Drive Through Domes

Why not combine the benefits of a storage silo with that of a load-out station? Hence the birth of the drive through dome. The drive through dome has the following benefits and components:

Drive-through Tunnel with Internal Surge-bin:

1. The product will be conveyed pneumatically in a pipeline at grade to the base of the dome.
2. We can provide a walk-in entry and vertical chase internally from grade to the apex. This chase provides support for the in-fill pipeline, access to the roof dust collector and is typically used to maintain the level controls for the storage facility.
3. The floor is covered with pneumatic extraction systems. As needed, these sections are momentarily activated to fluidize the ash into the collection channel or slot.

4. The central slot houses a pneumatic air gravity conveyor. In combination with the floor, literally all of the material in the dome can be withdrawn.
5. The slot structure discharges to an air lift conveyor, which discharges to the surge bin. There would be a sump pump in this, the lowest point of the system.
6. The surge bin holds enough material for 4 trucks. Much of the storage volume is live to the surge bin. The mechanical floor system is therefore activated less frequently than each truckload.

7. Trucks will approach the loading location. There will be a driver access platform where the truck driver opens the fill hatch on the vehicle. Similarly, there will be a second location for an exiting platform to close the vehicle fill hatch.
8. The above grade scale will be located under the fill point which is controlled with a card-scan identification system. The driver will control the fill hatch, and the amount of material transferred to the vehicle. A PLC will record the transaction, which can be electronically synchronized with your accounting system.
9. We can provide a building for the electrical room, mechanical room and control room of the terminal system over the truck scale.

10. Most drivers will set the lane productivity between 6 or 8 trucks an hour, despite the best planning of terminal designers. The equipment is sized for 200 tph refill rate, 350 tph fill rate from the surge bin.
11. The ends of the tunnel are open, but certainly automatic doors could be optioned, if they provided some local advantages.
12. All of the scale and loading system is well out of the effects of weather in this arrangement.
13. There is only the one dust collector on the dome for permitting purposes. Some states do require the loading DC to be permitted.

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