Heyl & Patterson Blog

Bitterly cold temperatures keep people indoors, but it's largely business as usual for the unloading of bulk materials.  Even in the extreme cold, the work still needs to be done.  As temperatures drop, materials such as coal, coke, lignite, iron ore and wood chips tend to clump together as the water moisture they contain turns to ice.  In the case of coal, a load can freeze nearly solid if the haul is more than one day away from its receiving station.

Bulk cargo is a commodity that is transported unpackaged in large quantities.  The main purpose of bulk material handling systems is to transfer the material as quickly and cleanly as possible as it is moved from one place to another.  Loading and transporting are just two stages in the process of transferring bulk materials from the producer to the consumer.  When transporting by rail, they must be unloaded from railroad cars, which is usually done with rotary dumpers or turnover dumpers, which discharge loads parallel to the rails.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  Pittsburgh, PA - Heyl & Patterson Inc., a world leader in thermal processing systems and bulk material handling, announced that it has joined the Pennsylvania Mining Export Program (PAMEX), an initiative that provides assistance to Pennsylvania-based companies to successfully penetrate the Southern African market.

A few months ago, the Heyl & Patterson blog tackled the competition of the Continuous Barge Unloader vs. the Grab Bucket Unloader, to see which machine was the best for unloading river barges.  A grab bucket is a simple enough machine: a clamshell bucket is lowered onto a barge, takes a bite of bulk materials and ascends to deposit its contents into a receiving hopper.  However, the Continuous Barge Unloader is far more complex.  This article will examine this machine more closely to see what makes it tick.

Coal became the preferred fuel for powering American cities in the 19th century, replacing wood around 1850.  Anthracite from the coal regions of Pennsylvania and West Virginia was perfect for household uses because it had high quality with few impurities, and stoves and furnaces were designed for it.  The rich Appalachian anthracite fields were close to the big eastern cities and a few major rail lines such as Reading Railroad.

The first appearance of the Continuous Barge Unloader, or CBU, in the United States was in steel mill applications.  Although primarily used for iron ore offloading, the machines also saw early use as coal and coke unloaders.  Different styles of CBUs were applied to specific projects as determined by water level fluctuations, barge size and needed discharge capacities.  The CBU offered numerous advantages over the traditionally employed clamshell or grab bucket style barge unloader.

The approval of new regulations from the Environmental Protection Agency regarding air pollution, water pollution and waste disposal could result in the retirement of 35-70 gigawatts of coal-fired power generation nationwide.  Electricity rates will most certainly rise, and many believe that even if construction jobs are created in the green industry, virtually no manufacturing jobs are likely to be created from the replacement of coal.  Transmission grid stability will emerge as a major issue, both because of power plant shutdowns and the intermittency of renewables.

Coal is handled and stored several times during its journey between the mine and the eventual consumer.  About 2.5 million tons of coal are burned in U.S. power plants each day.  This is equivalent to roughly 21,000 railcars in transit, so coordinating production and consumption is no easy task. Accidents, rail strikes, severe weather and disasters that take out bridges and rail lines can all disrupt deliveries for utility customers who are dependent on a reliable coal supply for their power plants.

Mining is one of Australia's most important industries, creating significant employment and greatly contributing to the Australian economy.  It's also a vital source of export revenue.  Australia is the world's leading exporter of coal and iron ore, and is among the leaders in nickel, zinc, aluminum, gold and uranium.  Minerals make up about 35% of Australia's total exports.