Are you an EPFL student looking for a semester project?
Work with us on data science and visualisation projects, and deploy your project as an app on top of Graph Search.
Concept
Grain elevator
Summary
A grain elevator is a facility designed to stockpile or store grain. In the grain trade, the term "grain elevator" also describes a tower containing a bucket elevator or a pneumatic conveyor, which scoops up grain from a lower level and deposits it in a silo or other storage facility.
In most cases, the term "grain elevator" also describes the entire elevator complex, including receiving and testing offices, weighbridges, and storage facilities. It may also mean organizations that operate or control several individual elevators, in different locations. In Australia, the term describes only the lifting mechanism.
Before the advent of the grain elevator, grain was usually handled in bags rather than in bulk (large quantities of loose grain). Dart's Elevator was a major innovation. It was invented by Joseph Dart, a merchant, and Robert Dunbar, an engineer, in 1842 and 1843, in Buffalo, New York. Using the steam-powered flour mills of Oliver Evans as their model, they invented the marine leg, which scooped loose grain out of the hulls of ships and elevated it to the top of a marine tower.
Early grain elevators and bins were often built of framed or cribbed wood, and were prone to fire. In 1899 Frank H. Peavey "The Elevator King' along with Charles F. Haglin, invented the modern grain elevator used today. The first Peavey-Haglin Experimental Concrete Grain Elevator still stands today in St. Louis Park, Minnesota. The Peavey invented elevator was the first cylindrical concrete grain elevator in the world and is now widely used across Canada and the US.
Grain elevator bins, tanks, and silos are now usually made of steel or reinforced concrete. Bucket elevators are used to lift grain to a distributor or consignor, from which it falls through spouts and/or conveyors and into one or more bins, silos, or tanks in a facility. When desired, silos, bins, and tanks are emptied by gravity flow, sweep augers, and conveyors. As grain is emptied from bins, tanks, and silos, it is conveyed, blended, and weighted into trucks, railroad cars, or barges for shipment.
Official source
About this result
This page is automatically generated and may contain information that is not correct, complete, up-to-date, or relevant to your search query. The same applies to every other page on this website. Please make sure to verify the information with EPFL's official sources.
Ontological neighbourhood
Related courses (5)
MSE-310: Deformation of materials
Présentation des mécanismes de déformation des matériaux inorganiques: élasticité, plasticité, fluage.
MSE-101(a): Materials:from chemistry to properties
Ce cours permet l'acquisition des notions essentielles relatives à la structure de la matière, aux équilibres et à la réactivité chimique en liaison avec les propriétés mécaniques, thermiques, électri
MSE-466: Wood structures, properties and uses
The presentation of tree growth and formation of wood anatomical structures, linked to the description of specific physical and mechanical properties, makes it possible to understand the different for
Related lectures (32)
Plastic Deformation and Energy Accumulation
Explores energy accumulation in materials during plastic deformation and the effects of dislocation density and heating.
Aluminum Alloys: Mechanical Properties and Microstructure
Explores the mechanical properties and microstructure of aluminum alloys, focusing on the Al-Mg system and the effects of dislocations, grain size, and heat treatment.
Bed Shapes and Flow Resistance
Explores the influence of bed shapes on flow resistance in rivers, covering dunes, ripples, benches, and background shapes.
Related publications (36)