NCB Coal Research Establishment, Stoke Orchard - Various Dates '09 REPORT
This is my first report on this forum, hope it's OK, if not I will be more than happy to correct it.
I have visited this huge site, just north of Cheltenham in the snug little village of Stoke Orhcard, four times and every trip revealed something new. A bit of history to begin;
Opened in 1950 by British Coals Jacob Brownowski, the CRE's main objective was to improve the efficiency of burning coal, whilst also trying to keep emissions down. In its later years, the CRE ventured into producing crude oil from coal, but unfortunately the process was expensive and inefficient and so never caught on. However, the method did actually produce oil and the CRE housed an experimental 1970's Ford Torino that run on this new oil. The Coal Liquefaction facilities are still located on the site, run down and derelict, and were operational until the last days of the CRE. The scientists working there obviously though they could make the process economically viable.
When the British Coal Industry was privatised in 1994, the government refused to fund the CRE, and so it closed its doors. Almost all of the site remains, with just one building being converted into a trading estate, which still houses a division of the NCB.
On with the pics...
This was the loading bay of the largest building on site, which is most visible due to it's large chimneys...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...01/Stripes.jpg
Inside the loading bay, there is a large cavernous space with lots of rooms off the side, pipes up above and staircases going in all directions...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q.../Confusion.jpg
Upstairs, there were several huge hoppers that fed down into the loading bay, allowing coal to be loaded on/off vehicles...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...01/hoppers.jpg
These hoppers had there own control room to operate flow etc...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...01/Control.jpg
It was really fun pressing every button, but then again, I have always been childish...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...ot101/Fans.jpg
This large spherical cage really confused me. It wasn't until I spoke to someone who used to work in this building that I learned it was a large thermometer. Two electrical terminals fed into it and this somehow measured temperature. There were lots of these scattered around the place...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...01/thecage.jpg
Yet more pipes...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q.../piedpiper.jpg
Leaving this building, I found another building split into offices, labs and a large machine room. This was in the machine room; I would not want to get my tie caught in that...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...ot101/cogs.jpg
Off the machine room was a "coal sorting room". The person I spoke to who used to work here said coal was delivered in blue tubs visible in the bottom left corner. It was then placed on the machine visible under the plastic flaps. The trays with different sized holes that are stacked against the machine would be fitted, and then the machine would shake violently. The different sized lumps of coal would filter through, leaving large lumps on top and tiny grains below. Kind of like an industrial seive...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q.../ovenbaked.jpg
Inside one of the labs was a delicate system of pipes and valves, presumably for the gases being burned...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...t101/valve.jpg
Inside the largest building on site were these funky doors. I want them in my house...
http://i431.photobucket.com/albums/q...1/firstaid.jpg
It's a great place and definitely worth a visit if you are in the area.
