August 7, 2023
As Florin Pasca, site manager Nitrex Ltd., explains "decommissioned since the 1960s, the Vimercate aqueduct tower was 32 meters and rested on a supporting structure consisting of 6 reinforced concrete pillars.
With complete disconnection from the public aqueduct and showing all the signs of wear and tear over ages, BrianzAcque decided to demolish it – continues Pasca – “given its particular location, in the suburbs of the built-up area and on the border with agricultural fields, it was possible to demolish it using explosives, a demolition technique that is well suited to the purpose as it has numerous advantages: it is cost-effective and obviously quicker than mechanical demolition, both in terms of execution and of subsequent clearing of the area, resulting in a minimal impact on the surrounding area and population."
"The difference between these three versions is very little, so much so that it's also the strength of these cutters, a kind of specialization and flexibility together. Concerning the equipment supplied to Nitrex, we chose a CC 1600 U, a 1600 kg hydraulic cutter suitable for excavators from 13 to 23 tons, precisely because it was to be mounted on a 13-ton excavator, specifically a CAT 313 Next Gen. The U jaw is 330 millimeter wide and mounts a double row of teeth, demonstrating a propensity for primary demolition of heavily reinforced concrete. In addition," continues Cossu – “all three models U, P, S turn out to be particularly productive: being cutters with double cylinder configuration they are very strong, they are able to transfer very well the cutting force onto the material as well as being very fast: thanks to the speed valve that allows to speed up the extension or retraction of the cylinders, we are talking about an opening/closing cycle of 1.3 seconds. Above all, I would like to emphasize that in double-cylinder cutters, the cutting force is transferred more effectively because the two jaws are activated independently by their respective cylinders and there is no transverse component of resisting force that is created in single cylinders, this component tending to flex the excavator arm, on the one hand side it creates problems for the excavator itself because it creates mechanical stress and in the long run, in addition to creating wear and damage, goes to reduce the cutting force itself; moreover, from maximum opening to full closure a double clamp cylinder maintains the full force of the clamping force, when in contrast a single-cylinder cutter comes to lose as much as 30 to 40 percent of energy."
