What is a Primary Crusher?
Have you ever thought about adding a primary crusher to your fleet? In this article, we will discover how a primary crusher can increase your output and improve the efficiency of your operations. We will also find out what a primary crusher does, why it’s important, and the different types of primary crushers that can help increase crushing efficiency.
Primary crushers - what are they
A primary crusher breaks up large pieces of rock or concrete from the blasting or excavation process and turns them into smaller, more manageable chunks. This is the first step in the crushing process. The smaller pieces can then either be pre-screened or fed directly into a secondary impact or cone crusher.
So why is it important for you to have a primary crusher? Primary crushers are designed to cope with large amounts of oversized material. By breaking up the very big pieces before being feeding them into your secondary crusher you let the first machine do all the hard work. This will mean you can increase your TPH! It will also lower the amount of wear-and-tear on your secondary crusher - keeping maintenance and downtime to a minimum.
Should I run a primary crusher as part of a crushing set-up?
Having a primary jaw crusher like the Omega J1065T that feeds directly into an impact crusher such as th Rockster R1000S will make it easier to increase the efficiency of your crushing output. Large tracked jaw crushers make great primary crushers as they are able to handle and break up large boulders on site. The tracked wheels allow the crusher to be moved easily around your quarry or site. This means you don’t have to worry about the extra time and cost of loading up trucks with boulders and transporting them to a different crushing site.
How does a primary crusher work?
The most common primary crusher is a jaw crusher, but, there are many other types including gyratory and cone crushers. We will talk about them all in more detail later!
A jaw crusher is made up of two big plates that are held in a V-shape. One side of the jaw moves back and forth, and the other side stays fixed in place - this is the breaking surface. As the material is fed into the machine it is pushed by the swinging plate against the part of the jaw that doesn’t move. This pressure breaks up the rocks until they are small enough to pass through the jaw box.
The distance between the jaw plates can be made smaller or larger depending on the size of the material you want to process. When used as a primary crusher, the main aim is to get the rocks to a size that the secondary crusher can crush with ease. By keeping the jaw box wide, you will be able to quickly crush your material and increase your TPH.
Choosing the best way to use your primary crusher can be difficult - our Machinery Partner experts are always here to help and can talk you through all the different possible setups. They are also able to help you work out what machines will be best for the material you are crushing. Get in contact with our experts today!
What is a secondary crusher?
After the primary crusher reduces the larger pieces, the secondary crusher has less work to do. This means it can process your material more quickly and easily - making your crushing more efficient. Secondary crushers are important in the crushing process as they crush rock into high spec shape and size. This is a key step if you are making DOT-approved material which is the Department of Transportation's standard for safely, shipping hazardous and other materials. Lots of big contracting jobs will require that your material is up to DOT specification.
What are the different types of primary crushers?
There are different kinds of primary crushers for all different use cases. No matter what you are crushing, there will be a primary crusher for you! One important thing for you to consider when choosing the perfect primary crusher for your business is the reduction ratio. This sounds a bit complicated but it is just the difference in size of the rock you put in compared to the size of the rock that comes out. For example: if a crusher has a reduction ratio of 12:1 - that means that if you put in a rock that is 12” wide you will be able to crush it down to 1”. We have included some common reduction ratios with each of the different crushers below. More information on reduction ratios can be found on our blog.
Jaw crushers
Jaw crushers are great for breaking up large boulders and crushing them to a size that can easily be fed into a secondary impact crusher. Reduction ratio = 6:1
Gyratory crushers
Gyratory crushers can be used for both primary and secondary crushing. They are similar to cone crushers as they both have cone-shaped rotating shafts. The spinning shaft is used to crush the material against the wall of the crusher. Reduction ratio = 8:1
Cone crushers
Cone crushers also have shafts that move back and forth. They can be used as a primary crusher when the input size isn't too large. They are best used in the later stages of crushing (secondary onwards) as they make a higher spec output than a gyratory crusher. Reduction ratio = 7:1 to 5:1 (depending on size)
Impact crushers
Impact crushers can be used at any stage of the crushing process. They have a rotor that has “hammers”. These hit the material being fed into the machine and throw it against impact plates inside the crusher breaking it down. Reduction ratio = 10:1
How to choose the right primary crusher
Choosing the right size and type of primary crusher is really important if you want to get the best output and performance from your machines. There are a few things to keep in mind when trying to decide on the right primary crusher for your business. Here are some key points to think about.
- What do you need your crusher to do?
- What type of materials will you be working with - is it hard rock or soft rock, big pieces or smaller pieces?
- Where will you be using your crusher - and do you need to move it on tracks about a job site?
- Input to output ratio you need?
Where can I buy a primary crusher?
Would you like to buy a primary crusher? Contact Machinery Partner today. We have experts on hand to help you find the best equipment for your needs and budget. Want to upgrade your equipment for more efficient crushing? ... We can help you with that too- with our full range of crushers, screeners, excavators, conveyors and more!
