The Mechanical Handling and Storing of Material

Ö2Ö THE MECHANICAL HANDLING OF MAI ERIAL underground hopper, a coal-breaker, a tipping tray conveyor, an elevated bunker, and shoots—including calibrating chambers—for discharging the coal on to the tenders. As the coal wagons belonging to the railway company have neither side nor end Fig. 879. Coaling Installation of the London and North-Western Railway at Crewe. doors, a “ tippler ” (on the principle of those used in collieries), capable of dealing with wagons of up to 10 tons capacity, became the initial part of the apparatus. An inclined baffle plate fixed to the tippler rings, in conjunction with the fixed plate of the hopper, serves to retain the bulk of the coal in the wagon until it is nearly in its lowest position, and thus tends to minimise breakage—a very important point when dealing with the soft Welsh coal often used. The hopper holds about 20 tons, and is carried by cross girders in a brick-lined pit. The coal is fed from this hopper by a jigging tray through an adjustable door—worked from ground level—into a two-roll breaker, where the large lumps are reduced to 8-in. cubes. This breaker is belt-driven by an independent direct current electric motor of 10 H.P., which also operates the jigging tray. The coal passes, with the large lumps broken, to the conveyor trays, which carry it to the overhead storage. Particular care has been taken to reduce the fall at all points to the minimum, and after pass- ing through the breaker the coal slides a short distance on to the conveyor trays. Notwithstanding all precautions some breakage is hound to occur, especially when working with Welsh or soft coal; although, so far, there has been no apparent increase in coal consumption from this cause.