Transportable material conveying apparatus

A transportable proppant material conveying apparatus used in transporting particulate proppant material from a particulate proppant material supply container to a mixing apparatus where said particulate proppant material is blended with fluids used in well operations at well sites, said transportable proppant material conveying apparatus comprising:

• a transportable frame to facilitate the transportation of said apparatus to and from well sites;
• a controllable gathering conveyor means, mounted on said frame, for gathering said particulate proppant material from said particulate proppant supply container and delivering said particulate proppant material to another location on the transportable frame;
• a surge bin means, mounted on said frame, for receiving from said gathering conveyor, holding, and discharging said particulate proppant material to be transported to said mixing apparatus to be blended with said well fluids used in said well operations at well sites, said surge bin means having a holding capacity greater than the volume of said particulate proppant material which can be carried at one time by said gathering conveyor means, said surge bin means being so constructed that all of said particulate proppant material contained in said surge bin means can be discharged through single outlet to thereby prevent the formation of dead spaces where substantial volumes of said particulate proppant material could be trapped within said surge bin means;
• a discharge conveyor means, mounted on said frame below an outlet of said surge bin means, for receiving said particulate proppant material from said outlet and for conveying said particulate proppant material to a discharge point to be discharged into said mixing apparatus to be blended by said mixing apparatus with said well fluids in said well operations at well sites, said discharge conveyor means being independently controlled and capable of intermittent independent operation to control the flow of said particulate proppant material to said mixing apparatus to be blended with said fluids in said well operations at well sites, said discharge conveyor means including an endless conveyor belt;
• adjustable screed means, operatively associated with said endless conveyor belt on a downstream side of said outlet of said surge bin means, for controlling a cross-sectional area of particulate proppant material which can be carried on said conveyor belt of said discharge conveyor means;
• pivotal mounting means, operatively associated with said discharge conveyor means, for permitting said conveyor means to pivot about a substantially vertical axis relative to said frame;
• extension means, operably associated with said discharge conveyor means, for permitting said discharge point to be moved horizontally relative to said frame, said extension means and said pivotal mounting means permitting said discharge point to be selectively located within a predetermined area relative to said frame;
• discharge control means, operably associated with said discharge conveyor means, for controlling the speed of said conveyor belt, so that a discharge rate of said particulate material from said discharge conveyor means is determined by a combination of said adjustable screed means and said discharge control means;
• discharge rate indicator means for indicating the rate at which particulate proppant material is being discharged into said mixing apparatus from said conveying apparatus to be blended with fluids used in well operations at well sites;
• and
• a first power source located on said transportable frame for powering said controllable gathering means and said discharge conveyor means.