Asphalt plant
Encyclopedia
An asphalt plant is a plant used for the manufacture of asphalt
, macadam
and other forms of coated roadstone, sometimes collectively known as blacktop
.
The manufacture of coated roadstone demands the combination of a number of aggregate
s, sand
and a filler (such as stone dust), in the correct proportions, heated, and finally coated with a binder, usually bitumen based or, in some cases, tar
. The temperature of the finished product must be sufficient to be workable after transport to the final destination. A temperature in the range of 100 - 200 degrees Celsius is normal.
Increasingly, recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) is used as part of the mix. The binder used is flammable, and the heaters are large liquid or gas fired burners. RAP is introduced after the heating process and must be accounted for in the overall mix temperature calcualtions.
There are three main classes of plant: batch heater, semi-continuous (or "asphalt plant"), and continuous (or "drum mix"). The batch heater has the lowest throughput, the continuous plant the highest at up to around 500 Tonnes per hour.
Supply of roadstone for large contracts is generally by tender with considerable pressure on price. A faulty batch of roadstone must be planed up and relaid, often with additional lane rental charges, at a cost which may be orders of magnitude higher than the original price, so sophisticated control systems are a necessity.
of heating the aggregate
, in turn a significant part of the overall cost of operation. The water content of sand also varies considerably, especially when stored outdoors, being typically of the order of some tens of percent of the overall mass of wet sand. Since sand takes the form of small grains, with a high surface area per unit volume, and binder attaches to the surface of the aggregates, the amount of dry sand in the mix is particularly critical to the overall blend; the moisture content must be measured and the equivalent dry weight calculated.
Batch heater plant is used where short production runs are common (a different recipe can be used on each mix) or where total volume is low. Mobile batch heaters are available.
Changing mix is achieved by varying the feed rates of the aggregate, filler and binder feeders, with time delays so that the change of blend occurs at the same point in the coating drum. Sand tends to move more slowly through the heating drum, so the blend proportions will not necessarily change at the same point on the feed conveyor. It is common to divert a small amount of material to a waste chute when the transition point reaches the hot elevator.
Drum mix plants are not really suitable for short production runs; although with sophisticated controls the change of mix can be accurate to within some seconds, production rates of hundreds of tonnes per hour may equate to a tonne every ten seconds or so.
s. Control of loadout by this method involves accurately predicting the material "in flight" between the discharge door and the vehicle.
s to achieve this.
With asphalt being a real-time product, timing is important when it comes to delivering product amounts to job sites, etc. 2008 has provided plants with a level of control over equipment by utilizing GPS, RFID and other forms of tracking systems. Tracking provides information throughout the supply chain
to make sure that the right amount and type of product is delievered to the correct site in a timely manner and with better accuracy.
Asphalt
Asphalt or , also known as bitumen, is a sticky, black and highly viscous liquid or semi-solid that is present in most crude petroleums and in some natural deposits, it is a substance classed as a pitch...
, macadam
Macadam
Macadam is a type of road construction pioneered by the Scotsman John Loudon McAdam in around 1820. The method simplified what had been considered state-of-the-art at that point...
and other forms of coated roadstone, sometimes collectively known as blacktop
Blacktop
Blacktop may refer to:* asphalt concrete, a composite material commonly used for construction of pavement, highways and parking lots* bituminous macadams* tarmac...
.
The manufacture of coated roadstone demands the combination of a number of aggregate
Construction Aggregate
Construction aggregate, or simply "aggregate", is a broad category of coarse particulate material used in construction, including sand, gravel, crushed stone, slag, recycled concrete and geosynthetic aggregates. Aggregates are the most mined material in the world...
s, sand
Sand
Sand is a naturally occurring granular material composed of finely divided rock and mineral particles.The composition of sand is highly variable, depending on the local rock sources and conditions, but the most common constituent of sand in inland continental settings and non-tropical coastal...
and a filler (such as stone dust), in the correct proportions, heated, and finally coated with a binder, usually bitumen based or, in some cases, tar
Tar
Tar is modified pitch produced primarily from the wood and roots of pine by destructive distillation under pyrolysis. Production and trade in tar was a major contributor in the economies of Northern Europe and Colonial America. Its main use was in preserving wooden vessels against rot. The largest...
. The temperature of the finished product must be sufficient to be workable after transport to the final destination. A temperature in the range of 100 - 200 degrees Celsius is normal.
Increasingly, recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) is used as part of the mix. The binder used is flammable, and the heaters are large liquid or gas fired burners. RAP is introduced after the heating process and must be accounted for in the overall mix temperature calcualtions.
There are three main classes of plant: batch heater, semi-continuous (or "asphalt plant"), and continuous (or "drum mix"). The batch heater has the lowest throughput, the continuous plant the highest at up to around 500 Tonnes per hour.
Supply of roadstone for large contracts is generally by tender with considerable pressure on price. A faulty batch of roadstone must be planed up and relaid, often with additional lane rental charges, at a cost which may be orders of magnitude higher than the original price, so sophisticated control systems are a necessity.
Sand
One key ingredient of most roadstones is sand. Sand generally has a high water content. Boiling off this water is a large part of the energy costLatent heat
Latent heat is the heat released or absorbed by a chemical substance or a thermodynamic system during a process that occurs without a change in temperature. A typical example is a change of state of matter, meaning a phase transition such as the melting of ice or the boiling of water. The term was...
of heating the aggregate
Construction Aggregate
Construction aggregate, or simply "aggregate", is a broad category of coarse particulate material used in construction, including sand, gravel, crushed stone, slag, recycled concrete and geosynthetic aggregates. Aggregates are the most mined material in the world...
, in turn a significant part of the overall cost of operation. The water content of sand also varies considerably, especially when stored outdoors, being typically of the order of some tens of percent of the overall mass of wet sand. Since sand takes the form of small grains, with a high surface area per unit volume, and binder attaches to the surface of the aggregates, the amount of dry sand in the mix is particularly critical to the overall blend; the moisture content must be measured and the equivalent dry weight calculated.
Binder
Binder comes in different grades known as "penetration" or "pen" grades, with values varying between around 30 and 300. The pen value is an expression of the depth to which a standard needle will penetrate the surface of the binder at a specified temperature (the higher the value, the softer the binder). This has an effect on the workability of hot asphalt and the stiffness of the asphalt when cooled. Lower pen values give harder wearing. Asphalt wearing courses are typically 35-50 pen, base courses will be higher, typically 200 or 300 pen. The coating plant may combine binder of different grades to achieve a grade between those held on site.Filler
Filler, as the name implies, fills the voids between aggregate grains and improves the wearing capabilities of the overall mix. It is stored and fed dry into the mix, during or after addition of binder. A common source of filler is fines from the heating process recovered by bag filters or wet filtration ponds from the exhaust of the heating drum.Batch heater
A batch heater plant weighs the raw aggregates into a heater drum, where the batch is then heated up to temperature. The hot aggregate is discharged into a mixing drum where (dry) filler and binder are added. The blend is mixed and discharged either directly into the delivery vehicles or into a small weighing and collecting hopper. To increase throughput, the heater can be heating the next batch while the previous is being mixed. Capacity is usually of the order of tens of tonnes per hour.Batch heater plant is used where short production runs are common (a different recipe can be used on each mix) or where total volume is low. Mobile batch heaters are available.
Continuous
In the continuous plant, raw aggregate is brought up from ground hoppers at a precisely controlled rate and fed into a heater drum similar to that used in the asphalt plant. Once heated it is immediately coated in the same drum (with the binder spraybars situated behind the burner) or in a smaller drum situated immediately behind it. Finished product is almost invariably discharged into a hot store rather than directly into delivery vehicles.Changing mix is achieved by varying the feed rates of the aggregate, filler and binder feeders, with time delays so that the change of blend occurs at the same point in the coating drum. Sand tends to move more slowly through the heating drum, so the blend proportions will not necessarily change at the same point on the feed conveyor. It is common to divert a small amount of material to a waste chute when the transition point reaches the hot elevator.
Drum mix plants are not really suitable for short production runs; although with sophisticated controls the change of mix can be accurate to within some seconds, production rates of hundreds of tonnes per hour may equate to a tonne every ten seconds or so.
Hot storage
Finished roadstone must be kept heated to avoid setting. It is commonly stored in large electrically heated insulated stainless steel silos, from which it is weighed into delivery vehicles. This may be achieved by intermediate weigh hoppers (which may shuttle between hoppers) or by mounting the hoppers directly on load cellLoad cell
A load cell is a transducer that is used to convert a force into electrical signal. This conversion is indirect and happens in two stages. Through a mechanical arrangement, the force being sensed deforms a strain gauge. The strain gauge measures the deformation as an electrical signal, because the...
s. Control of loadout by this method involves accurately predicting the material "in flight" between the discharge door and the vehicle.
Control
Precise control is a necessity. Asphalt mixing and loadout plant typically use a combination of industrialised computer control and programmable logic controllerProgrammable logic controller
A programmable logic controller or programmable controller is a digital computer used for automation of electromechanical processes, such as control of machinery on factory assembly lines, amusement rides, or light fixtures. PLCs are used in many industries and machines...
s to achieve this.
With asphalt being a real-time product, timing is important when it comes to delivering product amounts to job sites, etc. 2008 has provided plants with a level of control over equipment by utilizing GPS, RFID and other forms of tracking systems. Tracking provides information throughout the supply chain
Supply chain
A supply chain is a system of organizations, people, technology, activities, information and resources involved in moving a product or service from supplier to customer. Supply chain activities transform natural resources, raw materials and components into a finished product that is delivered to...
to make sure that the right amount and type of product is delievered to the correct site in a timely manner and with better accuracy.