System and method for making a block for gravity energy storage
A system for making blocks for gravity energy storage includes an extrusion press machine with a receiving chamber for receiving raw material, a compaction chamber and a pressing wall driven by a piston to push the raw material into the compaction chamber to compact the material to form a block. One or more of a top wall, opposite side walls and the pressing wall are moved away from the a center of the compaction chamber to allow the block to elastically expand prior to exiting the compaction chamber.
1. A system for making blocks for gravity energy storage, comprising:
an extrusion press machine, comprising:
a receiving chamber configured to receive material for forming a block,
a compaction chamber in communication with the receiving chamber, the compaction chamber including a base, a pair of opposite sidewalls and a top wall,
a gate operable to open or close a distal end of the compaction chamber, and
a piston actuatable to slidably move a pressing wall across the receiving chamber and into the compaction chamber with the gate in a closed position to press the material into contact with the gate, the pair of opposite sidewalls, the top wall, the pressing wall and a plate positioned on a base wall of the compaction chamber in order to compact the material within the compaction chamber to form the block,
wherein one or more of the pair of opposite sidewalls, the top wall and the pressing wall are operable to move away from a center of the compaction chamber to allow the block to elastically expand to an expanded position while positioned on the plate and prior to exiting from the compaction chamber,
wherein the gate is operable to open the distal end of the compaction chamber to allow the block in the expanded position to exit the compaction chamber,
wherein the pair of opposite sidewalls each comprise a first tapered edge and a movable plate having a second tapered edge facing the first tapered edge and movably engaging each of the pair of opposite sidewalls, the movable plate is coupled to a second piston operable to move the movable plate in a direction orthogonal to a direction of each of the pair of opposite sidewalls, the movable plate operable to move in a first direction to cause each of the pair of opposite sidewalls to move toward a center of the compaction chamber, the movable plate operable to move in a second direction opposite the first direction to cause each of the pair of opposite sidewalls to move away from the center of the compaction chamber.
2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the pair of opposite sidewalls, the top wall and the pressing wall are all operable to simultaneously move away from the center of the compaction chamber to allow the formed block to elastically expand in three dimensions while positioned on the plate.
3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the material comprises dirt and one or more additives or binding agents.
4. The system of claim 1 , wherein the piston is a plurality of pistons.
5. The system of claim 1 , wherein each of the pair of opposite sidewalls is configured to move out of contact with the formed block when moved away from the center of the compaction chamber.
6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the top wall comprises a third tapered edge and a fourth tapered edge, a first movable plate having a fifth tapered edge facing the third tapered edge and a second movable plate having a sixth tapered edge facing the fourth tapered edge, the first and second movable plates operable to move in a first direction to cause the top wall to move toward a center of the compaction chamber, the first and second movable plates operable to move in a second direction opposite the first direction to cause the top wall to move away from the center of the compaction chamber.
7. The system of claim 6 , wherein the first movable plate and the second movable plate are each operatively coupled to a third piston operable to move the first movable plate and the second movable plate in a direction orthogonal to a direction of motion of the top wall.
8. The system of claim 6 , wherein the top wall is configured to move out of contact with the formed block when moved away from the center of the compaction chamber.
9. The system of claim 1 , further comprising a conveyor distally of the distal end of the compaction chamber, the conveyor configured to convey the block to a distal end of the conveyor.
10. The system of claim 9 , further comprising a cover that extends over the conveyor to shelter the block as it is conveyed along a length of the conveyor, the cover configured to protect the block from sunlight and configured to provide a controlled environment to facilitate a curing of the block.
11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the controlled environment is a temperature controlled environment or humidity controlled environment.
12. The system of claim 9 , further comprising a tilt machine aligned with a distal end of the conveyor, the tilt machine configured to receive the block while it is positioned on the plate in a first orientation and operable to tilt the block and the plate to a second orientation orthogonal to the first orientation.
13. The system of claim 12 , wherein the tilt machine is operable by a fourth piston to rotate from a first position aligned with the distal end of the conveyor to a second position orthogonal to the distal end of the conveyor.
14. The system of claim 12 , further comprising a plate carrying machine configured to couple to the plate once the block has been removed from the tilt machine, to clean the plate and to carry the plate to a proximal end of the conveyor proximate the distal end of the extrusion press machine, so that the plate can be reintroduced into the compaction chamber aligned with the pair of opposite sidewalls.
15. The system of claim 1 , wherein the receiving chamber comprises one or more doors operable to move between a first position that exposes an opening into the receiving chamber via which the material is introduced and a second position that closes the opening.
16. The system of claim 15 , wherein the one or more doors is a pair of doors.
17. The system of claim 16 , wherein the one or more doors is actuatable between the first position and the second position by one or more pistons.
18. A system for making blocks for gravity energy storage, comprising:
an extrusion press machine, comprising:
a receiving chamber configured to receive material for forming a block,
a compaction chamber in communication with the receiving chamber, the compaction chamber including a base, a pair of opposite sidewalls and a top wall,
a gate operable to open or close a distal end of the compaction chamber,
a piston actuatable to slidably move a pressing wall across the receiving chamber and into the compaction chamber with the gate in a closed position to press the material into contact with the gate, the pair of opposite sidewalls, the top wall and the pressing wall to compact the material within the compaction chamber to form a block, and
one or more second pistons operable to move the pair of opposite sidewalls and the top wall toward or away from a center of the compaction chamber to allow the formed block to elastically expand prior to exiting the compaction chamber,
wherein the pair of opposite sidewalls each comprise a first tapered edge and a movable plate having a second tapered edge facing the first tapered edge and movably engaging each of the pair of opposite sidewalls, the one or more second pistons operable to move the movable plate in a first direction to cause each of the pair of opposite sidewalls to move toward a center of the compaction chamber, the one or more second pistons operable to move the movable plate in a second direction opposite the first direction to cause each of the pair of opposite sidewalls to move away from the center of the compaction chamber.