To make asphalt emulsion on industrial scale, special equipment is required.
A standard emulsion plant is composed of the following:
- a homogenizer colloid mill, a component designed for dispersion;
- heated insulated bitumen storage tanks;
- emulsifier, thinner and finished product tanks;
- control system;
- a heating system (steam or oil).
Colloid mills of varying design are used in asphalt emulsion plants. The resulting quality of the product is influenced by the rotation speed and the gap between the rotor and the stator of the homogenizer. It is interesting that colloid mills had been developed long before asphalt emulsions were first used in road construction and repairs. These devices usually consist of a cast iron body, a heating jacket, two disks, a replaceable ring and seals.
Since the internal surface of the ring and the external surface of the disks are conical, and the disks rotate, the radial axial gap changes. This parameter is very important, since it directly influences the rate of production and quality of the emulsion. The smaller the gap, the finer the product dispersity.
The European experience of asphalt emulsion production indicates that the colloid mill is the optimal design for a dispersion device. It is used in the UVB-1 units by GlobeCore. These units allow to:
- produce high quality asphalt emulsion regardless of the initial bitumen quality by adding plasticizers, adhesion additives and thinners;
- produce all types of cationic and anionic asphalt emulsions;
- ensure safety of operation (interlocks to stop the unit in case of faults);
- produce asphalt emulsions fully compliant with the ASTM D 2397-98 and D977-98 standards;
- make the process of emulsion production easy and simple.
GlobeCore specialists always stand ready to assist at the stage of selecting asphalt emulsion equipment and also built it according to custom order (if necessary).