A Comparison of Several Types of Enclosed Coal Storage Yards
The fully enclosed coal storage facilities most commonly in operation at domestic coal-fired power plants include circular coal yards, linear coal yards, and dry coal sheds. This paper presents a technical and economic comparison of these three types of coal storage facilities. Enclosed circular coal yards offer higher coal storage capacity per unit area, require less land, feature a high degree of automation, and have an aesthetically pleasing appearance. However, when storing high-volatility coal, they are prone to spontaneous combustion, making fire prevention challenging. Additionally, they lack backup facilities for stacker-reclaimers and do not support functions such as segregated stacking or sun-drying; Although enclosed linear coal yards allow for segregated stacking, they occupy a large area; bucket wheel stackers and reclaimers cannot load and unload simultaneously, and they lack the ability to sun-dry the coal to control moisture content. Considering factors such as th...