Gambarotta Group recently gained an important order for the construction and installation of a new fertilizer plant in Indonesia. The aim of the client was to run an efficient plant that could handle NPK 24/7. The scope of supply included one drag chain conveyor, two bucket elevators and a box conveyor. The drag chain conveyor, type TRD, has double-forged link chains made out of wear-resistant steel with side connecting ribs linking the scrapers, found between the two rows of chains. The scrapers have a plain, flat profile.
This drag chain conveyor wheel axial distance is 38.1 m, with a capacity of 130 tph. Its slow conveying speed of 0.18 m/s is ideal for material corrosiveness. The two bucket elevators, type ELD, have chain strands and shackles connecting the buckets and smooth rim drive wheels. The chains are placed on the bucket’s sides to ensure central discharge is aligned with the elevator. This kind of elevator is equipped with sturdy buckets, which are ideal for scraping on the outer reinforced side and discharging on the opposite internal side. Two drilled brackets are fitted onto the sides to connect shackles. The bucket elevators offer a conveying capacity of 125 tph and 180 tph. Given the same conveyed material as the drag chain conveyor, a slow lifting speed was applied to the bucket elevators, ranging from 0.46 m/s to 0.5 m/s. This allowed customers to gently handle the granular material without compromising its integrity. The opposite applies to fine bulk materials, which can be conveyed at a higher speed.
Gambarotta Group also provided its client with a type TC box conveyor. Box conveyors are a special kind of pan conveyor, in which pans are replaced by boxes, due to the steep inclinations these machines can reach (up to 40°). Such steep inclinations could cause material leakage. Two link chains with pins and fixed bushings, bolted under the boxes, connect the boxes and form a continuous jointed series thanks to the chain pins. Each second box mounts a pair of rollers with a guiding edge and rolling-element bearings: the former roll on suitable tracks and support the series of boxes both on the upper driving run and on the lower return run. The vertical support structure includes trestles (two small columns with crossbeams), while the horizontal support consists of the tracks connecting the trestles spaced out at regular intervals. The drive station in the discharge zone includes a drive unit that triggers movement to the boxes, while the return station on the opposite end includes the chain take-up station. The box conveyor realised for the Indonesian client is 9.55 m long with a conveyor capacity of 125 tph and a 0.29 m/s speed. Given its inclined layout (37°) this machine type was the most suitable of Gambarotta Group’s production range. Its boxes are made of AISI 304 stainless steel, ideal for moist materials.
