Coaling plants on the National Transcontinental Railway.
The National Transcontinental Ry. Commission placed a contract recently for six coaling stations at Monk, Bridge, Fltzpatrick, Parent, Doucet and O'Brien, Que. The plants will be at the mechanical type, as illustrated herewith, which has been adopted as a standard on the N.T.R., displacing the previously accepted standard coaling plant, at the ramp type, which was described and illustrated in Canadian Railway and Marine World for March, 1913.
Fig. 1 shows the coaling station as it will be actually built, the completed structure to a slightly different design being shown in fig. 2, which shows a U.S. installation built by the same contractors. The structure is entirely of reinforced concrete, the Intention being to make them absolutely fireproof. The coal pockets are 23 ft. square, with an average depth of coal of 17 ft., the capacity being 200 tons at run of mine coal, without trimming. The coal pocket is a concrete shell, the floor at which slopes at an angle at about 30 degrees to the horizontal, towards the outer side, and with the top covered with a steel framing sheathed galvanized iron. The 6 supporting columns for this pocket are also at reinforced concrete, at 21 ft. 5 in. centres across the tracks, and 10 ft. 10 in. centres parallel with the track. The coal pocket spans one delivery track, the other delivery track being along the depressed side at the coal pocket bottom. The delivery spouts are In either end ot the pocket depression.
At the back or the pocket is located the receiving hopper, consisting of a concrete lined, sloping floor hopper, the slope of which corresponds with that in the upper hopper. The coal intended tor the coaling plant is delivered on cars, which are run over top at the receiving hopper, on tracks supported on I beams, and dumped into it.
This hopper is 20 ft. long and 15 ft. wide, the slope at the bottom being in three directions, all tending to throw the coal towards an opening at the front. Immediately in front at this opening In the receiving hopper there is located a large steel revolving feeder, which is in reality a gate, a chute and a feeder. This feeder delivers coal in measured quantities automatically to a 2 1/2 ton bucket. The bucket is 5 ft. square and has an apron or folding chute on the front side to prevent the accidental opening of which there is a roller attached to it, which bears against a guide extending from the bottom of the pit to the dumping point over the bin. As the bucket descends into the put in front of the revolving hopper, it engages a bar which operates the revolving feeder, causing the feeder to cut off the flow of coal from the receiving hopper and discharge its contents into the bucket. As the bucket rises in the hoistway it revolves the feeder, allowing the coal to flow into it from the receiving hopper.
The hoistway is a structural steel frame, entirely closed in galvanized sheathing, and has a total height of 70 ft. above the ground, as well as extending to the bottom of the receiving hopper pit. the bucket travels in this hoistway, between vertical steel guides, and as it reaches the top of the pocket the folding apron opens out over the bin, and the load of coal is discharged down a chute into the bin. The hoist cable is a 7/8 in. steel rope, running over sheaves.
The power used is electrical, derived from a hoist motor of heavy construction, which has on one end an electrically operated or solenoid brake, and on the other end a cut cast steel pinion of the herringbone type, which reduces noise at high speed, and eliminates end motion in the motor. The motor is automatically operated and reversed by means of a special automatic skip hoist controller. This makes the operation of the hoist continuous for as long a period as it is desired to hoist coal, and once the controller has been thrown into engagement, thereby leaving the operator free to work about the plant while the coal is being elevated, reducing the operating coal. This equipment is all contained in a reinforced concrete house.
Beneath the lower edge of the upper hopper there are two undercut gates and steel aprons, one to the under track, and the other to the outer track, one at each end of the hopper. These aprons are both counterweighted for ease in handling, and are provided with hoods so that the coal may be deflected downward into the centre of the tender.
Each coaling plant has a sand drying equipment, similar to that shown in fig. 3. This equipment consists of a wet sand storage, drying building, and dry sand storage. The wet sand storage bin is made of heavy posts and planking. cross braced with tie rods, and will hold 50 tons of wet sand. Adjacent to the wet sand bin there is a reinforced concrete sand drying house, equipped with a sand dryer, into which the wet sand is shovelled. The dryer has a capacity of about 10 tons a day. After drying, the sand is shovelled into a steel air drum, of about one cubic foot capacity, from which it is forced up through a 2 1/2 on. pipe by compressed air at from 80 to 100 lbs. pressure, into a concrete pocket, formed by cutting off one corner of the coal pocket.
We are indebted to W. J. Press, Mechanical Engineer, N.T.R., for the information on which this article Is based.
Fig. 1—Typical coaling plant on the National Transcontinental Ry., six of which are being built.
Fig. 2—Coaling plant similar to the N.T.R. design.
Fig. 3—Sand drying auxiliary to coaling plant, N.T.R.