Water management, recycling and filtration is a vital part of producing high quality aggregates products. Guy Woodford reports on what’s new in this area.
It has been a busy year for Italian washing, crushing and screening plant manufacturer
The growing demand for washed aggregates requires the shrewd management of water and reclamation of silts. Baioni is well-equipped to cater for this with its latest generation thickeners, polyelectrolyte dosing systems, horizontal spiral decanting centrifuges and Pod systems.
Thanks to the opening of a branch office near Cuba’s capital, Havana, in April 2016, Baioni has this year successfully delivered to the Caribbean island a fourth aggregate washing plant for the treatment and recovery of sand. The plant features a BaiWash system and a GRF hydrocyclone fines recovery unit that eliminates undesirable elements through washing clays and fine harmful particles smaller than 63µm. The plant also creates different grades and sizes of sand particles, allowing for more bespoke final products.
For the production on demand of high-performance concrete sand from crushed sand, Baioni’s BaiWash system includes thickeners able to offer efficient primary stage water treatment. The system’s steel tank is demountable from a trailer, allowing for easy transport. BaiWash comes with six rakes supplied as standard, along with a dynamic hydraulic bridge and full walkway access, for when judging water level is particularly crucial. The rakes can be rotated along the floor of the BaiWash discharge cone tank. This generates a high quality sludge while avoiding any clogging.
The BaiWash system is easily managed via its computer software. Through it you can control the flocculants dosing device, the evacuation of solids and all other services. BaiWash can be remotely controlled via the internet or another network. The complete system is also easier to move, as its modular-bolted sections ensure reduced installation time when the tank has to be moved from site.
Since the introduction of the centrifuge to the aggregates industry almost a decade ago, it has proved the most versatile piece of equipment for reclaiming solids from aggregate washing plant water. It has also been invaluable in its supply of recycled water for immediate use within the washing process.
Baioni set out to design a new generation of centrifuge especially for the aggregates industry, complete with new high performance scrolls which are, the company says, capable of producing up to 20% more than the average centrifuge. They also come with low maintenance and installation cost and lower capital outlay.
A Baioni BaiPod (plug and go) skid-mounted centrifuge unit delivered in May 2017 to a UK quarry customer is a complete up to 20tonnes/hour system that can be set up on site within a few hours. The model is a simple intuitive arrangement of centrifuge, flocculation and feed. As such, it is available on long-term rental conditions, with no capital expenditure for customers. The skid-mounted and compact sludge dewatering plant’s easy transportability is a key advantage for customers. All BaiPod plant come as complete units with flocculent system, touchscreen control panel, auger discharge and feed pump.
The heart of the BaiPod range is represented by the BaiDec 65Lv high performance centrifuge decanter. The plant, which come on an ergonomic 40 inch container, feature all necessary ancillaries. These include a polymer preparation station, control panel with PLC logic, allowing for completely automated operation, a feed pump, a polymer dosing pump, a flow meter and a screw conveyor.
A land restoration business has called in the expertise of Aggregate Processing Solutions (APS) to support its rapid growth.
David Einig Contracting, which has its headquarters in Thame, Oxfordshire, has invested in a new CDE inert waste washing plant to meet the exact needs of the business.
The washing plant – based at the company’s recycling site in Witney, Oxon – has been purpose-built through APS, which is part of the Finlay Group of companies.
Comprising specific standard modular relocatable units for one specific solution, it features an AggMax 250, an M2500 dry screen, as well as an EvoWash 152 and a GEA CF 8000 centrifuge.
Other elements include an A400 AquaCycle, a 100A AquaStore water tank and a 100m³ buffer tank.
The washing plant is being fed by a new and specially adapted Terex Finlay 883+ - also supplied by Finlay Group - and is processing inert material.
The system incorporates a very efficient water management system that recycles a huge percentage of water in closed circuit and only uses a minimal top-up to compensate for moisture leaving the system within the materials that are produced – this is sourced from an on-site borehole.
After the recovery of sands and aggregates, the centrifuge finally recovers any suspended solids in the effluent overflow, cleans the water and recycles the material found within it.
At a rate of 130 tonnes per hour, the plant is scalping off +80mm, washing and recovering 80-40mm, 40-20mm, 20-10mm and 10-4mm, as well as a soft and sharp sand.
The oversize is fed into the company’s new Tesab RK623CT - also supplied by Finlay Group - to produce Type 1 sub base.
David Einig, managing director of David Einig Contracting, said: “I’m really pleased with the new set-up.
“Material goes to the market as soon as it’s processed, so it’s really important that we have plant that we can trust.”
David Einig Contracting provides plant hire, agricultural contracting and land restoration services to English counties Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Berkshire.
The plant is the latest machinery supplied by Finlay Group to David Einig Contracting in the last 12 months. They include a Terex Finlay 674, two Trackstack 80ft conveyors and an additional Terex Finlay 883+.
John Dunne, managing director of APS – who has specified all of these machines for David Einig Contracting – said: “It’s great to see our plant supporting the expansion of the business.
“As licensed partners to CDE, APS has input on the design, manufacture and delivery of all of the components.
“This ensures that the water treatment works in unison with the washing plant, something you don’t often see with other systems. We’re a one-stop shop.”
McCloskey Washing Systems and Max Innovate will be staging their first UK open day on 25-26 October at Crown Aggregates Ltd, in Nuneaton, central England.
The event will include the official launch of MWS’s AggStorm 150 plant, which will be showcased working with a SandStorm 516 as a combined washing solution.
Ideal for the aggregates and mining sector customers, The AggStorm 150 is a modular-designed plant for removing harsh, clay-bound material from natural and crushed gravel, stone and ore feed that cannot be removed by rinsing or screening alone.
The AggStorm 150 produces cleaner material at a faster rate. It consists of a trough and two spiral axles running in sync with exchangeable blades which intensively mix the feed material creating ‘stone on stone’ attention. The exchangeable blades come in various options including AR500 and cast manganese.
The SandStorm 516 is said by MWS to offer outstanding performance and delivers up to three and two high quality aggregate and sand products respectively. Its novel features deliver impressive results with minimal maintenance and site work required.
Built with power and durability in mind, the SandStorm 516’s design is original and modern. Customers can fit the model with a 16 x 5 inch or a 20 x 6 inch washing screen.
