reverse engineer an existing part.
- Considerably tougher than plastic.
- One step molding process is more cost effective than machining blocks of plastic.
- Can produce custom molded parts to replace brass parts which require expensive machining. The parts can be slick with low friction if needed.
- Tooling for compression-molded parts is very inexpensive in comparison to other forms of molding such as injection and transfer.
- Delivery for a custom molded urethane part is very quick.
- Able to mold intricate shapes with or without metal inserts.
- We can quote from 1 custom molded part to over 1000 custom molded parts.
- We can bond custom molded urethane parts to other substrates such as phenolic, steel, aluminum and plastic
ASGCO manufactures urethane cast products as per customer requirement under strict confidentiality agreements with our customers, respecting any and all patents on the products they have designed and given us the opportunity to manufacture.
Urethane Classifier Shoes
ASGCO Urethane Classifier Shoes feature our special wear-resistant urethane material at the outer edge of the shoe (the area that sees the most abrasion) to extend the wear life of the shoe. Longer shoe life means you experience less maintenance downtime and lower operating costs, resulting in higher productivity and profits.
Urethane Lagged Pulleys & Rollers
ASGCO manufactures Urethane Cast Rollers and Pulleys as per customer requirement under strict confidentiality agreements with our customers, respecting any and all patents on the products they have designed and given us the opportunity to manufacture.
Urethane Hydrocyclone Liners
At ASGCO we manufacture Hydrocyclone Urethane Liners as per customer requirement under strict confidentiality agreements with our customers, respecting any and all patents on the products they have designed and given us the opportunity to manufacture.
Pipeline Products and Pigs
ASGCO manufactures quality Pipeline Products and Pigs, particularly for the pipeline and offshore oil and gas industry, as per customer requirement under strict confidentiality agreements with our customers, respecting any and all patents on the products they have designed and given us the opportunity to manufacture.
Urethane Sheets and Linings
Our ASGCO-thane® Polyurethane Liners are custom manufactured to solve wear issues related to bulk transport of many types of materials. Urethane’s exceptional abrasion resistance makes it an ideal solution for protecting metal hoppers and chutes from abrasive compounds, as well as great for sticky materials.
ASGCO’s Impact Bed Cradles prevent large rocks, tramp metal, roof bolts and bucket teeth from stopping your operation!
ASGCO Impact Bed Cradles
ASGCO’s Impact Bed Cradles (patent pending) are designed to provide protection to your conveyor belt from impact damage. Our modular style impact beds provide protection for the conveyor belt, as well as a tool to help control spillage in the conveyor-loading zone. Our unique, semi-U-shaped design supports the conveyor belt across the entire width – eliminating any unsupported areas between the rollers or bars found on traditional impact idlers or traditional impact beds where typical damage can occur in the idler junction points. The Impact Bed Cradles consist of a heavy-duty frame with removable (Slide-in or Slide-out) sides with center sections for ease of installation and maintenance.
Product Features:
- Impact Bed Cradles - no pinch point or idler junction area utilizing our 17.5° bars for 35° idler systems; 10° degree bars for 20° idler systems and 22.5° degree bars for 45° idler systems.
- Absorbs Impact - with heavy-duty steel designed framework and our impact bars that are manufactured with absorbent, 40-durometer rubber that can really take the shock of large material.
- Modular Design - cradles can be manufactured in 2′ (600mm), 3’ (900mm), 4′ (1200mm) or 5′ (1500mm) long, depending upon the size of your material impact area.
Available in either Standard duty (1,000 ft/lbs of impact) or Mine duty (2,000 ft/lbs of impact).
ASGCO Providing Solutions to Sulphur Processing Plant’s Transfer Conveyor’s Belt Tracking Challenges
Challenge:
A sulphur processing plant was having difficulty tracking their 24” transfer belt due to conveyor miss alignment and unleveled conveyor structure. These issues were causing short belt life, structural damages and loading challenges ultimately creating down time and costing precious operating moneys.
Solution:
ASGCO created a sound solution to the customer’s tracking challenges by advising the need of leveling the conveyor’s structure and properly aligning the tail pulley. After structural corrections and pulley adjustments were made, we installed the ASGCO 24” Tru-Trainer “top-side pushing down”, (8’) prior to the tail pulley. This distance and mounting configuration allowed for the Tru-Trainer to mechanically train the belt from the “clean-side”(i.e. no material accumulation on the trainer’s lagging) and, gave the Tru-Trainer ample belt length to track prior to the transition of the pulley. The end performance: The ASGCO Tru-Trainer is now centering the transfer belt prior to the loading of material and keeping the belt from wandering thus eliminating costly conveyor structural damage.
Industry: Sulphur Palletizer and Sulphur Storage Processing
Application: Transfer Conveyor
Product: Sulphur Pallets
Objective: Conveyor Belt Tracking
Conveyor: 75 ft. long; 10% incline; 24-inch wide belt; 25-degree troughing idlers; conveyor runs intermittently
For more information: http://www.asgco.com/conveyor-products/conveyor-idlers
Improving Conveyor Belt Tracking and Reducing Airborne Dust on a Re-design of a PRB Coal-Fired Power Plant Conveyor Transfer System
By Phil Wowak and Aaron Gibbs
Article Published in World Coal – June 2012
One of the big challenges to the safe conveying of coal, especially sub-bituminous coal such as that from the Powder River Basin (PRB), is dealing with the fuel’s high concentration of fine dust. The presence of this dust, combined with PRB coal’s high moisture content (20- 30% ), raises the risk of spontaneous combustion. Properly designed, maintained and operated conveyer belt systems play a major role in the safe handling of PRB coal.
Particular attention must be paid to cleaning because the buildup of dust on and along conveyors and transfer points poses safety problems. However, even fanatical cleaning is no substitute for a well-designed and operated coal conveying system. There are three major areas of concern to minimiz
e dusting and spillage on a typical conveyor:
• Load zone transfer points.
• Discharge point belt cleaners.
• Belt tracking.
Read the full article published in the June issue of World Coal magazine
.
Belt Conveyor Modernization – Chute Design for Increased Output and Reduced Dust Generation
By Aaaron Gibbs
Article Published in Bulk Solids Handling – Issue 2, 2012
Modernization of conveyor systems in today’s coal mines and coal-fired power plants is an essential goal for the management, employees and share holders of the company. It helps ensure that the mine or plant is running to its’ optimum potential, maximizing its’ tons per hour or most amount of BTU’s produced by the mine. Doing this with as little impact to the environment as possible. Power plants being built today emit 90 percent less pollutants (SO2, NOx, Particulates, mercury) than the plants they replaced from the 1970′s, according to the National Energy Technology Laboratory.
Asset optimization / modernization has never been more critical in the everyday things we do at home and at work. Coal is abundant, clean and the most efficient energy source available. Conveyors are the lifeline to any coal-fired power plant’s productivity. No coal = No low cost, clean, abundant, affordable energy. Proper consistent training, periodic inspections of the conveying systems and reliable turn-key installation and on-going maintenance will ensure an incident and injury free workplace while maintaining a productive reliable workforce. All of which are essential to any material handling system and the employees who maintain and are responsible for them.
“Coal is the most affordable source of power fuel per million BTU, historically averaging less than one-quarter the price of petroleum and natural gas,” according the National Mining Association.
Read the full article published in Bulk Solids Handling magazine Issue 2.
ASGCO Dry Wipe secondary belt cleaner wipes your conveyor belt dry.
The ASGCO® Dry Wipe Conveyor Belt Cleaner is designed to be the final cleaner in a cleaning system on the conveyor belt. When there is still water remaining on the belt after the primary and secondary cleaners have done their job, this can cause a mess along the belt line. The squeegee effect of the Dry Wipe Cleaning system can wipe the belt dry.
Redesign of a PRB Coal-Fired Power Plant Conveyor Transfer System Improves Conveyor Belt Tracking and Reduces Airborne Dust
Challenge
This coal fired power plant burning PRB coal had a serious dusting problem at a primary underground transfer point. The 72” conveyors were handling a varying load from 0 to 3600 ton per hour at 650 feet per minute. The existing chute design caused extensive dusting, internal liner wear as well as material spillage and receiving conveyor belt mis-tracking due to off center loading with varying loads as well as belt cover wear.
Solution
The existing transfer chute was modeled and re-designed using ASGCO’s 3-DEM material modeling software, to allow the coal flow to smoothly transfer from the supply conveyor to the center of the receiving conveyor. This new design eliminated the off center loading conditions due to the varing coal load which cause belt mis- tracking and material spillage. The new design loads the coal onto the receiving belt directly in the center and flows in the direction of belt travel. Airborne dust and spillage is virtually eliminated with this new design. Clampmount skirting, dust curtains and Slide-N-Roll support beds further aid in the elimination of any fugitive dust and carryback and helped make this project a great success.
Results
The newly installed transfer chute with a hood and centering spoon now operates with improved coal flow without buildup, spillage or any significant amount of airborne dust. The receiving belt now tracks centered on the conveyor system regardless of the varying load condition. This successful project once again proved that ASGCO can provide a “Complete Conveyor Solution”.
Industry: PRB Coal Fired Power Plant
Application: Underground 72”Conveyor Transfer Chute and Load Zone
Material: PRB / Sub-Bituminous Coal 3″ minus
Product: 3-DEM Chute Analysis, Redesign, Fabrication and Installation
Objective: Improve material flow, reduce airborne dust, eliminate off center loading and cover wear on the receiving belt
Details:
Conveyor #1 (Feed Conveyor)
Width / 72 inch
Speed / 650 FPM
Incline / 0 deg
TPH / Variable 0 to 3500
Conveyor #2 (Receiving Conveyor)
Width / 72 inch
Speed / 640 FPM
Incline / 14.1 deg
TPH / Variable 0 to 3500