Asphalt is material used for the paving of roads and driveways and is a mixture of different sizes of aggregates with hot liquid bitumen. The characteristics of the asphalt are dependent on the bitumen grade that is in use while making the asphalt. The aggregates are made out of crushed rock and their strength can also affect the quality of the asphalt made in the asphalt plant (асфальтный завод).
The first step in the making of asphalt requires the aggregates used to be dried so that they are completely free of moisture. This drying also allows the bitumen to easily form a coat over the aggregates. In this drying process, aggregates are introduced into rotating drums that are slightly inclined. These drums also have a slight tilt. The aggregate gets introduced into these drums at the higher end of the drum that has a number of flights that ensure a gradual movement of the aggregates to the lower end that is fitted with burners. The aggregate dries as it moves down and exits the drum on to vibratory screens that segregate the heated aggregate into various sizes and drop them into the proper container for that size. Mineral fillers, like limestone powder, are also used in hot asphalt mixes to act to fill the voids between the aggregates in the paving mix.
Bitumen is stored in tanks that are heated to the required (оборудование) temperatures. Asphalt mixing plants have a framework that allows aggregate, fillers, and bitumen to be separately weighed before they find their way into the mixing drum. Temperatures of the finished product need to be between 100 to 200 degrees Celsius so that the asphalt mix remains workable after it has reached the final destination. The mixed asphalt is loaded onto trucks that carry it to the work site, where it is unloaded on to pavers that lay down the asphalt on surfaces to the required thickness.
In the working of an asphalt plant, a central control panel controls all the various activities of the plant. Asphalt plants can be of many types that either produce the asphalt in batches or continuously. A wide range of asphalt concrete mixing plants are available on this website: https://www.aimix.kz/statsionarnyy-asfaltobetonnyy-zavod-tsena/
The mixed asphalt can be stored in silos that are insulated and can be heated to maintain the mix in a fluid form that can be transferred easily into trucks that arrive intermittently. Most modern asphalt plants have a central control that is computer controlled and allows for sophisticated facilities that ensure that the product mix is always of the desired quality. It controls the quantities of aggregates, fillers, and bitumen and allows for any variation if required by the clients. The mixing in the mixing units that contains the mixture of aggregates, filler, and bitumen is carried out for a fixed time, that ensures that the aggregate is evenly coated and the mixture is homogeneous. The mixers are jacketed so that the contents remain hot during the mixing.
The strength of the paving of any road or highway on which asphalt mix is used depends on the temperature, drum mixing and its carefully weighed components that has to be ensured by the proper working of an asphalt plant.