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Central or Girth Gear Drive For Ball Mills
Central or Girth Gear Drive For Ball Mills
Central or Girth Gear Drive For Ball Mills
C E NT R A L
DRIVE
GIRTH GEAR
BY
W. ACKLE
Introduction
ZURICH
OR
DRIVE
SWITZERLAND
For medium and high capacity cement mills particularly, this question presents itself
to the cement manufacturer again and again.
Alongside the purely economic considerations it is often necessary to also view the
situation deriving from the competitive strenght of the mill builder.
Basically the assessment should be a realistic comparison of the differing features
between central drive and girth gear drive with respect to reliability and economy.
It is to be repeatedly noticed, however, that ideas concerning these points a r e often
f a r from complete, and a r e presented in widely different manners. These deficiencies
become apparent when, in the event of damage Lncurred, calculative checks fail to reveal a definite e r r o r .
Drive system
Girth gear drive and central drive a r e mechanical systems designed t o reduce the motor
speed to the working speed of the mill. Transmission i s via gears.
Gear units comprise basically : Fig. 1
- rotating parts with shafts and gears
and
stationary parts, i. e . housings and bearings.
Figure 1:
Main elements of a gearbox and ideal tooth bearing pattern.
Certainly the gear tooth design is probably the most important item. But the position of the plant shafts a s governed by the housing design, the kind of connection
between the rotating parts, and the monitoring of the operating conditions a r e of
no mean significance.
Power transmission by the rotating parts can only take place flawlessly if these
a r e held in optimum position by the housing during operation. An inadequate housing jeopardizes the safety factor of the gearing. The latter is calculated to recognized formulae, and is referred exclusively to the gear teeth.
The plant engineer, on the other hand, must judge the drive system a s a whole.
The difficulty lies in taking all influential factors into account and weighing them
in correct proportion in the overall safety assessment.
Strict difference is to be made between well known factors of influence, and such
others a s a r e discernible in their effect only, but of which the magnitudes a r e
indefinable.
-----------------------I.
SAFETY
expressed by
11.
Determining of operating costs and total costs for a given number of years of
service.
----------
'
Example :
Ball mill
9000 H P
Motor speed
Mill speed
R/L ill
diameter
Mill bearing
990 rpm
14 rpm
5m
22 m
--------------
Project A
Project B
---------
1 Annulus, 2 pinions
1 Main motor
2 Main motors
1 Turning gear
2 Turning gears
I.
SAFETY
---=Numerically non-definable factors which diminish the safety
.......................................
Divided into 4 groups, viz. :
System
items 1
-5
Manufacture
items 6
-8
Installation
items 9
- 12
Operation
items I 3
- 23
SYSTEM
1.
A:
Reduction gear and girth gear transmission with mill a s gear axis. Fig. 2A
Tooth contact of girth gear dependent on deformation and position of mill. Fig. 8
B:
2.
A:
B:
3.
A.
B:
1 motor
4.
A:
B:
Figure 3:
Gear cutting of a split girth gear for a cement mill having an input power of
2200 H P
5.
Separate mill
A:
Damage to mill cylinder, neck or stub endanger girth gear and pinion.
Repairs entail extra work for girth gear dismantling.
B:
Damage to mill cylinder cannot endanger gear teeth. Mill repairs do not
entail gear dismantling.
KAANUFAC T U RE
6.
A:
Casting of such workpieces free from shrinkage holes and pores, Pig. 3,
calls for great skill. The form of the workpiece does not allow a dependable check on the soundness of the material.
Flaws a r e often only detectable during tooth cutting. This leads to weld
filling and a permanent risk of crack propagation.
Figure 4:
Gear cutting of a n annulus second reduction for a 8500 IIP Heuvy-Duty-Plane t a r y g e a r driving a cement mill.
B:
7.
A:
Figure 5:
Checking of the deformations of a girth gear with dial indicators on the reference
faces for radial and axial run-out before and after gear cutting. Intermediate checking after the roughing operation.
Out of round g e a r teeth, Fig. 6, cause overload due to acceleration and decelura t ion.
Pitch e r r o r a t the joints, Fig. 6, causes knocking in the drive train, vibration
and slaclrening of nuts. Tooth bearing contact degenerates and wear increases.
Axial run-out of the teeth around the girth g e a r is frequently the result of deformed joint s u r f a c e s of the girth g e a r halves and axial run-out of the girth gear
location surfaces.
Axial run-out can also be caused by altered s t r e s s conditions during operation.
Tooth flank overloading, oil film breakdown and wear are the possible outcome.
Improvement m a y be attained by the following procedure:
In normal case:
.
.
- 10 hours
8.
Nlill flange
A:
Radial and axial run-out of the mill flange are not seldom quite considerable, Fig. 7. They i m p a i r tooth contact, and are difficult t o eliminate l a t e r
during installation.
B:
No equivalent influence.
Figure 7 :
Machining errors on the w i l l flange.
Run-out e r r o r X on g i r t h g e a r mounting.
A:
B:
10.
A:
Large concrete surface at mill drive end, Fig. 2A, with increased
tendency towards cracking.
Shaft position s h s t , impairment of tooth contact, and r i s k of wear.
B:
Mostly common foundation block, Fig, ZB, for mill and drive unit.
Risk of foundation cracking negligible. No impairment of tooth contact possible.
11.
A:
B:
No equivalent influence.
12.
A:
After temporary alignment of the teeth of pinion and girth gear with the
mill empty, Fig. 8a, re-alignment should be undertaken with the mill
filled with mill balls, i. e. with reference to the elastic sag in cold condition, Fig. 8b.
Final tooth contact adjustments a r e made on reaching the operating temperature of about 1 2 0 ~ 6 Fig.
,
8c.
Service reports reveal that these operations a r e carried out in part only
or not at all.
Moreover the elastic mill sag in hot o r cold condition can vary, depending on the position of the man-hole.
--Figure 8:
Girth gear deviation a) to f ) during different running conditions.
INSTA LLATION
9.
A:
B:
A:
Large concrete surface at mill drive end, Fig. 2A, with increased
tendency towards cracking.
Shaft position shift, impairment of tooth contact, and risk of wear.
B:
Mostly common foundation block, Fig. 2B, for mill and drive unit.
A:
girth gear is to be fitted to the mill body in the same position with
respect to radial run-out, a s it had for finish tooth cutting on the
machine. In practice this is not usually attainable. After installation, the teeth of a girth gear of 7.5 diameter, for example, can
be expected to have a radial run-out of 1-2 rnm and more; Fig. 7.
The resulting fluctuations in angular velocity mean additional loading on the teeth.
B:
No equivalent influence.
12.
A:
After temporary alignment of the teeth of pinion and girth gear with the
mill empty, Fig. 8a, re-alignment should be undertaken with the mill
filled with mill balls, i. e . with reference to the elastic sag in cold condition, Fig. 8b.
Final tooth contact adjustments a r e made on reaching the operating temperature of about l2o0c, Fig. 8c.
Service reports reveal that these operations a r e carried out in part only
o r not at all.
Moreover the elastic mill sag in hot o r cold condition can vary, depending on the position of the man-hole.
Figure 8:
G i r t h gear deviation a) to f) during different running conditions.
B:
Aligning and re-aligning of the charged mill gives little trouble. There
can be no detrimental effect on the gear teeth.
Table I to Fig. 8:
Condition
deviation
Vertical deviation
Radial run-out
a)
Empty mill
cold
b)
Charged mill
cold
Axial run-out
Y 1
Vertical position X 1
c)
Charged mill at
operating temperature
Axial run-out
Y2
d)
Start - up after
shift stop
Balls warm
Wobble Y 3
Radial run-out X 3
Radial run-out D 3 - D 2
e)
Mill bearing
wear
Wobble
Vertical position X 4
Mill axis drop X 5
f)
Wobble
Vertical position X 6
Mill axis drop X 7
2'
OPERA TION
13.
A:
B:
14.
A:
B:
Gear teeth not hazarded, even if the mill is not turned at intervals.
15.
A:
Pitch e r r o r s between the two girth gear halves due t o temperature influence can never be avoided completely in practice, Fig. 9. They can
a t most be limited by taking special precautions.
Knocking, acceleration and deceleration, lubricating film break-down,
loading of nuts and bolts and accordingly risk of w e a r , are results.
B:
No equivalent influence.
Figure 9:
Gaping (K) of split g i r t h g e a r faces due t o t e m p e r a t u r e difference during
operation (run-out and shocks).
16.
W e a r in mill bearings
4
- 6 rnm w e a r
B:
17.
A:
Tooth end bearing girth gear and pinion with flank wear and unpredictable
production drop-out. Tooth contact remains impaired even after the situation is corrected.
B:
18.
Lubrication safety
For individual elements of equal quality, lubrication safety drops with increasing number of:
- Lubrication circuits
- Lubrication pumps
- Monitoring instruments
- Various lubricants
A:
Reduction gear
- 7 pumps a r e required,
Requirements :
1 lubricating circuit, 1 pump, about 4 monitoring instruments and 1 kind
of lubricant.
19.
A:
Regular checking with ratification of the functional condition of 96 moniloring instruments, including the appropriate electrical circuits with signal
transmission, complicates cement plant supervision considerably.
B:
20.
A:
B:
21.
c o l d start
A:
B:
22.
A:
(-IOOC
to
ISOC)
c o o l e r , d u e t o viscosity change.
B:
23.
Influence of d i r t on g i r t h g e a r lubrication
A:
B:
No equivalent influences.
Figure 10:
Girth gear drive of a ball mill with girth gear guard, intermediate shaft and gear
coup1ing.
Conclusions:
If t h e t w o d r i v e s y s t e m s a r e d e s i g n e d w i t h t h e s a m e s a f e t y
f a c t o r s t o r e c o g n i z e d f o r m u l a e , t h e e f f e c t i v e s a f e t y in t h e
two s y s t e m s n e v e r t h e l e s s differ widely. With the g i r t h gea
d r i v e , Fig. 10 and ZA, the numerically non-definable facto
of i n f l u e n c e a r e n u m e r o u s , w h e r e a s w i t h t h e p l a n e t a r y g e a l
drive,
Fig.
A realistic,
11 a n d 2 B , t h e y a r e n e g l i g a b l e f e w .
c o m p a r a b l e s a f e t y f a c t o r c a l c u l a t i o n i s not
p o s s i b l e i n t h e c a s e of s y s t e m A .
Figure 11:
Cement mill with MAAG Heavy-Duty Planetary g e a r , Type P2U3-70/110 for max.
input power of 6500 HP a t 985/14 RPNl.
Efficiency
A)
Energy losses :
2 tooth meshing points (1 girth gear 2 pinions)
4 intermediate pinion bearings (friction bearings)
B)
Note:
Excess energy requirements of double-pinion girth gear drive relative to central
d r lve with planetary gear at 8000 h. a year.
.
.
in 10 years
corresponding to
Costs a t 0.09 Fr. /kwh of
With the energy loss difference, 1 mill of 6 . 4 blW and 26.3 kWh/t (2700~ r n ~ / ~ )
2 million Sfr. can be covered, assumiug an interest of 7%.
The significance of the safety factor becomes manifest in the form of production
loss in the event of a mill stoppage.
Production loss
Standstill
--
months
in tons
135'000
11 Mio.
810'000
66 Mio.
costs B
- 20 times
costs B
costs B
I6O-
140-
.-C
ln
100 7
0
140.-
.-ln
120--
ma ntenance,
C1
160
I r maintenance
+.'
11
120--
1
I
L spare parts
1
I
4
5
-years--,
15
K)
-years-+
15
Figure 12:
Total costs f o r operation (energy, maintenance, spare parts) in function of the
operating gears ; based on 8000 h p e r year and S. F r s . 0.09 p e r kwh.
It would appear most obvious to make decision chiefly on the basis of the cumulative costs, Fig. 12, which also includes energy consumption. For various
reasons this is very often not the case.
The primary factor for judgement of the various proposals is often the initial
purchasing price alone.
Whilst the cement manufacturer wisheta to make the utmost use of his available
resources, the plant builders prime aim is sales.
If, on the purchasing slde, there a r e more o r less independent temas for plan-
ning and purchasing on the one hand, and for lator operation on the other hand,
an overhead team should keep a healthy balance between the two spheres. This
team must doubtless base its decisions on the cumulative oosts over a certain
period of service. The entities "safety" and lleconomyHa r e to play a realistic
part in the considerations.
B o t t o m p r i c e s a t t a i n e d b y c l e v e r m a n i p u l a t i o n on t h e p a r t
of t h e b u y e r c a n d e v e l o p i n t o a n e x p e n s i v e m a t t e r w i t h t h e
p a s s i n g of t h e y e a r s .
Extreme competitive conditions prompt the flexlble plant designer to present
his proposals in a manner promising most chance of success.
Spare parts costs and the cumulative costs of say 10 years are often not mentioned until a seoond transactton phase begins after signing of contract. Above
all, under the influence of an inexpensive purchase, the running costs a r e
quitely transferred to the later finite running costs calculations. In reality it
is beyond all doubt that production r e ~ u l t sa r e painfully dependent on the
quality oi the plant. This above all, in those oases where there is no surplus
of manufacturing energy, and where skilled labour ia expensive.
May the above discourse contribute to the formation of an authentic impression a s t o what part the selected drive system plays in the economic
expectat ions of the projected cement manufacturing plant.
Summary
Particularly for mills of high productive capacity it is necessary to install drives
of high dependability. S ~ f e t yfactor and economy a r e the governing criteria for
assessment. The application of these criteria to both systems is described. Safety
factors expressive capacity for the whole plant a r e only derivable for plants with
numerically definable factors of influence. The reason why the girth gear drive
system is unsuitable is presented by comparing the most important, indefinable
factors of influence.
Bibliography
1)
2)
Ackle, W.:
Heavy Duty Planetary Gears for Driving Large Ball Mills.
Ackle, W. :
Economical Dr tve System for Large Ball Mills with Heavy-Duty Planetary
Gears
Zement-Kalk-Gips 1 (1975)43
Copyright by M A A G Zurich
Printed in Switzerland