What Crushers Are

Crushing equipment reduces large materials into a smaller size. A typical impact crusher or other type of rock crusher uses a great deal of force to reduce the size of rocks. They operate on mechanical force for breaking apart the large rocks as opposed to chemical or laser methods of breaking rocks. In many cases, primary crushers are a part of a large materials handling system. They work along with sorters, conveyors and screening machines. Some rock crushers are portable, while others are set up in stationary systems.

What Crushers Do

Industrial crushers have chambers with heavy, durable jaws or plates. Those plates or jaws come together in order to crush materials. Raw materials are fed into the crusher. The plates or jaws move up and down in order to efficiently reduce the size of materials. Many sites have multiple types of crushers. This is because heavy duty crushers, such as jaw crushers, are designed to handle the largest pieces of rock. A secondary crusher, such as a cone crusher, reduces those pieces into even finer materials. After the tertiary crushing stages, the smaller pieces are fed into a screener or sorter for additional processing.

Where Crushers Are Used

Many industries make use of industrial crushers.  Quarrying, mining operations, construction, demolition, and recycling are the primary industries that use this heavy equipment. Some of the end products made by large industrial crushers include certified coarse aggregates for road construction, site construction, and pipelaying projects, as well as rock salt for use on icy or snowy roads, and glass for re-melting and recycling into new products.