EP1883514A2

EP1883514A2 - Concrete production plant

Info

Publication number: EP1883514A2
Application number: EP06764685A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Henri Contamin
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-05-27
Filing date: 2006-05-24
Publication date: 2008-02-06
Also published as: FR2886198A1; CA2608967C; WO2006125920A3; WO2006125920A2; US20090135665A1; FR2886198B1; US8562202B2; CA2608967A1

Abstract

The invention concerns a concrete production plant (2), characterized in that it comprises: silo-type storage means (3), including at least one compartment for receiving aggregate, cement and one or more optional additives; means for filling (6) the at least one compartment (4, 5) of the silo; means for receiving (7) the mixture from the supplying means (8) consisting in particular of a dump truck, and feeding the filling means (6); means for drawing (9) the mixture contained in the silo (3); and means for mixing (10) the mixture with water to prepare the concrete, the means for drawing (9) the mixture being distributed over the section of the at least one compartment (4, 5).

Description

Concrete preparation plant

The present invention relates to a device as well as a method for preparing concrete. Concrete is usually made from the following components:

aggregates, comprising sand and gravel, whose particle sizes vary according to the desired qualities of the concrete,

- cement,

one or more optional adjuvants, water.

In order to achieve the preparation of the concrete, it is known to use a preparation plant installed on the site of the site where the concrete is intended to be used.

This plant includes: - Sand and gravel storage, associated with a sampling radius of the aggregates of each storage,

at least one cement storage silo,

- Possibly another silo intended to receive fly ash or filler to add to the mixture, - possibly another storage of liquid adjuvant.

At the time of use, the concrete is prepared by mixing the components with water.

It is imperative to measure and record daily the moisture content of the sand in order to deduce the water incorporated in the concrete, to maintain the Water / Cement ratio below a determined value, for example 0.60 for a cement type C25 / 30.

This limit is imposed in a regulatory way to control the plasticity of the concrete.

The mixing is carried out on the site of the plant, it is necessary to control and record many parameters relating to this mixture, as well as the amount of water and the power consumption of the mixer using an advanced automaton also providing time data relating to the mixing time.

The control of such a plant must be carried out by qualified personnel, as required by the regulations. This type of installation also generates a very large footprint due to the presence of storage. On the other hand, these storages must be protected from humidity, which complicates their maintenance.

According to another known method, the concrete is prepared in a power plant remote site site, and brought to the site of the site by trucks called trucks "tops".

This second solution imposes significant logistical constraints, because the period of use of the concrete included in the router is limited, and the organization of work on the site is conditioned by the arrival of trucks.

The present invention aims to allow the preparation of concrete on the site site, on demand, and limiting the space occupied by the preparation center.

For this purpose, the present invention relates to a concrete preparation plant, characterized in that it comprises:

silo-type storage means, comprising at least one compartment intended to receive a mixture of aggregate, cement and one or more optional adjuvants,

filling means of at least one compartment of the silo,

means for receiving the mixture from a supply means, in particular constituted by a dump truck, and supplying the filling means,

means for sampling the mixture contained in the silo; and means for mixing the mixture with water in order to prepare the concrete, the means for taking the mixture being arranged in a distributed manner on the section of the minus one compartment.

These provisions make it possible to limit the clutter by the presence of a single silo, without piles of aggregates. This device does not require the intervention of a qualified operator on site because mixing is already done.

In addition, the object of the present invention is also to limit the phenomena of segregation of the aggregates. The phenomenon of segregation is a phenomenon of migration, in a mixture of aggregates, of larger aggregates towards the outskirts of the silo. This migration is due to the formation of a cone during filling from the top and an inverted cone when the mixture is taken downwards.

The large aggregates are thus dragged onto the periphery of the silo and will therefore be removed last. When sampling the end of the silo, the percentage of large aggregates, that is to say gravel, increases considerably and thus creates what is called segregation, so a non-homogeneous mixture compared to the beginning of the silo.

The provisions of the present invention make it possible to avoid this phenomenon, inherent in the use of a mixture, by a sampling adapted over the entire section of the silo.

Advantageously, the filling means perform filling in a distributed manner on the section of the silo.

These provisions also make it possible to limit the phenomenon of segregation.

According to one embodiment, the filling means comprise a lifting chain and a rotating element provided at its end with a twist.

Advantageously, the silo comprises at least two compartments intended respectively to receive a mixture of a first and a second type.

According to one possibility, the means for sampling the mixture contained in the silo, comprise a set of openings distributed at the bottom wall of at least one compartment on the section thereof, especially at the bottom of conical cells.

According to another possibility, the sampling means comprise a set of openings arranged on the sides of a compartment at several different heights on one or more faces, with closure means controlled by level according to the height of the mixture at the inside the compartment.

According to yet another possibility, the sampling means comprise a worm.

Advantageously, the worm is protected on its upper part by a perforated shutter sheet. The present invention also relates to a method for preparing concrete, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: - dry aggregates of the sand and gravel type,

- mixing the dried aggregates with cement and at least one optional adjuvant,

- filling at least one compartment of a silo with the mixture by distributing the mixture on the section of the silo,

- take the mixture in the silo distributing the sample from the mixture on the section of the silo compartment,

- Mix the mixture with water for the preparation of the concrete. According to one possibility, the drying of the aggregates is carried out by trickling to obtain a first type of mixture, the water content of which is between 0.5 and 2%.

According to another possibility, the drying of the aggregates is carried out by heating to obtain a second type of mixture, the water content of which is less than 0.5%. Advantageously, two compartments of the silo are filled with mixtures of the first and second types, the mixing of the mixture of the first and second type with water being carried out alternately.

In any case, the invention will be better understood with the aid of the description which follows, with reference to the appended schematic drawing, representing by way of nonlimiting examples, several embodiments of a device according to the invention.

Figure 1 is a schematic side view of a construction plant according to a first embodiment.

Figure 2 is a schematic sectional view of a compartment of a silo of the plant of Figure 1 illustrating the filling thereof.

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view of the silo of the plant of Figure 1, according to an alternative embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of the receiving hopper of the FIG. 1 plant. FIG. 5 is a diagrammatic cross-sectional view of a compartment of the silo and sampling means according to a second embodiment. .

Figure 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a silo compartment and sampling means according to a third embodiment. FIG. 7 is a schematic cross-sectional view along a plane perpendicular to the plane of FIG. 6.

The mixture used in the device according to the invention comprises:

- cement,

one or more optional adjuvants,

In order to achieve this mixing of the concrete components, it is necessary, depending on the climatic conditions and the type of gravel used, to dry the aggregates that can be wet and cause the mixture to be taken on a site where the mixture is prepared.

For this purpose, the aggregates can be dried simply by gravity, or by heating in a drying drum, for example with a feed screw to convey the gravel. In the case of the drying of the aggregates by gravity, it is necessary initially to store the aggregates in order to eliminate as much as possible the humidity contained in the sands and gravels. By leaving a pile of aggregates free of moisture, the moisture dripping, the pile dries up.

It is also possible to obtain the same result of using centrifugal force instead of gravity.

In the case of drying the aggregates by heating in a drying drum, for example of the type used for road mixes, aggregates being free of moisture are obtained. This drying mode generates an additional cost and an increase in the temperature of the aggregates which can affect the setting of the concrete in hot weather, when the outside temperature is greater than 15 ^° C.

Accordingly, an additional step may be provided, during which the aggregates are stored on the ground while being vented to cool their temperature. The two types of drying described above thus make it possible to obtain two types of aggregates:

- Aggregates of the first type dried by gravity or centrifugal force, without heating with a water content of between 1 and 1.5%. - Heated second type aggregates, to form a substantially dry mixture. The aggregates of the first type, form with cement and possible adjuvants a mixture to be used within a period of the order of one day, to avoid setting.

Aggregates of the second type make it possible to form a mixture that can be stored for several days in silos on site.

The first type of mixture made from aggregate of the first type can represent up to 90% of the quantities used per day on a construction site, the second type mixture made from aggregate of the second type constituting the complement. It is thus possible to envisage a daily supply of mixing of the first type, intended to be consumed in full during the day, and an occasional supply of mixing of the second type to make the extra and adapt the production of concrete.

For example, if a yard consumes a given day 55 m3 of concrete, 50m3 of this concrete are prepared with a mixture of the first type and 5m3 complementary will be produced last with a mixture of the second type.

The mixing proportions of the first and second types may also vary depending on the temperature. Indeed, for an outside temperature lower than 5 ⁰ C, raising the temperature of a mixture of the second type during drying is favorable to a faster setting and an increase in the rise in resistance to young age facilitating the stripping at 12 o'clock.

The mixing proportions of the first and second types may also vary depending on the economic conditions. Indeed, for a temperature above 15 ° C, it may be necessary to add an adjuvant delaying the setting of the presence of residual water to the mixture of the first type.

When the cost price of this operation is greater than the cost of drying, the mixing percentage of the first type is decreased, or even eliminated, only the mixture of the second type being used.

Both types of mixtures described above can be made in a dry mix plant.

The method used allows transport by dump trucks, and does not require truck-type truck "spinning top". These dump trucks will of course have to be sheeted to protect their load from the rain. To eliminate any residual moisture in the bucket, it can be envisaged a hot air blowing before loading. On the site of the building site, a preparation station 2 according to the invention is provided which comprises:

- A silo 3 for receiving the mixture, this silo comprising two compartments 4, 5, separated by a strong line in Figure 3, respectively for receiving a mixture of the first or second type. - Filling means 6 compartments 4, 5 of the silo.

a hopper 7 for receiving the mixture poured from a dump truck 8 and feeding the filling means 6,

means for sampling the mixture 9 contained in the silo,

means for mixing the dry mixture with water. . For exemple :

- The dimensions of the horizontal section of the silo 3 may be 3.5m by 2.5m or 3m, or a surface of the order of 8 to 10m2 on the ground. A width of 2.5m or 3m wide determines the transport of the road gauge or the first class exceptional convoy, and - the total height of the silo can be from 12 to 15m, identical to the height of the power plants of the prior art , comprising feet 12 with a height of 3m and the compartments 4, 5 located above the feet 12.

The concrete stock thus contained is therefore of the order of 60 to 80m3. The filling means 6 comprise a bucket elevator chain 13 disposed along the silo 3, extending substantially from the ground to the top of the compartments 4, 5, and a rotating element provided at its end with a swirler 14, at level of the upper end of the chain, constituting a means of homogenization of the mixture, in order to avoid the phenomenon of segregation. Each compartment 4, 5 is thus recharged from above, in a homogeneous manner, in layers C 1, C 2, C 3 substantially successive planes, without forming a marked cone.

On the upper part of the silo 3, it is possible to add a dust filter not shown activated during filling. In order to reduce the space requirement on the construction site, the noise pollution and the dust emission, it is possible, according to a variant shown in FIG. 3, to fit the lift chain 13 into the cowling of the silo 3.

According to another variant, to facilitate transportation, the legs 12 are removable and the bucket chain 13 can be folded entirely into the fairing of the silo 3.

The receiving hopper 7 of the mixture discharged from a dump truck 8 and feeding the filling means 6, is advantageously of a height less than 1 m to facilitate the unloading trucks. The width of the trucks being generally 2.5m, the receiving hopper may for example be 3.5 m wide and include means for refocusing the mixture 16 to a port 17 loading the chain lift.

The recentering means 16 of the mixture may consist, for example, of a worm with a reverse pitch, as shown in FIG. 4.

In order to facilitate the transfer of the truck 8 to the receiving hopper 7, the height of the hopper can be increased by raising the truck by an access ramp. During unloading transferring the mixture of the truck into the hopper 7, a not shown cover system of the receiving hopper 7 will ensure the out of water thereof.

According to a first embodiment, the means for sampling the mixture 9 contained in the silo 3 comprise a set of openings 18 distributed at the level of the bottom wall 19 of a compartment 4, 5 on the section thereof, at the bottom of conical cells.

This arrangement makes it possible to take in the lower part of the compartment 4, 5 small doses at distributed points of the compartment section 4, 5, consecutively and repetitively successively on each of the sampling openings 18 in order to regularly lower the level of the mixed.

Thus, no mixing cone is formed as in the hoppers of the prior art, which makes it possible to avoid segregation phenomena. The means for mixing the dry mixture with water comprise a weigh hopper 20 making it possible to recover the dry mixture. extracted from a compartment 4, 5 of the silo 3 by the sampling means 9, the hopper being located under the openings 18.

The weighing means 22 associated with the hopper 20 may be of limited precision, since the weight indication serves only to determine the amount of water to be added to the mixture to obtain concrete, depending on the desired plasticity. .

This amount of water will depend on the residual moisture in the mixture, which is:

- substantially zero in the case of a mixture of the second type, and - of the order of 1 to 1, 5% in the case of a mixture of the first type.

The kneading means 10 also comprise a kneader 23 connected to the outlet of the weigh hopper 20, into which the quantity-weighed mixture is introduced, with water coming from a water inlet 24 associated with control means. 25, taking into account data from the weighing means 22.

The mixer 23 may be, according to variants, a concrete mixer, a horizontal shaft mixer, vertical shaft, with a worm gear or two horizontal shafts.

The proper amount of water will give the desired plasticity and match the defined formula.

According to a second embodiment, shown in FIG. 5, the sampling means 26 comprise a set of material-making openings on the sides of the compartment 4, 5 at several different heights on one or more faces, with means of shutter controlled by level according to the height of the mixture inside the silo 3.

According to a third embodiment, shown in FIG. 6, sampling means 28 comprise an endless screw 29, advantageously protected on its upper part by a perforated closure plate 30 in order to limit the load on the screw and thus to create three or four points of supply of this screw through the openings 32 of the sheet.

As is self-evident, the invention is not limited to the preferred embodiments described above, by way of non-limiting examples; on the contrary, it embraces all variants.

Claims

1. Central (2) for preparing concrete, characterized in that it comprises: - storage means (3) of the silo type, comprising at least one compartment (4, 5) for receiving a mixture of aggregate, of cement and one or more adjuvants,

filling means (6) for the at least one compartment (4, 5) of the silo (3); means for receiving (7) the mixture coming from a supply means (8), in particular constituted by by a dump truck, and feeding the filling means (6),

- Sampling means (9) of the mixture contained in the silo (3), and - Mixing means (10) of the mixture with water to prepare the concrete, the means for taking (9) the mixture being arranged distributed over the section of the at least one compartment (4, 5).

2. Plant according to claim 1, characterized in that the filling means (13, 14) perform filling distributed on the section of the silo (3).

3. Plant according to claim 2, characterized in that the filling means comprise a lifting chain (13) and a rotating element provided at its end with a swirler (14).

4. Plant according to claim 1, characterized in that the silo comprises at least two compartments (4, 5) for respectively receiving a mixture of a first and a second type.

5. Plant according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the means for taking the mixture (9) contained in the silo (3), comprise a set of openings (18) distributed at the bottom wall (19) at least one compartment (4, 5) on the section thereof, especially at the bottom of conical cells.

6. Plant according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the sampling means (26) comprise a set of openings arranged on the sides of a compartment (4, 5) at several different heights on one or more faces, with shutter means controlled by level according to the height of the mixture inside the compartment (4, 5).

7. Plant according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the sampling means (28) comprise a worm (29).

8. Plant according to claim 7, characterized in that the worm (29) is protected on its upper part by a blanking plate (30) perforated.

9. A method for preparing concrete, characterized in that it comprises the steps of: - drying aggregates of the sand and gravel type,

- mixing the dried aggregates with cement and at least one optional adjuvant,

- fill at least one compartment of a silo (3) with the mixture by distributing the mixture over the section of the silo, - take the mixture from the silo distributing the sample of the mixture to the section of the compartment of the silo (3),

- Mix the mixture with water for the preparation of the concrete.

10. The method of claim 9, characterized in that the drying of the aggregates is carried out by runoff to obtain a first type of mixture, whose water content is between 0.5 and 2%.

11. Process according to Claim 9, characterized in that the aggregates are dried by heating to obtain a second type of mixture, the water content of which is less than 0.5%.

12. Method according to one of claims 10 and 11, characterized in that two compartments (4, 5) of the silo (3) are filled with mixtures of the first and second type, mixing the mixture of the first and second type with water being made alternately.