Wash water dewatering from track ballast processing at GBH

THE WINKLEPRESS AS A HELPER AND PROBLEM SOLVER FOR DISPOSAL AND RECYCLING

The company GBH – “Gesellschaft für Baustoff-Aufbereitung und Handel mbH” – in Hofolding, Bavaria, is rightly regarded as a specialist in the recycling of building substances, the cleanup of contaminated soils and the recycling of mineral residues.
As a certified waste management company, GBH works closely with the environmental authorities. Satisfied customers such as Deutsche Bahn AG rely on GBH when it comes to track ballast processing. Sharp-edged track ballast is the basis for a stable substructure in the track bed. The constant dynamic loading of the track ballast, caused by high density in rail traffic, reduces the original serviceability of the track ballast. It loses its supporting and stabilizing function. Regular replacement or recycling of the “worn” ballast is therefore important. GBH has been successfully using a WPK 2 WinklePress for dewatering the associated track ballast wash water for over 15 years.
Due to a higher volume of residual materials, the company was looking for a capacity expansion.

Thanks to the very positive experience with the existing WinklePress, the choice for the new investment fell on a WPI 4 WinklePress.
With a feed concentration of approx. 20% dry solids, the Bellmer belt press processes almost 30 m³ of wash water per hour. The good experience gained over the past 15 years, the fully automatic, smooth 24-hour operation and the easy accessibility for cleaning and maintenance were the decisive reasons for choosing the Bellmer press. The existing plant components were adapted to the 50% increase in throughput capacity and could thus continue to be used.
Thanks to the effective dewatering capacity, coupled with the high separation efficiency of the WinklePress, 100% of the filtrate produced is reused as washing water. As a result, no washing water is discharged into the sewerage system and fresh water consumption is reduced to a minimum.