Grain Elevator
The evolution of motor technology directly affects the agriculture industry, and the development of grain elevators is a prime example of this. With the switch from manually moving heavy sacks of grain to processing loose grains with the help of Falk gear reducers, grain elevators made easy packing, transportation and unloading possible worldwide.
The Invention of the Grain Elevator
Developed in 1842 by Robert Dunbar and Joseph Dart in Buffalo, N.Y., the first grain elevators were steam-powered. They scooped loose grain out of ship hulls and transported it to the tops of marine towers to help the area’s port facilities keep up with demand. The revolutionary machine, or Dart Elevator, was seven times faster than the teams of people who moved the grain by hand.
The Golden Age of Grain Elevator Construction
Between 1890 and 1930, Buffalo was coined “Elevator Alley” as the production of wheat grew from 111 million bushels in 1900 to 280 million bushels in 1928. As the leading wheat market in the U.S., Buffalo had 38 grain elevators lining waterfronts by 1931.
The first elevators and their bins were often made of wood, making them susceptible to fires caused by overheated grain, boilers and locomotive sparks. After several catastrophes, the Reed Elevator Dunbar created in 1862 used corrugated metal sheets and slate to protect the marine tower.
By the 1890s, the non-timber Plympton Elevator inspired a new era of metal elevator construction. Grain elevator designers used steel in place of wood, which prompted the creation of the Electric Elevator and the 99-foot-tall Great Northern Elevator, which used electricity instead of steam. The steel bins in the grain elevators had new hemispherical bottoms that helped ease the flow of grain.
After the steel Kellogg Elevator caught fire in 1922, the agriculture industry turned to ceramic tile. The bins made from this material were heat resistant, fireproof and provided excellent protection against extreme weather elements. The cost to build with ceramic tile, however, didn’t offer the efficiencies the industry sought.
20th-Century Grain Elevators
Through trial and error, physicists learned that the grain’s angle of friction influenced the vertical pressure of a bin. By using devices like Falk gear reducers to slow down an elevator’s rotational speed at a higher torque, the bins suffered less damage. Scientists also learned that concrete provided a more cost-effective and flexible alternative to ceramic tiles that was also permanent, watertight and held back pest infestations. Notable concrete elevators include those designed by Harry R. Wait in Buffalo, as well as the American Elevator.
Transportation and technological advances made it possible for farmlands and ports throughout the country to load, ship and receive goods, thanks to the innovations in grain elevator design. By taking a road trip through the North American prairies and other grain-growing areas of the country, you can witness how simple wood elevators developed into the large terminals you see today.
[Photo from Charles Henry via CC Licence 2.0]
Posted under Articles on Thursday, January 29th, 2015