I have a question regarding ash.
More specifically, how did coal burning power plants dispose of the waste ash during the 1940’s and 50’s.
I imagine it went into gondolas by some means, but was this a mechanical device such as a conveyor or overhead chute, was it shovelled in by hand, or was a digger/dumpster used?
Any information would be appreciated as I hope to model this traffic at my ‘power and Light’
Jon
I used to work at a power plant roughly similar to the Walthers model.A vacuum pipe about 8" in diameter took the fly ash from the boiler to an outside loading bin.At the top of the loading bin the pipe emptied into a 3’ by 5’ bin which dumped into the loading bin.The ash loading bin held around three dump truck loads.Five loads of coal would turn into one load of ash.
Interestingly, in Pennsylvania, a large amount of coal ash no longer goes to landfills as waste but is put to beneficial use in coal mine reclamation & mine drainage pollution problems.
Here’s a link to the Pennsylvania State Web site about coal ash. It discussses various aspects of coal ash including the difference between fly-ash & bottom ash. It may offer some ideas for your use.
I suppose another method of disposing of it might be to load it in uncovered gondolas & haul it around very fast, an option I suppose has been tried by some operators.
Wayne
I know of one coal fired powerplant that would dump the ash into hopper cars and gondolas. The hoppers would unload the coal on one track and then be moved to another for loading with ash. Then there was a powerplant for a industrial plant that would have one car of coal brought in, dump the coal into a bin below the tracks, and a buckets on a chain drive would carry the coal to the top of the coal bunkers inside to feed the boilers, then as the chain driven buckets would return to the bottom,they would pick up ash and head up to a bin above the hopper car, and dump the ash. From there the bucket would return to the below coal bin for a new load and continue this cycle.
Thanks for the answers guys - you’ve taught me a lot already - fascinating.
Jon
Jon
In the 1950’s, the Norfolk & Western adapted an ash plant design for coal fired power plants for handling ash from their steam locomotives at a couple of their most modern yards.
In the power plants, as well as at the N&W engine terminal at Williams, the ash would be dumped in one of several brick lined pits. High powered jets of water would wahe ash into a sluice trough and into a sump. From there, the ash was separated from the water and pumped into a hopper over a track, where a hopper car would be spotted under it. The water would be recalculated to wahe ash from the pits again
Whatever happened to the plants that made cindercrete blocks?? the ash and cinders were made into blocks the same as concrete blocks are today, sheeesh !! I remember when the sidewalks in front of house were made out of cinders from the steam locomotives and they also used it on the streets instead of sand in the winter.
I have heard my Dad call them “Cinderblocks” for nearly 50 yers and it never occoured to me that they really used cinders to make them. Duh…
I did know about using then to treat streets. They still do that here in Oxford with the cinders from the University’s power plant.
Our coal fired nuclear power plant on the Ohio river trucks the cinders and ash up a creek vally leading down to the Ohio River and dumps them. I think one of the major peope responsable for blocking the nuclear operating license lives below the ash dump.
Excuse me, but I just have to ask. Isn’t “coal fired nuclear” a contradiction in terms? If it’s coal fired, it isn’t nuclear (which uses some form of radioactive material as a fuel source, doesn’t burn coal, and doesn’t produce ash). Now the disposal and long term storage of spent nuclear fuel is another problem, but that isn’t being trucked to any ash dump.
Regards
Ed
The Generating plant in Moscow Ohio in the Ohio river was buitt as a nuclear faciltiy, it is compleat except for the fuel rods being put into the reactor. Public sentiment turned against nuclear power during construction and the plant was never issued an operating license for the reactor. The consortium of power companies that built the place added a coal fired steam plant to spin the already in place generators. so they would not loose all of their investement. The reactor is still there but it has never been fueled. I have heard conflicting stories about the fuel rods being on site or not.
http://www.lynnwasnak.com/ZimmerReincarnation.pdf
At the time it WAS in my back yard, I had no problems with a nuclear plant.
Thanks for clearing that up. You had be a bit confused for a minute. But that’s not all that hard to do. [:D]
Actually sounds like a good idea in order to get some use out of the facility.
Regards
Ed
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Tell that to the folks in Hanford (On the Columbia River) Washington, and the “Downwinders”. We are still cleaning up the mess from making the Hiroshima Bomb, etc. And the idle reactors of the “Washington Public Power Supply System” (aka “woops” to the wags)., and remodeling the longtime storage facilities for the sepnt rods. Years ago low level waste was moved in sp-ecial hoppers designed to ride up in an accident rather than rupture. Reporting marks: DODX - (Department of Defence - Owned). When Trojan Nucular was decommisioned, the core was moved by river barge - it looked like a big dumbel or mushroom, rapped in blue plastic. I have several times seen model covered hoppers listing “atomic waste”. They are painted flourscent colors, and with blakc light paint, and labeled: “IF THIS CAR IS GLOWING, RUN LIKE [censored]”
Randy,
Must be my day for being confused. Sounds like we agree that long term disposal and storage of spent nuclear fuel is a problem. So I’m puzzled by your opening line of “Tell that to the folks in Hanford…”. Hopefully I just read more into that than you meant.
I’d have asked the question offline but you don’t have the forum email option enabled.
Regards
Ed
Fly ash is used extensively as a concrete additive to increase the strength AND lower the cost. The local freeway projects pretty much mandate it these days.
Mark in Utah