The aggregate injury is huge, with thousands of companies producing billions of tons of aggregates. Extracting aggregates from the earth and turning them into a useful form depends on many types of equipment.
At Power Screening, we offer premier aggregate equipment to help you get the job done. This includes all the major types of aggregate equipment that the industry depends on, including crushers, screeners, conveyors, washers, and loaders. Understanding what these machines do can help you find the right ones for your operation.
Crushers
Part of the power of aggregates comes in their uniform sizes, which can help guarantee the desired properties for the application. Crushers help make properly sized aggregates by crushing large pieces into smaller ones. These smaller aggregates are then screened to ensure proper sizing before delivery for sale or use.
Crushers come in three common forms:
- Impact crushers: These crushers break down materials by hitting them with fast-moving structures. Impact crushers might use blow bars, hammers, or other types of impactors to break down large rocks into smaller pieces suitable for the application.
- Cone crushers: Cone crushers break aggregates between a cone-shaped mantle and a chamber or bowl, called the concave. The cone moves irregularly in the concave, thanks to the motion of an eccentric gear. This creates space for material to fall into, which then gets crushed when the cone moves back over, constricting the space.
- Jaw crushers: These crushers have large jaws with highly durable teeth that crush material by closing on them. There is typically a fixed jaw, and a movable jaw, much like the way the human jaw works.
All three types of crushers are effective when used properly. However, finding the right type of crusher for your application might require talking to an expert in detail about the benefits and limitations of each type.
Screens
Screening works by passing material over a series of SCREEN DECKS with holes in them. The size of the hole determines the size of the aggregate allowed to fall through. For example, a screen with two-inch holes ensures that everything falling through has a diameter of two inches or less (in at least two dimensions).
A succession of screens separates down to smaller and smaller aggregates. High-quality screeners can generate multiple types of aggregate at once, sometimes four or more products at the same time, depending on the type of screener.
Deciding on the right screener for your application depends on understanding the benefits and limitations of specific models. Some screeners can handle wet materials, but others can’t. Others are small and can operate in confined space. Some are more easily adjustable than others. The best way to find the right screener for your application is to talk to an expert about the specific materials you are working with and the outputs you hope to achieve. They will steer you to the make and model that’s best suited for you.
Conveyors and Feeders
Conveyors and feeders transport materials and deliver them to the other aggregate machines.
Conveyors are typically belt-type and are used to move aggregate material from one part of the process to another part. For example, a conveyor might take the output from a crusher and deliver it to a screener. Conveyors can improve the efficiency of an aggregate operation and help negotiate terrain and spacing challenges.
Feeders deliver aggregate material to different machines. Conveyors are often considered a type of feeder, but there are others, too, such as pan feeders, which can ensure a steady flow of material into a crusher or screen despite irregular loading.
Washers
Washers clean aggregates, removing smaller particles and dust that can affect the functional properties of the aggregate. Washing can be used as a screening function with the addition of water improving the product separation in some situations. This means that as the machine is washing sand and grit off a stone, it is also collecting the sand and grit to deliver it as separate aggregates.
Although some operations use large, centralized wash plants, portable and modular wash plants let aggregate operations produce more finished products on-site. The washers can deliver separate aggregate directly to truck beds for delivery to customers without ever having the aggregate go to a central plant.
Loaders and Earthmovers
As with many operations, the aggregate industry relies heavily on loaders and earthmovers. These machines can take quarried stone or sand and deliver it to conveyors and feeders. Some machines can effectively break rock and dig out sand.
These machines also manipulate the finished aggregate, either delivering to a truck, helping to unload it from a truck, or manipulating it at a construction site.
Finding the right earthmovers can be challenging. It depends on knowing the functional limits of the specific machine as well as the dimensions of the other equipment you’re using. It’s also important to know the nature of the site where you will be working to determine whether you’ll benefit from a crawler or wheeled machine.
Power Screening Can Supply All Your Aggregate Equipment Needs
Since 1984, Power Screening, LLC has been a leading heavy equipment dealer. We not only offer all the types of aggregate equipment listed here, but we also have dozens of options for each type. We offer equipment for rent or sale, including used equipment for sale. In addition, we sell parts and can service these types of aggregate equipment.
In addition, we have experts on-staff with decades of experience in the aggregate equipment industry. We can help you understand the benefits and limitations of each piece of equipment we provide so that you can find the perfect equipment for your operation.
Whether you are looking to buy, rent, or service aggregate equipment, choose Power Screening. We have locations in Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah, and we provide aggregate equipment across the entire Rocky Mountain region, including Wyoming, Idaho, Nebraska, and Kansas.
Contact Power Screening today to get a quote on any type of aggregate equipment.