Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/75471
TIONS ILLUSTRATED Lower Your Plant Emissions 2 Dust everywhere else 3 Fuel choices and fuel burn Kirk Fuller is plant man- ager for Lehigh Hanson Bridgeport Quarry. He joined the company in 1989 and moved to the aggregates side of the company in 1995, working as plant manager over fi rst Lake Bridgeport and then the Chico plant. In 2006, Fuller assumed the plant manager role over the Bridgeport Quarry. Trucks traveling on dirt roads and dirt surfaces (e.g. in the pit) will, invariably, kick up dust. Spray trucks are effective on roads and pit fl oors. Wheel washes at the scale will help to prevent customer trucks from carrying dust out the gate and down public roads. It's also helpful to pave roads inside the plant. Keeping customer trucks on paved surfaces helps reduce problems with dust escaping the facility. 5 Operational practices make a difference Fuel additives, fi lters, and options — such as low-sulfur diesel — also can raise the fuel burning effi ciency of a machine, while lowering emissions. Operating practices that contribute to better fuel effi ciency and lower engine emissions include improved cycle times and reduced idling time. Machines can be fi tted with devices that shut the engines down if the idling period reaches a certain time limit. 6 Hybrid technology offers options EXPERTS OUR Brian Yureskes, product manager, excavators, for Komatsu, received his undergraduate degree in mining engineering from the Colorado School of Mines. He spent four years as a plant manager at a Vulcan Materials Co. site. Yureskes has extensive ap- plication-based experience in coal mining, construc- tion, and aggregates. One practice that can help to improve fugitive dust and engine emissions is fractionation and blending at loadout. If the material is fractionated, then blended and loaded by conveyor rather than being stockpiled for mechanical loading, it reduces the amount of handling, which reduces the chances for creating fugitive emissions. The practice also requires fewer machines, reducing the amount of engine emissions as well. Heavy equipment companies are beginning to experiment with hybrid engine technology that can translate to better fuel effi ciency and lower engine emissions. A new hybrid excava- tor and hybrid bulldozer have recently gained the attention of the California Air Resources Board (CARB). The excavator features ultra-low engine idle and has an electric swing motor with an ultra capacitor that stores energy from the boom's swing action for later use. Derek Roberts began his career in the aggregate in- dustry in 1991 with Vulcan Materials. In 2007, Roberts joined Rogers Group Inc. as general manager over North Alabama and was promoted to area vice presi- dent in 2009. He serves on the board of directors for the Alabama Road Builders Association and the Ala- bama Asphalt Association. August 2012