The quarry was experiencing restricted flow at the
truck dump hopper that feeds the primary jaw crusher
An aggregate plant that produces crushed rock was experiencing material blockage at their truck dump hopper that feeds the primary jaw crusher that makes the first pass at reducing rock from the quarry. The ground mined at the site is made up of thick clay, causing the material to quickly build up and reduce the capacity of the 200-ton truck dump hopper. The quarry runs three 40-ton trucks back and forth to the dump hopper. Due to the buildup, they needed to operate a track hoe once an hour to clear the hopper. This was equivalent to losing ten truckloads of material per day.
Martin Engineering suggested using the power of compressed air to prevent material buildup
The quarry contacted Martin Engineering in hopes to find a solution to improve material flow through the dump hopper. To clear obstructions, Martin Engineering recommended installing Martin® Air Cannons to provide timely and powerful bursts of air.
Due to the large amount of material build-up, the plant needed to fire the air cannons simultaneously. With Martin Engineering's positive-acting valve design, they were able to achieve the desired blasting sequence.
With the air cannons in place, they no longer need to manually clean out the hopper
A dedicated air compressor was installed along with three air cannons placed on the sides of the dump hopper. The control tower operates the cannons every three to four dumps. The plant no longer needs to clear the hopper with a track hoe and has regained design capacity, increasing production and reducing idle time.
Air cannons provide timely, powerful, and reliable bursts of compressed air to resolve restricted material flow.
