SCHERR+KLIMKE AG

Cracks in silo walls

Is it a must to repair and strengthen or even demolish silos if wide cracks are observed? This question might be best answered by means of an example of a reinforced multi-chamber raw meal silo. In this article a special case will be highlighted which may be of interest for many cement producers.

1 Introduction

In general silos are structurally delicate structures. They consist of shell elements and can carry membrane tension or compression forces very well. However any bending moments or shear forces could lead to problems to the structural stability of the silo. In the given case the owner determined several extremely wide cracks in his unconventional multi-chamber raw meal silo during the regular inspection. A first expert opinion came with the result that the silo is under designed and must be strengthened with a heavy steel construction to regain structural stability. As the...

Related articles:

Issue 6/2015 SCHERR+KLIMKE AG

Does it make sense to think about ­extending the design lifetime of ­deteriorating concrete structures?

1 Presentation of the subject In general reinforced concrete production buildings should have a design lifetime of 50 years. This means with regular maintenance the construction should sustain its...

more
Issue 5/2014 THORWESTEN

55 meter silo for pulverised lignite for Swiss cement plant

Thorwesten Vent, active in the field of constructional explosion protection, has received a contract for the design and assembly of a large capacity silo for the storage of pulverised lignite at the...

more
Issue 12/2014 HANSFORD SENSORS LTD.

Vibration monitoring to boost efficiency

Introduction Cement manufacturing is one of the most aggressive of all production processes. The chemicals used to produce Portland and Masonry cement – particu­larly silicates, aluminates and...

more
Issue 6/2018 WUERTH CONSULTING ENGINEERS

How safe is your silo?

1 Introduction Every building comes with a certain service lifetime. If not properly managed, that time will eventually run out, and your structure will ultimately collapse. Statistically speaking,...

more
Issue 04/2011

Continuous monitoring

With the particulated analyzer/CEM (Fig.) particulate levels down to at least 0.1mg/m3 can be monitored. Particulate CEM (Continuous Emissions Monitor) meets environmental regulations such as US-EPA...

more