Indirect asphalt heating system
AssigneeKomline-Sanderson Corporation
InventorDouglas W. Grünwald
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Provided is an indirect paddle heater and method for heating asphalt. In one example, the paddle heater may include a control system, a pump to pump heating fluid, a trough that may include an inlet to receive a feed of asphalt mixture and an outlet for exiting the asphalt mixture after heating, and one or more rotational agitators disposed in the trough and comprising paddles attached to shafts that rotate to move the asphalt mixture from the inlet to the outlet, wherein at least one of the trough and the one or more rotational agitators may include hollow channels, and the control system is configured to control the pump to pump heating fluid into the hollow channels when the asphalt mixture is included within the trough.
Claims13
An asphalt heating system comprising:
- a control system;
- a pump, to pump heating fluid from a reservoir;
- a trough comprising an inlet to receive a feed of asphalt mixture and an outlet for exiting the asphalt mixture after heating;
- and
- one or more rotational agitators disposed in the trough and comprising paddles configured to rotate around one or more shafts to move the asphalt mixture from the inlet to the outlet,
- wherein at least one of the trough and the one or more rotational agitators comprise hollow channels connected to the pump to receive heating fluid from the pump, and the control system is configured to control the pump to pump heating fluid into the hollow channels when the asphalt mixture is included within the trough, the hollow channels connected to a return that returns the heating fluid to the reservoir.
A method comprising:
- rotating one or more agitators comprising paddles that are housed within a trough of an asphalt heating system;
- feeding an asphalt mixture into an inlet of the trough where the one or more agitators are rotating causing the asphalt mixture to move towards an outlet of the trough wherein feeding comprises feeding the inlet of the trough with one or more of bitumen and reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) for a first predetermined period of time prior to feeding the inlet with virgin aggregate;
- and
- transferring indirect heat to the asphalt mixture via at least one of the trough and the one or more agitators to heat the asphalt mixture while it is within the trough, wherein transferring indirect heat comprises first heating a heating fluid and then pumping the heating fluid through hollow channels of a shaft and paddles of an agitator from among the one or more agitators.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.