Keeping the bitumen flowing

Total Bitumen offers a wide bitumen product range for road construction and industrial applications. The Babcock Wanson EPC ES thermal fluid heaters are being used to heat the bitumen to a constant 180°C to maintain its fluid state. If bitumen falls below this temperature it becomes difficult - and eventually impossible - to pump the product to where it needs to go. An accurate and reliable heat source, therefore, is essential.

The Babcock Wanson EPC ES fully automatic coil type, multi-pass thermal fluid heaters were chosen to meet this need. They provide optimal distribution of the heat, high fluid velocity in the exchange tubes and continuous flow monitoring to ensure long fluid life and a high level of safety. The EPC Heaters also precisely match fuel input to plant energy requirements and include their own in-built exhaust gas to combustion air economiser. With lower energy input demand also comes lower total exhaust emissions, so there are also environmental benefits.

For Duncan McLeod, engineering manager at Total Bitumen Preston, the key benefits already reaped from the EPC heaters include a reduction in fuel costs and stack emissions, greater efficiency and a move to natural gas instead of heavy fuel, which has removed the need for on-site fuel storage.