Industrial

Quantum provided structural design for a steel structure to support four 36′ tall by 12′-8″ diameter cylindrical silos with their bottoms elevated 26′ above grade. Also included was the support of associated controls, equipment and conveyors. Each silo has a capacity to store 60 tons of dry urea prills. The urea is used as a feed stock to the plant to produce ammonia. The goal is to produce the ammonia on demand, rather than have large quantities of ammonia stored on site and deal with the possibility of storage or other leakage during the accompanying fill process. In considering this alternative to produce the ammonia on demand the plant at Karn looked at what was referred to as the kill zone in the Bay City area and mitigation measures that would be required to prepare for a catastrophic leak if anhydrous ammonia was stored on the site.

Quantum Consulting Engineers provided structural engineering for this economizer, breaching and dust collector located at the PCA Plant in Valdosta, Georgia. This economizer is estimated to weigh about 120,000 pounds and will be located approximately forty-five feet above grade. The economizer will be supported by a steel tower braced down to the ground. A side stair tower, service platforms, breaching both above and below the economizer, and a breaching section spanning to the dust collector will also be provided.

The dust collector is located between an existing stack and boiler building with limited space for steel supports and foundations. Most all vertical loads and north/south lateral loads from the dust collector will be supported on the new steel and foundations. A portion of the dust collector’s vertical load as well as east/west lateral loads will be supported by the existing boiler building structure and this structure will be modified accordingly.

Project goals included:
– Reducing the quantity of landfill ash by reducing the carryover and amount of unburned carbon in the fly ash.
– Increase the boiler’s capability to burn waste fuels (bark, TDF, and sludge), thereby reducing the reliance on burning coal or natural gas.
– Improve the ability to handle load swings on bark firing.
– Improve the boiler’s current emission performance.

Quantum Consulting Engineers provided structural engineering design services for the construction of a scale model of Seattle City Lights Boundary Dam located in Northeastern Washington. The scale model was constructed to simulate the arched profile of the dam as well as it’s spillway ramps and downstream topography. The model along with various combinations of water flow and gate settings will be used to assist in predicting the up and down stream effects of future gate and flow modifications resulting from the ongoing use of the dam.

Quantum Consulting Engineers provided structural engineering for the boiler superheater upgrade project at the Burnaby MSW Plant in British Columbia. Montenay Inc. operates a municipal solid waste incinerator plant. The goal of the project was to improve the plant’s energy efficiency by raising the steam temperature of their three boilers to an efficient level for the plant’s new steam turbine-generator. This required process and design engineering for the new superheater and boiler pressure part modifications.

One of the structural design challenges involved supporting the new 100,000-pound superheater’s gravity and seismic loads from the top of the existing boilers’ upper sidewall headers. This was required to accommodate the upward expansion of the 50-foot tall bottom supported boilers. Dual purpose transportation and lifting cradles were also designed by Quantum to support the 40-foot long superheater sections during shipping and erection by overhead crane down through the roof of the building.