There is little rest for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers repair fleet as the team moves from Emsworth Locks and Dams to the next inland navigation project at Hannibal Locks and Dam.
The repair fleet finished upgrades at Emsworth and left the site, Friday, Nov. 13. The following Monday, Nov. 16, the team begins scheduled maintenance on the auxiliary gate operating machinery at Hannibal Locks and Dam, located in Hannibal, OH.
At Hannibal, the sector gears will be rehabbed in all four chamber gates. A sector gear is a semi-circle shaped gear engaged to a racking gear operated by hydraulic cylinders. As the racking gear is pushed, the sector gears rotate to open and close the gates.
"We're going to disconnect all of this and take the sector gear off its main hub in the center," said Greg Turko, project engineer Pittsburgh District. "There is a large pin it rotates around that is embedded in the concrete. We'll remove it and install a new one, ensuring everything is within tolerances."
Rehabbing the project ensures the auxiliary chamber's reliability for main chamber valve work scheduled to occur in the fall of 2021, followed by miter gate repairs in 2022.
Hannibal Locks and Dam is located at mile marker 126.4 on the Ohio River and is one of six major river facilities in the Pittsburgh District. The facility features two lock chambers and one gated dam. The lock chambers were constructed in 1967 and opened to river traffic in 1972.
The 110-feet x 600-feet auxiliary chamber will be closed from Nov. 16 through Dec. 22. The small chamber remains open to river traffic while repairs are performed.