Fly Ash Pump Applications

Fly Ash or Coal Ash is a difficult material to pump due to its abrasive nature. Learn how the EDDY Pump helps to overcome these issues with its superior design and performance.

Fly Ash and Coal Ash Pumping Applications:

oil and gas eddy pump

  • Tailing Ponds
  • Poly-Lined Tailings Ponds
  • River Cleanups
  • Sumps
  • Concrete Basins
  • Process Pumps
  • Fly Ash Transport, Mixing, and Remediation

Fly Ash Pumping Problems

Fly Ash or Coal Ash is a difficult material to pump due to its abrasive nature.   Centrifugal pumps quickly get worn down and lose their tolerances and suction capabilities.  This results in significant downtime and costly spare parts.

The fly ash accumulates in many stages of the power generation process and proves to be very costly and time-consuming to remove.  The most troublesome stages are dealing with the lined and unlined tailings ponds, rivers, sumps, and concrete basins.

Tailings ponds and rivers continuously need to be cleaned out to increase capacity.  Finding the right pump and dredging equipment can often be a complicated process.  Centrifugal pumps will only pump 10-20% solids by weight.  This means that most of the discharge is water and very little fly ash is coming out of the pipeline. In contrast, the EDDY Pump design can pump 40-70% solid by volume. Pump less water, more solids.

Furthermore, the abrasive nature of the fly ash destroys the impeller of the pump and causes pump failures, costly repairs and spare parts. Our pump has a high tolerance ultra-recessed rotor that withstands the destructive nature of fly ash.

Tailings ponds are often lined with plastic to minimizes the seepage of contaminants.  This makes it more difficult for conventional equipment to dredge or mechanically remove the fly ash sediment without damaging the liner. We have a liner-safe wheel option for the excavator attachment.

Sumps are often the most difficult areas in a power generation plant to handle.  Fly ash, coal chunks, rocks and other debris are washed into sumps and continuously need to be pumped out.  Centrifugal pumps get clogged and constantly wear out because of the tolerances between the impeller and the volute.

The EDDY Pump is a non-clogging pump and can easily pass any piece of coal or debris without clogging.  Furthermore, since the EDDY Pump does not have an impeller, there is no issue with wearing down and losing tolerance.

The EDDY Pump can be run electrically or hydraulically in the sump or even self-priming to move from sump to sump. The electric EDDY Pump can be submersible if needed and have sensors incorporated to automatically turn the pump on and off as the depth of the sump increases and decreases. In turn, the EDDY Pump will run continuously with significantly less spare parts needed and saving the power plant millions in total ownership cost.

Large concrete-lined basins will accumulate with fly ash and the only solution to deal with them has been slow and costly vacuum trucks.  The EDDY Pump can be mounted on an excavator or deployed from a crane to pump the material directly back into the process or into tailings ponds.  This saves the client tens of thousands of dollars on vacuum trucks and even more money in having to shut down operation.

There are many process pumps and conveyors in a power plant that deal with moving coal, fly ash, and other abrasive and caustic slurries and solutions.  The EDDY Pump’s ability to move high solids allow it to replace the need for conveyors and save power plants millions of dollars in conveyor systems with constant maintenance issues.  The low pH and abrasive nature of these slurries do not have the same negative effect on the EDDY Pump and in turn the EDDY Pump can last many years longer than centrifugal pumps while saving the power plant millions of dollars.

Fly Ash Remediation is becoming a bigger and bigger issue in the power generation industry.   Utilizing the EDDY Pump, you can recirculate and mix the fly ash with cement or lime to create a homogenous mixture. After it is mixed the same pumps can then pump the material over distances of 5 plus miles where it can be utilized for construction or better disposal because of its stabilized nature.

Equipment Options For Job:

EDDY Pump Dredge Equipment

The EDDY Pump can be deployed in various dredge configurations to optimize cleanup of tailings ponds and rivers.  Some of the ideal deployments for fly ash tailings ponds are Excavator Pump Attachments, Liner-Safe Dredges, Cable-Deployed Pumps, Autonomous Dredges, Spud-Dredges, and the Subdredge.

Excavator Dredge Pump Attachment

Excavator Dredge for Fly Ash

The EDDY Pump Excavator Dredge Pump Attachment is one of our most popular units.

It allows any power generation or contracting company with little or no experience in dredging to easily convert one of their existing excavators or a rental into a hydraulic dredge.  An excavator operator can then easily learn to operator the Excavator Pump Attachment with only a few hours of training.  The Excavator Pump gets pinned to the end of the excavator boom and can either be used with a cutterhead or a liner safe rolling attachment.  The liner-safe wheels allow the pump to easily glide over the liner without having any negative affect, but still removing all the fly ash.

Slurry hose is then connected to the pump and run along the boom of the excavator over the back of the excavator and connected into pipeline.  The pump can easily move material at rates of up to 400 cubic yards over distances of over a mile at solids rates of 40-70%.  This is all done creating little to no contaminant resuspension or detectable turbidity.  This is the most environmentally friendly dredge on the market.  Please click here to see more about proper pump and excavator size for your application: Excavator Dredge Pump Attachment Info 

Cable-Deployed Pump

Coal Ash Cable Hanging Pump

The EDDY Pump Cable-Deployed Pump with water jetting system is ideal for projects where a crane is available.  The EDDY Pump can be run electrically or hydraulically and suspended from the crane on a cable.  The water-jetting system breaks up the material and feeds the EDDY Pump. Cable Deployed Dredge info Here

Autonomous Dredge

autonomous dredge barge equipment eddy pump

For tailings ponds lined or unlined which need continuous dredging, the EDDY Pump Autonomous Dredge is a great solution that minimizes manpower and can run 24/7.   This is a floating unit that is automated to run continuously without an operator.  The pump is deployed from floats and can be powered by an electric or hydraulic power system. Autonomous Dredge Info Here.

Spud Dredge

For ultimate precision dredging the EDDY Pump 4-spud self-advancing dredge is ideal for surgical digging.  This 4-spud self-advancing dredge can dredge at depths of up to 30-ft and target fly ash at high solid contents.

Subdredge ROV

Coal Ash tool Subdredge ROV

The EDDY Pump Subdredge is a remote-operated submersible dredge that can dredge at depths of greater than 100-ft.  The Subdredge has the smallest dredge footprint on the market.  The Subdredge can be powered electrically or hydraulically and pump material at rates of up to 400 cubic yards of material an hour at pumping distances of over a mile. Submersible Subdredge ROV Info Here.

Process Pumps (Sumps & Custom Applications)

Fly Ash Process Pumps

The same EDDY Pump that powers all of the equipment shown can be used as a stand alone process pump. Mount it vertically, horizontally, submerged, dry, and power it electric or hydraulic. We specialize in matching the ideal setup to your application. Custom pumps are our specialty. Process Pump Info Here.

Questions? Call Us: 619-404-1916

Tell us about your project. See the custom pump curve page and we can start the first step of a quote to determine if your project is a fit for our equipment. Contact Us Here

Fly Ash Pumping Scenario

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Applications: Power Generation, Coal Fire Plant, Fly Ash Pumping

The purpose of this page is to identify your application and learn more about an equipment solution to meet your needs. These are the most common fly ash applications that we work with. We are the OEM for the tools shown.

Application: Fly Ash Removal. Coal Ash and Fly Ash Pits at energy plants
Material: Ash. Fine and abrasive, in slurry form.

Common Fly Ash Scenario:

The EDDY Pump Excavator Attachment is ideal for pumping fly ash or coal ash from waterways, ash pits, lined ponds or other bodies of water.   

By attaching the EDDY Pump to a standard boom or long boom excavator you can get reach of up to 75-ft and handle the most difficult applications.  The EDDY Pump allows you to pump the fly ash at distances over 2-miles at production rates of up to 600 tons of ash per hour or 5000 GPM.  

Optional upgrade, add liner-safe rollers, it also gives you the ability to dredge on concrete lined sumps or poly-lined reservoirs.

Below are commonly distances we see, along with a pump curve to match the details. Contact us with your exact numbers.

Distance: 2500 ft
Vertical Rise: 30 ft
Production: 1414 GPM

Equipment Used: EDDY Pump 6 Inch Excavator Attachment. Cutter Head OR Roller Wheel setup.
Excavator Type: CAT 320 or larger (or equivalent model excavator)
Optional HPU: Excavator powered attachment OR a separate Hydraulic Power Unit (HPU) will power the pump attachment.  The ideal option is based on your project requirements.

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Sales Quote With Custom Pump Curve

Do you know specifics about your project? Let us know and we can create your own personalized pump curve.


See How EDDY Pumps Are Better

Slurry and Fly Ash Video

If you have questions about your application, contact us.

Fly Ash Pumping Photos

Photos of recent ash pumping projects. Power plans and ash slurry ponds are the primary clients of EDDY Pump.

Why EDDY Pumps Are Better – Highlights

This video shows how EDDY Pump beats out traditional centrifugal pumps when it comes to tough slurry and abrasive materials. EDDY Pump is the at the heart of all of our featured dredge pump equipment including the Remote Operated Subdredge, Diver Operated Pump and a Excavator Attachment Dredge Pump.

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If you need help with Pump Selection, Sales or Engineering Support
Call 619-404-1916