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    Asphalt Plant Operation

    Uploaded by

    Jack Morris
    This document provides an overview of asphalt plant operations, including the different types (drum, batch, continuous mix), key components (aggregate bins, drum mixer, baghouse, storage silos), and illustrations. It explains that drum plants are most common, mixing aggregate and asphalt continuously in a revolving drum before storing the hot mix in silos. Batch plants mix ingredients one batch at a time for custom truckloads. The document also describes each major component in a drum plant and its function in the hot mix asphalt production process.

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    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Asphalt Plant Operation

    Uploaded by

    Jack Morris
    2K views4 pages
    This document provides an overview of asphalt plant operations, including the different types (drum, batch, continuous mix), key components (aggregate bins, drum mixer, baghouse, storage silos), and illustrations. It explains that drum plants are most common, mixing aggregate and asphalt continuously in a revolving drum before storing the hot mix in silos. Batch plants mix ingredients one batch at a time for custom truckloads. The document also describes each major component in a drum plant and its function in the hot mix asphalt production process.

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    ASPHALT PLANT OPERATION

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    This document provides an overview of asphalt plant operations, including the different types (drum, batch, continuous mix), key components (aggregate bins, drum mixer, baghouse, storage silos), and illustrations. It explains that drum plants are most common, mixing aggregate and asphalt continuously in a revolving drum before storing the hot mix in silos. Batch plants mix ingredients one batch at a time for custom truckloads. The document also describes each major component in a drum plant and its function in the hot mix asphalt production process.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as doc, pdf, or txt
    2K views4 pages

    Asphalt Plant Operation

    Uploaded by

    Jack Morris
    This document provides an overview of asphalt plant operations, including the different types (drum, batch, continuous mix), key components (aggregate bins, drum mixer, baghouse, storage silos), and illustrations. It explains that drum plants are most common, mixing aggregate and asphalt continuously in a revolving drum before storing the hot mix in silos. Batch plants mix ingredients one batch at a time for custom truckloads. The document also describes each major component in a drum plant and its function in the hot mix asphalt production process.

    Copyright:

    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
    Download as DOC, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
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    The key takeaways are that asphalt plants are used to produce hot mix asphalt for paving roads and that there are different types of plants including drum, batch and continuous mix plants.

    The main components of an asphalt plant include aggregate feed bins, collecting conveyors, scalping screens, drum feed conveyors, burners, drum mixers, baghouses, slat/bucket conveyors, and hot mix storage silos.

    The different types of asphalt plants described are drum plants, batch plants, and continuous mix plants. Drum plants produce high volumes continuously while batch plants produce exact specifications in batches.

    ASPHALT PLANT OPERATION

    1 Introduction to Asphalt Plants


    Part 1 — Types of Asphalt Plants
    2 Drum Asphalt Plants
    3 Batch Asphalt Plants
    3.1 Continuous Mix Asphalt Plants
    Part 2 — Asphalt Plant Components
    4 Aggregate Feed Bins to the Asphalt Plant
    5 Collecting Conveyor
    6 Scalping Screen (with respect to Asphalt Plants)
    7 Drum Feed Conveyor
    8 Asphalt Plant Burner
    9 Asphalt Plant Drum Mixer
    10 Air Filtration Baghouse (environmental)
    11 Asphalt Plant Slat/Bucket Conveyor
    12 Hot Mix Storage Silos
    13 Asphalt Cement Storage Tank
    Part 3 — Asphalt Plant Illustrations
    14 Asphalt Plant Illustrations

    Introduction to Asphalt Plants


    This section of the Aggregate Designs Corporation web page is intended to inform
    the reader about different aspects of asphalt plants, from the different kinds that
    exist to the different subsystems in a typical asphalt plant. Over one-half of the
    Interstate System and 70 percent of all highways are paved with hot-mix asphalt
    concrete. Asphalt concrete is probably the largest single highway program
    investment today and there is no evidence that this will change in the near future.
    Hence the importance of asphalt plant productivity.

    Part 1 — Types of Asphalt Plants

    Drum Asphalt Plants


    In a drum asphalt plant crushed aggregate of different sizes that is stored in cold
    feed bins is metered out from these hoppers onto a conveyer belt where it enters a
    rotary dryer. This dryer can be either gas or oil fired. This hot aggregate is then
    dropped onto a set of vibrating screens where it can be classified into as many as 4
    different sizes and is placed into individual hot bins based on these grades. These
    grades are then combined in the desired formulation by an operator weighing the
    aggregate out into a weigh hopper. Reclaimed Asphalt Product (RAP) can then also
    be added to the mix in some percentage. Bituminous asphalt cement, heated in a
    hot oil tank, is then also weighed out for the correct final mix ratio. All ingredients
    travel through the drum where it is mixed for a short time, typically less than a
    minute. This Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) is then conveyed to a hot storage silo (often
    using a slat conveyer) or directly into delivery trucks and hauled to the job site.

    Batch Asphalt Plants


    Batch Asphalt Plants literally make Hot Mix Asphalt (HMA) one batch at a time.
    They have the advantage of being able to taylor each truckload of HMA to exact
    specifications, whereas a drum asphalt plant generally produces high volumes of
    the same "recipe". Aggregate, RAP and asphalt cement are mixed in a pugmill
    mixer rather than a drum.

    Continuous Mix Asphalt Plants


    Continuous Mix Asphalt Plants make up less than 1/2 percent of plants in the US
    and are most similar to drum plants.

    Part 2 — Asphalt Plant Components, Typical Drum Plant

    Aggregate Feed Bins to the Asphalt Plant


    Depending on the formulation of the asphalt mix up to four different sizes of
    aggregate might be combined to create the final product. These raw ingredients
    are stored in bins known as cold feed bins which would each typically have a
    conveyor scale leading to another conveyor called a collecting conveyor.

    Collecting Conveyor
    The Collecting Conveyor takes measured amounts of aggregate from the cold feed
    bins and transfers it to the drum mixer, optionally through a scalping screen.

    Scalping Screen
    A Scalping screen can be added between the cold feed bins and a conveyor going
    to the drum mixer. This is used to rescreen the crushed aggregate to remove any
    oversize materials that might be in the rock. Often times the rock is crushed and
    stockpiled on the ground and then later reclaimed by loader and put in the cold
    feed bins to be blended to make the hot mix asphalt. It would be possible for there
    to be some rock in the piles that didn’t belong there and you can’t have oversize in
    the ac mix it would ruin the mat when you go to lay it out and roll it. This can also
    aid in blending the different sizes of aggregate prior to entering the drum.
    Drum Feed Conveyor
    If a scalping screen is used after the collecting conveyor then it must send the
    screened product to another conveyor leading to the drum.

    Asphalt Plant Burner


    A large burner with a substantial fan attached to it blows into one end of the drum
    to dry and heat the aggregate mix. Typically near the center of the drum the hot
    asphalt cement is injected into the drum to mix with the hot aggregate.

    Asphalt Plant Drum Mixer


    Aggregate from the drum conveyor is dumped into a large hollow cylinder known
    as the asphalt drum where it dries, mixes and is mixed with the bituminous asphalt
    cement. Any Recycled Asphalt Product (RAP) can also be added in measured
    quantities to the drum. There are paddles and agitators in the drum to insure that
    thorough mixing occurs before the conglomerate leaves the drum.

    Air Filtration Baghouse


    The heated air that is blown into the drum extracts large amounts of dust and sand
    from the heating aggregate mix and can't simply be exhausted into the
    atmosphere without being cleaned. This is the job of the baghouse. It is a large
    volume enclosure with lots of filter bags that remove and collect the fine particles
    coming out of the drum. These particles are commonly fed back into the drum
    near the asphalt cement input to become part of the mix. A wet venturi scrubber
    can also serve the function of a baghouse.

    Asphalt Plant Slat/Bucket Conveyor


    Once the completed asphalt hot mix product exits the drum it goes to a conveyor
    belt that is either implemented with slats or buckets. This highly-inclined device
    carries the HMA to one or more silos. Slats are the preferred implementation of
    this conveyor now.

    Hot Mix Storage Silos


    These silos are often heated so finished product can be stored there for a number
    of days. From here, it is dispensed into waiting trucks to be hauled to the job.

    Part 3 — Asphalt Plant Illustrations


    Asphalt Plant Illustrations

    Typical drum asphalt plant

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