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Issue link: https://coal.epubxp.com/i/131326
c o a l p r e pa r at i o n Beechwood Coal Reaps Benefits from Accelerator Processing Appalachian coal operator uses an alternative method to selectively crush raw coal BY RON TSCHANTZ Built in the 1970s, Beechwood Coal Co.'s Lonaconing tipple has a raw feed capacity of up to 600 tph. Nestled in the western panhandle of Maryland in the Northern Appalachian region is a quaint, rural community known as Lonaconing. This coal-bearing area, also known as Georges Creek Coal Basin, lies in the western part of Allegany and eastern Garrett counties, and is named after an Indian chief called George who canoed the Savage River. From the late 1800s and into the 20th century, Consolidation Coal Co. deep mined the Big Vein (Pittsburgh No. 8, a coal seam up to 14 ft thick) in Georges Creek. This predominately mined seam, hand-dug and hauled by horse and mule from the deep mines, was the chief source of Maryland coal production for almost a century. This coal was shipped east to the Potomac River power station to generate electricity for the White House and surrounding Washington, D.C., area. It was also used as fuel to power U.S. Navy warships during World War I. Jody Ritchie, principal owner of Beechwood Coal Co., started in 1999 as a general contractor near Frostburg, 15 miles north of Lonaconing. Ritchie, along with his wife Faith, ran 34 www.coalage.com their trucking company, Ritchie Trucking, performing contract construction services including excavating, construction and re-vegetation services for mine reclamation. As the business grew, it began contract surface mining and hauled coal for the Buffalo Coal Co. and others. In 2007, Ritchie purchased Buffalo Coal Co.'s Lonaconing tipple and formed Beechwood Coal Co. The entire facility sat abandoned for several years before they purchased it from bankruptcy court. "Run down, and scavenged by thieves, the facility was in need of repair," Ritchie said. "It is, however, one of only two wash plants permitted in Maryland, and is the only permitted wash plant in Georges Creek with an adequate water supply." Built in the 1970s, the facility has a 150 ton per hour (tph) modular hydrocyclone plant that washes coal at 1.45 specific gravity with a 1-ΒΌ-inch, top-size feed. In the early 1990s, Buffalo Coal Co. (under the auspices of Jerry Duckett, manager of coal preparation) modified the Lonaconing facility by removing an old, three-story wooden tipple previously used for loading sized house coal. It was replaced with a 150-ton coal bin, 8- x 16-ft Tabor screen (supported from the original wooden tipples' concrete piers), an Accelerator, a Midwestern screen with related conveyors and a truck drive-under reject bin. The Accelerator is a variable speed vertical impact breaker produced by Imperial Technologies. It has two 15-hp variable speed Drive Source drives. Beneath the Accelerator is a Midwestern UniRod coal recovery screen with two 7.5-hp motors. Duckett validated the ability of the Accelerator to improve coal quality based on performance by testing coals at another Accelerator site. The Accelerator with a screening system improved coal quality and the ability to process multiple seams of coal to a controlled top size, which could be blended with or without washed and/or crop coal to meet the specifications of utilities and industrial customers. "Since the purchase, we have been fixing and improving these facilities little by little as we can and we are working hard to be a viable and reliable supplier by delivering quality coals for our customers, who request a 2-inch x 0 finished product," Ritchie said. Processing Regional Coals The wash plant, raw and washed coal storage, certified truck scale with raw coal sizing and quality enhancement system, and processed coal storage facilities for load-out are split into four tiers on the side of the mountain in Lonaconing. March 2013