Loesche Seminar VCM Study Dec03

Technical
g
e
n
d
a
Advance Lever Production & Process

Network GRINDING
Study
Vertical Cement Mill
December 2003
Foreword
The Vertical Mill Study has been carried out in the frame of the "Technical Agenda".
The target was to gather the latest knowledge about this type of mill and to define the
strategy of the Division when investing in a new cement mill. This study is only the
first part ; there will further parts updating our knowledge on the Horomill and on the
Roller press. Nevertheless, the VCM study is the largest part.
All 5 Technical Centres under coordination of DPC have were involved in the study.
The team spent many days on this study and did this task with a great enthusiasm.
We want to thank all contributors, mainly :
James Dawes, DPC

Claude Descharmes, CTI
Sean Haseldine, ATC
Pierre Herriquet, MEP
Mario Interlenghi, CTEO
Kevin McColgan, CTS
Colin Paxton, ATC
Stéphane Rommens, DPC
Raymond Souvignet, DPC
Wolfgang Stoiber, CTEC
Without forgetting Christine Morel who was in charge of the editing of this document.
Michael Weichinger
Expertise Director Process & Automation
Lafarge Branche Ciment - Direction des Performances Cimentières

95 Rue du Montmurier – B.P. 07 – 38291 St Quentin Fallavier Cedex
Technical Agenda
VERTICAL CEMENT MILL STUDY
Executive summary
1. Objectives
The Vertical Cement Mill (VCM) study is a part of the Technical Agenda “Grinding” study.
The main target of this study is to investigate if VCMs are a serious alternative to ball mills for cement
grinding. Special care should be taken for the following points :
SQuality considerations, maximum product fineness
SProcess advantages and restrictions
SMaintenance, reliability, wear rate and mechanical issues
SInvestment and operation cost
The study has been carried out by investigating literature, detailed assessments with cement
equipment suppliers, visits to several installations and testing of cements produced by VCMs in the
laboratory.
Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

VERTICAL CEMENT MILL STUDY Page 1
2. Main results
S Energy consumption
One of the main advantages of VCMs compared to ball mills is their lower energy consumption. This
reduction is dependant on several parameters.
• higher energy savings are achieved when grinding to high finenesses
• the steeper the particle size distribution (PSD), the higher the energy saving
• the higher the slag content (for CEM II or III cements), the higher the energy saving
Depending on these parameters, a 30 to 50% energy reduction is realistic. For product finenesses
below 300 m2/kg, the savings are lower.
S Fineness
The fineness That can be ground in VCMs is general between 450 and 500 m2/kg for CEM I cements
and up to 600 m2/kg for CEM II/ III cements. Grinding to a higher fineness seems to be possible, but
there is no experience in the market. The following table gives an overview of what has been achieved
with VCMs from different suppliers :
CEM I/ Type 1 cement Ground blast furnace slag surface

Supplier surface area limit (m2/kg) area limit (m2/kg)
Polysius 450 600
FLS 450 480 (600 at reduced table speed)
Pfeiffer 450 500-600
Loesche 500 560-580
S Particle size distribution

The particle size distribution (PSD) can be adjusted over a wide range mainly by changing the mill
grinding pressure, the dam ring height , the process air volume and the settings of the separator.
Therefore, VCM ground cements are comparable with ball milled cements with the option to adjust
them to existing circuits equipped with different generations of separators.

S Quality
The physical properties of a VCM ground cement are comparable with cements ground in
conventional ball mills. This is true for water demand, flow and compressive strength data. Tests have
been carried out in LCR with the same cement ground on a VCM and a ball mill in the cement plant
Ofunatu/ Japan (Taiheiyo) as shown below.
Ofunato CEM I Ofunato CEM I

Ball mill Vertical mill
EN 196-3
Standard consistence,
% water 27 27
Initial set, mins 180 142
Final set, mins 223 193
EN 196-1 mortar, MPa
1 day 12,9 14,7

2 day 23,5 24,6
7 day 44,8 43,6
28 day 55,1 56,4
It is important, however, to insure sufficient dehydration of the gypsum. Due to the high efficiency of
VCMs, cement temperatures are relatively low and additional heat is often required under certain
circumstances.
S Process considerations
• Vibrations: VCMs are in general are sensitive to vibrations. Vibration become serious
if the grain size distribution of the feed is too fine and if the feed moisture content is
too low. Therefore grinding cement for very fine clinkers can be problematic. Too
much or too little material in the mill, or worn out rollers can lead to vibrations. This
can be improved by optimisation of mill feed rates, increase of gas flow, adjustment of
dam ring height, or rewelding or replacing of segments. Vibrations seems to be no
more of a problem for VCMs than for other vertical mills.
• Grinding aid: Grinding aid is not necessary in most of the cases to reduce vibrations,
but and as in ball mills, will increase the output of the VCM.
• Water injection: Water injection can be necessary to reduce vibrations especially for
finer grinding.

• Product change: Product changes are very fast (mainly cleaning time of the filter)
• Temperature: Because of the higher efficiency of VCMs, temperatures are much lower
in cement mills. This is normally an advantage, but in some cases heating will be
necessary, mainly to dry cementitious materials or to evaporate injected water and to
dehydrate gypsum. This issue has to be evaluated depending on local conditions and
requirements.
• Drying: VCM is an excellent tool to dry feed materials
S Mechanical considerations
The mill design of each manufacturer is different (grinding pressure system, single piece tire versus
segments, etc). Some solutions are preferable but none of them have a significant technical
advantage regarding a technical stand point. Attention must be paid to the gearbox sizing which is a
sensitive subject (gearing, bearing and stiffness of the housing). Based on experience, a reliability
above 96% is expected when a preventive maintenance approach is applied by professional people.
Some experience shows that maintenance of wear parts is less costly when hard facing is used
instead of replacement. Regarding wear rate, maintenance period of wear parts is at least one year for
OPC and around 3 to 6 months in case of slag (1200 to 1500 hrs for FOS).
S References
Taking installations since 1990 into consideration, around 25 VCMs have been installed in the world
for grinding of clinker and blended cements. Most of them have been installed by FLS and LOESCHE.
POLYSIUS and PFEIFFER have only a few references. The suppliers claim that more than 50% of
new orders for cement mills are now VCMs. Another 45 are installed for grinding slag, some of them
grind both.
S Global investment Cost
The global investment cost can be estimated at 110% to 120% of a ball mill installation. Figures
gathered from the suppliers range between 100 and 130%. Of course, local conditions have to be
taken into consideration. Taking into account the lower energy consumption, the higher investment
cost and comparable maintenance cost, a Vertical Cement Mill could be interesting at medium power
cost. Local conditions and specifics in the flow sheet can influence the cost significantly.

S Advantages and disadvantages in short :
Advantages Disadvantages
SOne single machine for drying, grinding, SFineness limit for CEM I cements < 450
separation m2/kg, second grinding step necessary for
finer CEM I types
SNo limit for drying especially for blended
cements SSensitive to finer feed (> 40% < 5 mm leads
to vibration)
SLow influence of feed material moistures on
the quality of products SWater spraying needed to stabilize the
material bed up to 1,5%
SSaving of energy 30-40% for cement, 40-
50% for slag (compared to ball mills) SAdditional heating in case of cold clinker
because of need for gypsum dehydration and
SLevers to influence the PSD are wider than
water spray (evaporation)
for efficient ball mills (n = 0,85-1,05)
SIf demanded, additional cooling step
SQuick product changes due to low
necessary
residence times, slag and cement, separate
grinding, no purge silo required SLow frequency vibration in the environment
SLifetime of grinding tools for cement > 7000 SHigher investment cost compared to ball
h, easy repair by hard facing, or use of mills
NiHard-4 full tires
SHigh reliability to be expected >96% if well
maintained
SLow noise, no housing needed

3. Recommendation
It is recommended to take a VCM into consideration for new projects if one or

more of the following conditions are valid :
S Medium or high power cost expected ( > 0.35€ / MWh)

S Cements to be ground are mainly between 300 and 500 m²/kg (for blended slag cements up to
600 m²/kg)
S For CEM II or CEM III cement production, or separate grinding of slag
S Frequent change of cement types

Table of contents
1. Aim of the study________________________________________________________ 2
2. How the study was done _________________________________________________ 4
3. What types of mills exist _________________________________________________ 6

3.1. Introduction (the Vertical Mill)________________________________________ 7
3.2. The Comminution Process__________________________________________ 8
3.3. General design__________________________________________________ 10
3.4. The different types of vertical roller mills ______________________________ 12
3.5. What is installed in Lafarge and in the market __________________________ 14
4. Results ______________________________________________________________ 15
4.1. Process considerations ___________________________________________ 16
4.2. Quality ________________________________________________________ 30
4.3. Energy consumption _____________________________________________ 34
4.4. Operation and Control ____________________________________________ 39
4.5. Mechanical _____________________________________________________ 47
4.6. Sizing _________________________________________________________ 62
4.7. Cost comparison ________________________________________________ 65
5. Recommendations / Conclusions ________________________________________ 68

5.1. Comparison ball mill to VCM _______________________________________ 69
5.2. Alternative solutions ______________________________________________ 70
5.3. Recommendations _______________________________________________ 71
6. Annexes _____________________________________________________________ 72
6.1. Suppliers data comparison (detailed technical data) _____________________ 73
6.2. Quality reports (CTS & LCR) _______________________________________ 80
6.3. Trip reports_____________________________________________________ 90
6.4. Taiheiyo report on the VCM Ofunato ________________________________ 107
6.5. Suppliers’ reference lists _________________________________________ 120
Technical Agenda Page 1

1. Aim of the study

Since the beginning of the industrial production of cement, the finish grinding has been taking place in
ball mills. This situation has not changed over a time period of roughly 150 years, even if the efficiency
1
of ball mills is extremely low. Out of 444 operating cement mills within the Cement Division , all
systems use a ball mill.
In the 1980s the system of high pressure grinding was introduced by KHD in the market, followed by
several other suppliers. All of them developed roller press systems. At the beginning, the idea was to
have a single roller press for finish grinding in combination with a high efficiency separator. Very soon,
it turned out that finish grinding for cements with a higher fineness was very difficult because of very
high circulating loads. Additionally, there were significant mechanical problems and very high wear
rates. On the other hand, the roller press improved the efficiency of cement mills dramatically. The
situation resulted in a high number of installations of roller presses as pregrinders in combination with
a ball mill.
At the same time, suppliers started to intensively adapt the principle of the vertical mill, which had
been used since the 1950s for raw material grinding, for finish grinding. There were no principal
problems but the wear had been extremely high, and the achieved fineness and particle size
distribution was not adequate for most applications.
Several companies tried to develop other types of machines for high pressure grinding to overcome
the described difficulties. The only system that reached industrial status was the Horomill from FCB.
At this time, Lafarge decided to perform a priority study to compare the different existing mill systems.
This priority study « Atelier de broyage ciment » was published in 1995 and is a comprehensive
summary containing process, quality, mechanical and investment facts.
As result of the priority study, Lafarge decided to install the Horomill in 3 plants. After several years of
experience, it turned out that mechanical and wear problems have been under-estimated by the
supplier FCB and it is not yet a system that can be widely recommended within Lafarge.
As a result of this situation there is still no recommendation within Lafarge which grinding system is
more preferable in which situation. In the meantime, it turned out that vertical cement mills have
improved a lot concerning production fineness and quality, and the wear problem seems to have been
significantly improved. It can be seen on the market that more and more vertical cement mills are used
by our competitors and the number of installations is already significant.
This is the reason why DPC launched the study on vertical cement mills together with the Technical
Centers. The target of this study has been defined in the following way :
• Assess which quality requirements can be fulfilled by modern vertical cement mills, especially
concerning fineness, PSD, cement and concrete properties.
• What are the process advantages and restrictions ?
• Do we have to consider mechanical issues ?
• What are the typical wear rates when making different products ?
• What utilisation and reliability can be achieved ?
• What is the range for production (output) ?
• Investment costs compared to other cement mill types ?
The study was launched mid-2002, with a target to finish it by the end of 2003, and has been
integrated into the Technical Agenda “Grinding” study.
1
2003

2. How the study was done

Because all of the Technical Centers expressed their interest in the study, an international team
consisting of one grinding specialist from each Technical Center, the three expert directors of DPC
and one person from MEP for the investment, was formed.
The strategy was to :
• Study existing literature on this subject
• Invite all main suppliers of vertical cement mills (FLS, Polysius, Pfeiffer, Loesche) for detailed
presentations of their products and presentations of several modern installations of each supplier.
• Send a large detailed questionnaire to all suppliers to collect the data of some key installations. A
comparison and evaluation of the data was made.
• Visit selected installations by all experts to gain experience on quality, process, mechanical,
maintenance and investment questions.
• Perform tests on cement samples gathered during the visits in North American and LCR labs.
• Write a report with all gathered knowledge and write a recommendation for Vertical Cement Mills
(VCM).
All invited suppliers of vertical cement mills have contributed to the study and arranged visits to the
Lafarge-selected plants.
Suppliers invited and installations visited :

Polysius : Camdem, New Jersey, slag mill
FLS : Cementos Progresso, San Miguel, Guatemala
Titan Cement, Greece
Loesche : Cementos Nacional, Peru
CIMSA,Turkey
Pfeiffer Kaiserslautern : Latagunga, Ecuador
The summary of the visits can be found in Annex 6.3.

3. What types of mills exist

3.1. Introduction (the Vertical Mill)
Vertical mills were first used in the cement industry in the 1950s when preheating towers and highly
wear-resistant steel alloys were also being developed. The need to save energy encouraged the
industry to make use of this well-known technology, as vertical mills are more energy efficient than
traditional ball mills.
Vertical mills were first used by the cement industry to grind raw materials, then coal and now, since
the 1980s, cements.
70% of coal (solid fuels) and 18% of raw materials in the Lafarge group are ground in vertical mills,
according to CKHC Reporting 2002. The grinding method of vertical mills is also used in pregrinding
clinker in front of ball mills.
The main suppliers of vertical cement and slag mills on the market are :
• Polysius
• UBE - Loesche
• FLS-Kobelco
• Pfeiffer
• Kawasaki
• IHI (Ishikawajima Harima)
• Mitsubishi (MHI)
• and FCB, Babcock-CPAG and Raymond for coal mills only

and all of them can be asked for an offer.

3.2. The Comminution Process
The term “vertical mill” denotes equipment with the following basic characteristics :
• A rotating, circular grinding table that turns around a vertical shaft.
• Spherical, cylindrical, tapered rollers (the grinding elements) that are pressed into (grooved) roller
paths on the surface of the table.
• A source of pressure on the rollers (weight, hydraulic pressure, springs, etc.).
• A stream of gas flowing upwards around the table, entraining and drying the material.
• A separator mounted directly on the mill housing.
Hot gases
Material feed
Grinding
rollers
Rotating table
Hot gases Nozzle ring
Whilst there are a number of different types, all vertical mills operate according to the same principle :
the material is ground as it passes between the grinding path and the rollers, which are pressed down.
The table rotates around a vertical shaft. The differences between the various types of vertical mills
arise from the shape of the rollers and the roller paths, the way in which pressure is applied to the
rollers. Nowadays, the separators used are all third generation - all of which vary from one supplier to
the next.
The material to be ground is fed into the mill through a coarse feed valve and falls through a chute
onto the center of the grinding table where it is carried into the grinding paths and under the rollers by
the centrifugal forces. The ground matter then spills over the table and is picked up by streams of (hot)
gas flowing upwards through the mill. As well as transporting the ground matter, the ventilation gases
also allow an initial classification : the coarser and heavier particles are thrown back onto the grinding
path and in this way are separated from the finer particles that are carried upwards to the separator for
dynamic classification. The tailings (rejects) from the separator fall back onto the grinding table whilst
the finer particles are carried away by the gases circulating through the mill to a filter where they are
collected.
The fresh feed material is either fed onto the center of the table or directly onto the roller path. The
ventilation gases enter the mill from under the table via a circular ring called the nozzle ring, which
injects the gases all around the edge of the table. This system of injection creates a fluidized bed
around the periphery of the table.
The vertical mill integrates all of the functions of a grinding workshop in one single unit, i.e.
comminution and transportation of the material and separation of the fine from the coarse particles.

Furthermore, the ventilation and the heat exchanges that take place as the material is transported by
the streams of hot gas confer an excellent drying capacity to vertical mills.
The comminution of the raw mix starts with the preparation of the bed of material (the coarsest
particles are crushed and the material is arranged), which is then compressed and worn down by
attrition. The bed of matter is effectively “shredded” by the action of the speed differential between the
rollers and the roller path.
When grinding cement or slag, the velocity of the gas as it passes through the nozzle ring varies
between 25 and 45 m/s, depending on how the mill is constructed. This speed of the gas stream
affects the size and quantity of material falling through the nozzle ring. All suppliers use an external
recirculation system to reintroduce the material to the mill as well as to reduce the pressure drop. The
pressure loss can vary between 4000 and 7000 Pa depending on the mill and the type of material.

3.3. General design
The general design of vertical mills does not vary much from one manufacturer to another. The
equipment is able to perform the three process stages of grinding, drying and classifying (figures
below gives examples of general design).
Pfeiffer general design FLS general design
The main sub-assemblies of a vertical roller mill are :
• The housing
• The drive unit
• The grinding table
• The rollers
• The hydraulic loading system
• The nozzle ring
• The separator
Raw mill and Cement mill designs differ slightly because of the feed properties and differences in
fineness. From a mechanical viewpoint, the major mechanical differences are linked to the grinding
load system. As an example, FLS has developed the simpler Atox Mill for raw and coal milling, while
the more comprehensive OK Mill is dedicated to cement and cementitious materials.

The table below summarises design types versus mill manufacturers.
Loesche Pfeiffer AG Polysius FLS

Raw Mill LM MPS-B QUADROPOL or DOROL Atox *
Cement Mill LM MPS-BC DOROL OK
Separator LSKS separator SLV separator SEPOL separator OK separator
* OK mill is also available

The suppliers offer the same separator technologies for VCM as for raw mills and partly for tube mill
circuits. One mill size can be equipped with different sizes of separators, depending on the
requirements.

3.4. The different types of vertical roller mills
Loesche
It has rollers with a tapered design, similar to a truncated cone, inclined at 15°. The rollers move on a
horizontal track (with a dam ring on the periphery). For slag and cement grinding, the Loesche vertical
mill is equipped with the 2+2 system : two "main" rollers (pressure applied to each one by an external
jack) and two "slave" rollers. The slave rollers have a much smaller diameter than the master rollers.
They prepare (de-aerate) the grinding bed, but do not grind. There is no pressure applied, they act on
their own weight and, therefore, they do not reach the speed of the material bed. It is equipped with a
high efficiency separator.
FLS, OK (Onoda – Kobe)
It is equipped with toric rollers (inclined 15°), which are characterized by a grooved profile, on a 15°
inclined track, whose curve towards the outside creating a corner effect for the material. The track is
equipped with a vertical dam ring on its periphery. Rollers may be turned over to increase the lifetime.
The separator is a third generation Osepa. The purpose of the grooved profile of the rollers is,
according to Onoda, to deaerate the material bed before its final grinding.
For high finenesses or a low residue on a given sieve size, the separator is equipped with guide
vanes. For less demanding finenesses, the guide vanes are removed to decrease the pressure losses.
KHI (Kawasaki)
It has toric rollers inclined at 15° and a track similar to that of the OK vertical mills, equipped moreover
with an overhanging dam ring and scrapers that equalize the material bed before the passage under
the rollers.
The separator is third generation. The height of the dam ring is 20 mm. This low height is allowed
thanks to the overhanging dam. KHI estimates the height of the material bed at 15 mm for slag, 35
mm for clinker and 50 mm for raw material.
Pfeiffer
The three rollers of toric shape, inclined at 18°, are put in pressure by a triangle frame subjected to the
action of three external jacks. The track has the same slope as the rollers, but a curve more significant
than theirs. Rollers may be turned over to increase lifetime.
Three hydraulic cylinders apply the force by means of a common yoke for all three rollers.
The new models are equipped with a third generation separator.
Polysius
The options chosen by Polysius differ rather clearly from those of the other suppliers. Polysius’ vertical
mill has two sets of double rollers (toric) with a horizontally oriented axis, which adjust independently
to irregularities in the bed of material by vertical movement and by pivoting around a guide pin. The
rollers run in a double groove path in the grinding table.

Each roller pair is connected to a common yoke. Two hydraulic cylinders with pull rods are connected
to the yoke tips used to apply the required grinding force. Rollers may be turned over to increase
lifetime.
Polysius recommends lower gas speeds and external rates of recirculation (through a bucket
elevator). This is definitely more significant than the other suppliers. This requires low gas velocity
through the nozzle ring. The gas velocity and distribution can be adjusted to suit the required material
loading or drying capacity. The separator is a third generation Sepol.
The table below shows the different designs of the grinding rollers of the various suppliers.

3.5. What is installed in Lafarge and in the market
3.5.1. References in Lafarge
In Lafarge, despite the good experience with raw-mix and coal grinding with vertical mills, there is no
industrial experience in cement grinding with VCMs. In France, three pure slag grinding plants with
vertical mills (VSM) are a good reference and a source of experience with this type of equipment.
These Plants are :
• Fos sur mer Loesche LM 35 (2+2) 1680 kW (installed 1995)
• Rouen Loesche LM 35 (2+2) 1680 kW (2000)
• Dunkirk Polysius RMS 36 1200 kW (1999)
A VSM is also in operation in Japan, but used only as a pre-grinder.
In Fos sur Mer, some short tests were performed successfully in producing pure and limestone
blended cements.
3.5.2. References in the Market
Different installations to grind cement and slag with vertical mills are being used in different countries.
Based on the reference lists submitted by the main suppliers, a list of vertical mills for cement grinding
installed after 1990 can be found in Annex 6.5.
Loesche has a long experience and a proven design in slag grinding with references also in clinker
grinding. The biggest vertical mills supplied after 1990 for cement grinding were three LM46.2 and
three LM 56.2. During this period, a total of 18 mills were supplied, 10 for cement and 8 for cement
and slag grinding.
FLS has also many references in cement and slag. Since 1990, a total of 11 mills, 6 for cement and 5
for blended cements (with slag or fly ash additions) were supplied. The two largest mills have an
installed power of 3750 kW (type OK36-4/OKS74) and were supplied in 1998, for Argentina, and in
2000 for India, for slag/ cement grinding.
Polysius has most of its references in slag grinding (surface areas up to >600 m²/kg) and four in
cement. All mills for cement grinding were supplied for Mexico, two of type 51/26C/RMC435 in 1997,
with a capacity of 85 t/h of 320 SSA cement, and two of type 51/26/RMC470 in 2002, with a capacity
of 90t/h of 360 SSA cement.
Pfeiffer has few references in cement. One mill type MPS 5000BC for 300 t/h and an installed power
of 3000 kW supplied for China in 1995 and two for cement and pozzolan, respectively of types MPS
2900 for 80 t/h and 1100 kW (in 1995 for Turkey) and MPS 200 BC with 300 kW in 1997 for Germany.
Kawasaki has only one reference in cement and some in slag, mainly in Asia. The cement mill type
CK-310 was supplied in 1996 in Korea, for 100 t/h and with 2900 kW installed.

4. Results

4.1. Process considerations
4.1.1. Product range
VCM can produce the following cements :

2
CEM I type : SSA 300 – 400 m /Kg (90 – 95% clinker)
2
On lower finenesses, < SSA 300 m /Kg, the energy saving compared to ball mills is low. Energy
2
savings rise with increasing product finenesses. For pure clinker cements with > SSA 400 m /Kg, little
experience is available. In order to produce them, a grinding table speed reduction, addition of
2
grinding aid and water injection should be considered. For cements > SSA 500 m /Kg no experience is
available. The suppliers will not guarantee higher surface areas unless they have made trials in their
pilot plant.
CEM II, III types and other blended products containing moisture.
There is less of a problem to produce all moisture containing products containing slag and trass on
2 2
VCMs. Stability of the process is given up to SSA 500 m /Kg. For finer grinding > SSA 500 m /Kg,
water injection and addition of grinding aid can be favourable. The reduction of the table speed is
usually not needed. Tests with the supplier in their pilot plant should be made in advance.
Material Product Specifications

Approximate maximum surface areas achievable in VCMs, claimed by each of the suppliers, when
grinding CEM I/ Type 1 cements and blast-furnace slags are shown below.
CEM I/ Type 1 cement Ground blast furnace slag surface

Supplier surface area limit (m2/kg) area limit (m2/kg)
Polysius 450 600
FLS 450 480 (600 at reduced table speed)
Pfeiffer 450 500-600
Loesche 500 560-580
Grinding to fineness levels above these values can lead to excessive vibration levels in the mill.
Polysius claimed CEM I surface area limits could be increased if table speeds were reduced further. It
2
was interesting to note that Loesche were confident that 500 m /kg would be possible, higher than the
other 3 suppliers. However, it should also be noted that surface areas above these values have been
difficult to quantify – plants milling with VCMs have had, in general, little or no need to exceed these
values in order to meet local customer requirements.
Slag products
2 2
Slag is ground to > SSA 600 m /Kg on VCMs. For higher fineness > SSA 450 m /Kg speed reduction
and water injection may be necessary.

Additional comments
Slag grinding shows better efficiency in comminution in the “grinding bed” than clinker due to the
glassy structure. For finer slag products, specific energy is lower than for clinker.
For any product that needs drying, a VM is a good choice, because of its high efficiency in drying
(fluidized bed, small pre-ground particles).
Product changes
A complete product change can be realized in the time of the filter cleaning cycle (usually less than 15
min). A comparable time for a ball mill is 2 to 3h for a complete material (clinker) change (trace
analysis), therefore a purge bin will normally not be necessary.
The material circulation needs only a few minutes. The amount of material in the circuit is minimal
(similar to the HOROMILL and roll press circuits).
The new VCMs equipped with third generation separators do not need further adaptation for slag and
cement products when produced in parallel.
For maximum flexibility of the system, a variable speed drive for the table is recommended. VCMs are
generally run at 80% of the speed of a Vertical Raw Mill (VRM). The speed reduction should cover a
range of 30%. Further speed would lead to very low and uneconomical performance.
Independent of the actual product range, it is recommended to consider a future option for speed
reduction, either mechanically or electrically.
4.1.2. Clinker feed fineness
Generally, fine clinker can cause vibration, loss of production or a stop of the plant. Experience shows,
that most of the unforeseen stops are caused by feed that is too fine. Therefore, the clinker has to be
examined for its suitability to be ground on a VCM. It is not recommended to install a VCM, if very fine
clinker is regularly expected and this cannot be improved.
Also, for normal and coarse clinker, some recommendations for clinker handling have to be respected
as segregation in silos and hoppers can happen. Therefore, consider big silos (hoppers) and do not
empty them completely.
4.1.3. Heat balance
A heat balance for a vertical cement mill was calculated. The following assumptions were taken :
Output of the mill 100 t/h
Process air / feed 3 m³/kg
Specific energy, main drive 20 kWh/t

A cooling effect during the recirculation and air exchange of the process air was calculated (< 10%),
including some additional radiation from the mill (3%).
Parameters studied : Clinker temperature rising from 20°C to 120°C with and without 1% water
injection (may be necessary for stabilizing the material bed).
Additional heating on Vertical Cement Mills

120
100 with waterinjection

additional heat kJ/kg
80
without waterinjection
60
Linear (without
waterinjection)
40
Linear (with
waterinjection)
20
0
0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0 140.0
clinker temperature, °C
Result : Additional energy needed to heat up the finished ground cement to 95°C.
The result is that, with 1% water injection, additional heat energy will be necessary. Without water
injection, feed clinker at 100°C is needed to avoid additional heating.
A ball mill system in comparison always produces excessive heat that has to be reduced by
recirculation of cooled rejects or by water injection, in case cooling in the separator is not possible.
For a similar cement ground on an “open circuit” ball mill, the following parameters are chosen :
Output of the mill 100 t/h
Mill ventilation 0.6 m³/kg
False air after mill 0.1 m³/kg
Specific energy main drive 35 kWh/t
The result of the investigation is that the output temperature was raised proportionally to the clinker
feed temperature.

Outlet temperature of Ball Mills grinding CEM I
180.0
160.0
ballmill outlet temperature, °C
140.0
120.0
without waterinjection
100.0
with 1% waterinjection
80.0 Linear (without waterinjection)

Linear (with 1% waterinjection)
60.0
40.0
20.0
0.0
0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0 140.0
clinker temperature, °C
As there is a temperature limit set by quality reasons, water injection is necessary, in addition to the
limited ventilation. In the next diagram, the water addition to restrict the outlet temperature to 95 or
105°C is plotted.
Water injection on Ball Mills needed to keep 95°C cement temperature (100t/h open
circuit, 70000m3/h, dia. 4.4m, 3500 kW)
4.0
3.5
3.0
2.5
Water Injection, %
outlet temperature 95°C

2.0
outlet temperature 105°C
Linear (outlet temperature 95°C)
1.5
Linear (outlet temperature 105°C)
1.0
0.5
0.0
0.0 20.0 40.0 60.0 80.0 100.0 120.0 140.0
-0.5
Clinker Temperature, °C

In closed circuit operation, the grinding heat can be used for drying purposes if the rejects are not
cooled down in the separator. The water addition necessary in open circuit grinding can be used as
the maximum moisture content in the feed to be dried in the mill.
Conclusion :
According to the heat balances, the VCM needs additional energy for drying when water is added,
even when the clinker is rather warm.
The ball mill in comparison produces excess heat that can be used for drying purposes in case rejects
are recirculated and not cooled.
VCMs installed in close proximity to the clinker production can use cooler waste heat for drying
purposes. In cases where no waste heat is available, the fuel needed to heat up the process has to be
added to the production costs.
The air exchange – waste air to fresh air – is restricted in VCMs to the amount of maximum moisture
expected. Maximum recirculation of the process air is necessary to maintain the temperature in the
system. Therefore, the size of the dust collector should be discussed. The use of cyclones for more
than 50 to 75% of the process air is possible.
4.1.4. Gypsum dehydration
As already discussed the external dehydration of gypsum could be interesting to avoid additional
heating and maybe cooling. This works only if pure clinker cements or cements with dry additions are
produced and no further water is needed for the stabilization of the material bed. Under these
circumstances important savings in fuel costs can be achieved.
For external dehydration, gypsum is fed to an external heated hammer crusher. The temperature in
the hammer crusher is correlated to the degree of dehydration. The particle size distribution of the
crushed gypsum has a rather high volume of fine particles and thus allows a good penetration and a
high degree of dehydration. The waste gas containing the crushed gypsum particles is absorbed by
the VM in front of the separator. While the gypsum reaches the required degree of dehydration in the
crusher, the clinker can be cooled in the VCM instead of being heated. The finished ground cement
can be fed cold to the silo.
4.1.5. Specific pressure
The level of the specific pressure varies by supplier. Each figure represents the total applied force
divided by the projected area of the rollers. The figures do not represent the real pressure in the
material bed, nor the maximum pressure reached usually on the outside of the material bed. Those
pressures are much higher. Anyway the pressure level in a VCM is lower compared to roll presses as
flake creation was not observed, but it is higher compared to the Horomill.

The force is composed by the weight of the equipment (roller + yoke) plus the pressure applied by the
hydraulic cylinders. The weight of the rollers represents only a small part of the force (10-20%) and is
more important for the Pfeiffer and the Polysius system than for the Loesche and the OK system.
The given values are as follows :
kN/m² Loesche FLS Polysius Pfeiffer

Layout 800 1200 600 2000
Plant data min 500 1107 751 1818
Plant data max 808 1196
The pressure peak, which is a multiple of the figures above, is reached where the highest abrasion is
observed on rollers and on the table liners.
Depending on the material to be ground, the highest wear is observed mostly on the outside edge or
at least towards the outside of the roller centre.
Pressure level
The pressure level depends on :

- The material to be ground
- The stability of the bed (fineness)
- The bed thickness (dam ring height)
- The speed of the table in the track
- The dimensions of the rollers and the angle of nip
- The wear of the grinding tools (new-old)
- The measures to stabilize the bed (water injection and grinding aid)
Pressure limits
The absorbed power of the main drive rises proportionally to the applied pressure. Therefore the limit
of pressure is given by the mill power.
A further mechanical limit is given by the vibration level, which usually depends on the stability of the
material bed.
Further influences
The percentage of fines increases proportionally with the pressure. High specific pressure favours the
creation of flat product grain size distributions.

4.1.6. Table speed
The speed of the table of VCMs is lower than those of VRMs, and is usually < 80% of comparable raw
mills. Suppliers have the choice to vary the speed and to adjust the specific pressure. Some suppliers
adjust their table speed to a certain acceleration value, independent from the diameter of the table
(FLS).
Higher speed means lower pressure and vice versa. Finer grinding requires lower speed.
The data for reference plants contain following values :
Loesche FLS Polysius Pfeiffer

Diameter (min) 4600 3600 5260 2500
Diameter (max) 5600 4800 5260 4250
Speed
Table rim min (m/s) 6.1 5.2 5.1 3.9
Table rim max (m/s) 6.5 6.0 5.1 5.0
Speed
Roller track min (m/s) 5.3 4.3 4.4* 3.4
Roller track max (m/s) 5.6 4.9 4.4
Acceleration min (m/s) 14.9 15.1 9.9 11.8
Acceleration max (m/s) 16.4 15.4 12.2
*values calculated are for the outside tracks (double roller) system in case of the Polysius DOROL.
Note the large speed differences seen between suppliers.

The only mill with variable speed visited (3 gears) was the Polysius mill in CAMDEN / New Jersey,
which is also one of the slowest. For finer grinding, finer feed, and lower moisture, it is certainly
favourable to reduce the speed of the mills in order to stabilize them.
The speed is usually calculated with the formula :
C
n [rpm] = [m]
D
n: revolutions per minute (rpm)
D: table diameter (m)
C: speed factor
The speed factor “C” is set according to the experience of the suppliers and the semi industrial test. In
the following example the figures from C are compared :
Factor C* Loesche FLS Polysius Pfeiffer

Min 52.1 52.6 Variable 46.4
Max 54.7 52.9 52.4 47.1
*Calculated on the rim.
Loesche, FLS and Polysius use high-speed factors, while Pfeiffer uses the lowest one.

Force to speed ratio
During industrial operation the speed is fixed and the force can be adjusted. As mentioned earlied, the
force is usually limited by the maximum allowable vibration level of the machine (measured on the
gear box) to avoid mechanical damage.
In the following examples the nominal and the applied specific force is plotted against the speed. In
the practical example, the slower machines can apply much more force than the faster ones, but as
the example of Polysius shows it is not always prudent to use the highest force. Pfeiffer prefers to
work at lower speeds and a higher force, while Loesche prefers to turn faster but to apply a lower
force.
SPECIFIC FORCE TO TRACK SPEED
2100
Pfeiffer
1900
Specific grinding force kN/m²
Pfeiffer
1700
1500 y = -222.9x + 2139.8

plant data
2
R = 0.6478
nominal
1300
Linear (plant data)
OK OK Linear (nominal)
1100
900 y = -166.25x + 1759.6

Polysius
Loesche
R2 = 0.3767
700
500
3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0 5.5 6.0
Track speed m/s
Power density
Pfeiffer introduced an index for the ratio of power to the table diameter :
IND pde = N ( D 2.5

) [ kW/m 2.5
]
and called it “power density “ to compare the size of the mill to the absorbed (designed) power. A
smaller mill size requires a higher power density. The power density does not indicate a difference in
efficiency of grinding. For the following examples we presuppose that all the mills have the same
efficiency (kWh/t related to SSA). In the following diagram these indices are shown for the reference
plants, once as design, once as plant data.

Energy Density
80,0
70,0
60,0
50,0
absor bed
40,0
installed
30,0
20,0
10,0
0,0
L M 46.2+2 C/ S L M 46.2+2 C/ S L M 56.2+2 C/ S OK 27-4 OKS 70 OK 33- 4 OKS 70 OK 36- 4 R OKS DOR OL R MC MP S 4250 B C MP S 2500 B C
40 51/ 26
2.5
There is a big difference between the highest density with nearly 70 kW/m achieved by the OK mills,
2.5
and the lowest values from Polysius at 30 kW/m . Therefore Polysius has to build a much bigger mill
to achieve the same output as the OK mill.
A further analysis was done to find the optimum pressure in order to reach a high energy density.
From this point of view the highest density was found at specific pressures at 1400 kN/m² and not at
the highest pressure applied. It should be noted that with only a few measured values from different
suppliers available, practical trials have to be done in plants to find out the best adjustment.
Energy density and specific pressure
80.0
70.0
60.0
50.0
energy density
y = -5E-05x2 + 0.1522x - 32.823

R2 = 0.83 Series1
40.0
Poly. (Series1)
30.0
20.0
10.0
0.0
0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500
specific pressure
In the following chart, the relevant table speed is studied. The highest energy density was found at a
track speed of 4.5 m/s and not at the highest speed applied, this comparison is independent of table
diameters.

Energy Density to Track speed
80.0
70.0
60.0
Track speed
50.0
Series1
40.0
Poly. (Series1)
y = 1.0321x2 - 5.6929x + 60.519
2
R = 0.0599
30.0
20.0
10.0
0.0
3.0 3.5 4.0 4.5 5.0 5.5 6.0
Energy density
Since the table speed is a function of the diameter, a diameter independent value must be introduced
in order to compare VCM. Our reference plants show quite large differences in table diameters. To
represent the table speed independently from the diameter, the acceleration on the table rim can be
used. In the following diagram this energy density is plotted against the acceleration. Our examples
show that the highest energy density is found at an acceleration of 14.5 m/s². Again the OK mill is the
closest one to this value.
Energy density to acceleration
75.0
70.0
65.0
y = 0.3702x2 - 5.7369x + 61
2.5
Energy density kW/m
60.0 R2 = 0.5308
55.0
50.0
45.0
40.0
35.0
30.0
9.0 10.0 11.0 12.0 13.0 14.0 15.0 16.0 17.0
acceleration m/s²
When comparison of offers of vertical mills is required, it is recommended to have a look at the energy
density versus the acceleration plot.

Further investigation has to be done on the efficiency of the design, the shape of rollers and the table.
This can only be done by comparing the same clinker and fineness.
4.1.7. Force application
Whilst for Loesche and FLS mills the grinding force is applied individually on each roller, Polysius uses
a yoke for each pair of rollers and Pfeiffer uses a common frame for the three rollers. Hydraulic jacks
press the rollers to the grinding table.
On Polysius and Pfeiffer mills the weight of rollers and frame (yoke) contribute a significant part to the
grinding force (<20%).
For Loesche mills a counter pressure system can be installed, which helps to control more efficiently
the movement of the roll and reduces the vibration level in case of an instable grinding bed. The same
system was not efficient when applied to a Pfeiffer mill. The reason can be the higher specific grinding
force applied, but also the higher mass of the rollers and frame (see picture in the mechanical part).
4.1.8. Dam ring height
The dam ring height influences the material bed thickness. Increasing the dam ring height increases
the retention time and the power absorbed. The vibration level may decrease as well as the slope
(steepness) of the particle size distribution. But due to the higher specific energy, a limit in production
may be reached as the power of the table is limited.
As most of the rollers and tables are hard faced periodically, an adaptation of the dam ring is not
necessary. When using bainitic rollers, a loss of diameter is expected. In this case, the dam ring also
has to be reduced in height as the rollers wear. The influence of the dam ring height on various
process parameters can also be seen in Annex 6.4 (FLS).
A direct comparison of the dam ring height between suppliers is not possible due to the different
designs and the different finenesses produced. Flat table designs usually need higher dam rings than
inclined tables. The dam ring height is usually <4% of the table diameter.
4.1.9. Nozzle and armor ring
The nozzle air ring is an assembly of tangentially inclined plates (angle of 45° for Loesche 60° and
Polysius up to 70° for FLS) as well as air guide plates (radial inclination) to enable a fluidized bed pre-
classification.

Air guiding plates
Nozzle plates
The nozzle ring design is adapted to the velocity of the passing air, and to the volume of ground
material falling from the table. A fluidized bed is created over the nozzle ring area. A pre-separation of
the ground material happens. Whilst the coarsest particles fall through the nozzles, the mid size is
rejected to the table and the finest particles are drawn to the dynamic separator.
The velocity in the nozzle ring, the inclination of the nozzle blades and the inclination of the armor ring-
plates (inclined to the table 60-80°) influence the external and internal recirculation.
Whilst Polysius and FLS work with lower velocities of 25-40 m/s, and calculate with higher external
recirculation, Loesche and Pfeiffer design their nozzle ring for 40 to 60 m/s.
The load factor on the process air QF/QA is usually 300-350 g/m³ for the final product behind the
separator but can reach values up to 500 g/m³ (Pfeiffer).
The armor ring above the nozzle ring guides the medium size particles back to the table and is
exposed to severe abrasion.
To limit wear of roller shaft, plates could be installed close to this sector of air ring. Another solution is
to change the angle of the inclined plates (90°).
By covering the nozzle ring with plates the velocity can be adapted to the process needs. Polysius can
install a device to adjust the nozzle ring area from outside by moving the segments of the armor ring
inwards (see picture).
4.1.10. Separator
The separator size can be adjusted to the need of the process independently of the size of the mill
table and the drive.
Nowadays, all suppliers use third generation separators. The finest part of the ground material pre-
separated in the fluidized bed is lifted to the separator area by the process air (~5m/s vertical velocity).
The dust-loaded air enters through the guide vanes into the separation zone where the particles are
accelerated to the speed of the basket. Only Polysius offers the possibility to adjust the guide vanes
angle from outside so that ideal separating conditions are set for a wide range of products. Through
centrifugal force, coarse particles fall down into the cone and back to the table center. Finer particles

are drawn through the turning basket. The layout of the basket is similar to ball mill separators. Some
of the baskets are offered with inclined blades (30°) in order to reduce the basket speed (Polysius,
Pfeiffer). The radial process air velocity into the basket varies in the common range of 3-4 m/s.
4.1.11. External recirculation and separation
The design capacity of the external recirculation varies with the supplier between 50-200%. As
mentioned before, higher external recirculation decreases the velocity in the nozzle ring and,
therefore, the pressure loss in the mill.
The actual volumes vary between 10 to 100% (Loesche Pfeiffer Æ FLS Polysius).
External recirculation is essential for slag grinding. Magnetic separators are installed in the external
circuit to separate the liberated pig iron and to avoid enrichment of iron and to reduce dramatically the
wear rate. The iron Fe2O3 and TiO2 content increases the wear rate proportionally. The external
recirculation is usually re-introduced directly to the center of the table, independent of the cold moist
fresh feed to avoid problems with clogging.
In the following diagram, the increase of wear proportionally to the content of the constituent is shown.
The material of the tool represents NiHard IV.
4
Ratio of Component [%] Fe2O3+TiO2
Base : NIHARD
IV
3
Fe2O3
2
1 mag. Iron
0 4 8 12 16 20
Wear rate Atrol [g/t]
Wear rate of grinding tools related to Iron and Oxide ratio
4.1.12. Sealing of the system
In order to minimize the entrance of false air, the fresh feed system has to be equipped with a rotary
valve or a double (triple) flap system. At the bottom, where the external recirculation leaves the mill, a
simple flap is sufficient as the pressure loss there is minor. For the reintroduction of the external

recirculation a rotary valve is needed as the pressure drop above the nozzle ring is high. For slag
mills, heating of all rotary valves is essential to avoid clogging.
Rocker arms (Loesche and OK) are positioned on the mill stands and enter laterally into the mill
housing. Due to the movement, sealing is more difficult compared to the Polysius and Pfeiffer designs
where all the moving mechanical parts are inside the mill. Therefore, sealing has to be maintained
regularly. 10-15% false air on the mill has to be considered in the process calculations.
Material feed specifications
Too coarse or too fine a feed can be a reason for mill vibrations.
The fresh feed size of the material should be limited to 4% of the roller diameter. Single, bigger pieces
do not affect the process. Generally, the feed should not be too coarse as the vibration level can
increase.
More attention has to be paid to the fineness of the feed : including the high amount of re-circulated
material, the bed fineness affects the stability and causes high vibration. A limit with 50% <4mm is
usually to be respected.

4.2. Quality
4.2.1. Introduction
Meetings with the 4 suppliers provided a good opportunity to assess quality aspects of cement milling
using vertical cement mills (VCMs). Despite their lower energy consumption there are some concerns
that VCM ground cement characteristics might adversely affect a plant’s competitiveness in the
market. Visits to several sites operating VCMs were subsequently arranged where industrial and
laboratory ground samples of cement were obtained for analysis at CTS’ laboratories in Montreal (see
Annex 6.2). Larger samples of plant ground VCM and ball-milled portland cements were also obtained
from Ofunato (Taiheiyo) plant in Japan (FLS OK mill in operation) for verifying comparative mortar,
concrete and particulate data at LCR’s laboratories (see Annex 6.2).
4.2.2. Summary
Vertical cement mills are able to grind several different types of products (slag, blended and pure
portland CEM 1 type cements) and change quickly between product types avoiding the need for a
(2,3)
fringe bin. Plant experience in Japan and Greece , and laboratory results from CTS and LCR, have
shown VCMs can produce pure portland cements with similar cement performance characteristics to
portland cements ground in conventional ball mills (see table below taken from the LCR test program).

EN 196-3
% water 27 27
EN 196-1 mortar, Mpa
1 day 12.9 14.7

2 day 23.5 24.6
7 day 44.8 43.6
28 day 55.1 56.4
2
Operational results of OK series roller mill, IEEE transactions on industry applications, Vol 27, No 3, May/June 1991
3
OK roller mill for cement grinding, experience from operation of Titan cements OK 27-4 mill, Cem Tech paper, Mar 2003

The use of VCMs would not be expected, therefore, to adversely affecting a plant’s competitiveness in
the marketplace. Additionally, there is a possibility to adjust the PSD in a wide range of n > 0,2.
Lower milling temperatures of VCMs also mean the use of a hot gas source will be required at least
part of the time, to ensure sufficient quantities of dehydrated forms of SO3 in the finished cement.
4.2.3. Quality aspects
The main quality aspects that were noted during the 4 supplier meetings are detailed below :
• Surface area
2
Grinding of CEM I cements on vertical cement mills is usually limited to a surface area of 450 m /kg,
whilst for blastfurnace slag and blended cements containing moisture in the feed, surface areas up to
2
>600 m /kg are possible. Reducing of the table speed may be needed to reach these higher
finenesses.
Cement quality data of the two investigated samples (LCR labs) indicates the surface area of cements
milled on VCMs is equal to or even higher than that of cements ground on conventional ball mills to
achieve similar cement performance. One would expect that the higher milling efficiency of VCMs,
compared to ball mills, would enable surface areas of similar products to be lower and maintain
cement performance. However, in reality, vertical milled products SSA values are equal to or even
higher than comparable ball milled products, especially at high surface areas. The reasons for this are
not clear and cannot be generalized without additional experience.
Whilst these fineness limits are acceptable for most blastfurnace slag markets, the CEM I (OPC) limit
may cause problems in grinding high early age strength portland cements and Masonry cements
(appears to be no experience of grinding Masonry products on VCMs to date). CTS have indicated a
2
limit of 550 m /kg for CEM I/ Type 1 cements would generally suffice for North American markets,
where the requirement for grinding to high SSA values is quite common.
In order to assess the assess the scale of this surface area issue, an analysis of all CEM I type
products produced by Cement Divison sites has been made based on data contained in the BRS
product portfolio. The below table summarises the situation based on 2001/02 mean plant data.
CEM I type products Plants Products
Total number 102 229

2
< 450m /kg 79 (77.5%) 204 (89.1%)
2 2
> 450m /kg and < 500 m /kg 7 (6.9%) 8 (3.5%)
2
> 500m /kg 16 (15.7%) 17 (7.4%)
2
Most of the 7.4% products over 500m /kg are Type III/ 30 cements made in the USA or Canada.

• Particle size distributions (PSD)
Vertical cement mills essentially have a tendency to produce products with PSDs slightly narrower
than for products ground on ball mills. Low air flow rates and/ or high compressive forces are required
in a VCM to achieve a broader psd. Levers to control PSDs on-line include altering the classifier
speed, airflow, grinding pressure and table speed. Loesche commented on +5 bar reduces 45 micron
residues by ~1%. The dam ring height can also be altered. If the dam ring height is increased, the
actual volume of the grinding region increases leading to a longer retention time for particles on the
grinding table, generating more finer particles. Polysius claim that they can vary the psd in a range of
n= 0.8 – 1.1 by adjusting these parameters. The data we got from the Ofunato plant / Taiheiyo in
Japan shows the RRS slope can vary up to 0,2 by adjusting just the grinding force and dam ring
height keeping the same fineness and the mill ventilation (see table below).
Product Dam height Compressive Mill power PSD

force consumption n value
kWh/t
Low 150 22.2 1.35
170 21.9 1.30
Ordinary cement Medium 150 23.3 1.28
170 23.0 1.22
High 150 23.7 1.24
150 24.4 1.16
Variation of RRS slope tested in the Ofunato Plant / Taiheiyo
(absolute values of n not comparable with Lafarge figures)
Rosin-Rammler slopes of products ground on VCMs below 1.0 are claimed to be possible, which
would lead to a sufficient quantity of superfines in the cement to produce acceptable plastic properties
in mortar or concrete mixes. Comparative cement performance data in Annex 6.4 shows the Ofunato
VCM ground cement sample has a similar particle size distribution and shorter setting time to its ball
mill ground cement.
Loesche commented some users blend cement ground on VCMs and ball mill circuits to flatten the
slope. See Annex 6.2 for typical grain size distributions of VCM milled cement.
VCMs show a clear advantage in changing the PSD, as seen in the documentation of Ofunato in a
range of delta n > 0.2.
• Particle shape
Polysius commented that they had not found fine particles were any less rounded in shape compared
with similar sized particles milled on conventional ball mill circuits (there is evidence to suggest
Horomill milled cement particles are more angular/ less rounded thus increasing water demands).
• Gypsum dehydration
It is very important to adjust the quantity and types of added sulfate (gypsum) according to quality
needs. Particular care has to be taken to allow temperature control to achieve these targets
independently of clinker temperature and feed moisture. The quantity of hemihydrate and soluble
anhydrite in the Ofunato VCM cement, for example, was negligible as a result of the low milling

temperatures. Gypsum / anhydrite blends (if available) are used to enable the plant to optimize
dehydrated gypsum levels.
• Water addition and grinding aid

These materials, again, are not necessarily required full time but facilities for adding them are required
(no general rule can be provided). A Grace HEA2 type grinding aid will suffice (helps to de-aerate &
compact the bed, and possibly increase outputs).
4.2.4. CTS test program
Industrial and laboratory ground samples of cement were obtained during the South American visits
for analysis at CTS’ laboratories (see Annex 6.2). Insufficient samples were available to allow
extensive mortar or concrete testing, but an understanding of the milling conditions was possible. Main
observations found are as follows :
• Analysis of samples suggest that VCMs equipped with an external heat source would not have a
problem attaining sufficient mill temperatures to ensure adequate amounts of dehydrated forms of
gypsum.
• Based on the amount of calcium hydroxide detected in the cement samples, there is a
considerable amount of condensation occurring in the mill system. Assuming plants were not
adding limestone or lime to the mill as a minor additional constituent (MAC), this could have a
detrimental effect on cement performance.
• Calcite found in the pure Portland cements could indicate carbonation of some of the calcium
hydroxide caused by direct-fired mill heating systems.
Particle size grading curves for VCM ground cements are variable but not generally steeper than that
of products ground on ball mills with high efficiency separators. Increased water demands or bleeding
related issues are not, therefore, expected to be seen with VCM milled products.
4.2.5. LCR test program
Samples of portland cement ground in both a vertical cement mill and conventional ball mill at the
Ofunato plant in Japan were assessed at the LCR laboratories.
The two cements were found to have very similar particle size gradings and similar strengths at all
ages. The main difference with the VCM ground cement was its negligible quantity of dehydrated
forms of sulfate compared to the ball milled cement. This indicates a low milling temperature and
shorter setting time in EN 196-3 paste mixes (hot gas generator was out of operation during
sampling).

4.3. Energy consumption
Calculation of the mill power
The mill power is proportional to the specific pressure, the projected area of the rollers, the real speed
of the rollers and a friction factor. The real speed of the roller coincides with the circumferential speed
of the track.
The friction factor depends on the material to be ground and the adjustment of the mill including
grinding aid, water injection and dam ring height. The value can be measured in pilot plant tests.
A general re-calculation was made for all the reference mills. Not all the results coincide with the
absorbed values, as the friction factors are not known.
Specific Energy of the Mill drive
A typical value for the specific energy consumption for the mill drive is between 18 and 25 kWh/t.
Mill Ventilation
Typically, > 7 kWh/t are consumed in most of the reference plants for ventilation. In the following
diagram the process air needs depending on the finenesses is shown.
Comments :
Data from plants for the ratio of the shop power to mill motor power vary in a wide range from 1.35 to
1.9. The main reason is that the process air volume is not well adjusted to the cement produced.
Therefore a variable drive for the fan is recommended, but also further adjustments must be made, as
the velocity in the nozzle ring has to be considered.
Process Air Needs vs. Fineness

(Polysius)
6
Spec. Gas Volume (m³/h*kg
Clinker
5
of product)
4
Slag
3
2
3000 4000 5000
Surface Area Blaine (cm²/g)

Grindability of Clinker and Slag acc. to Zeisel test
Slag
Clinker
Frequency rel. (%)
30 35 40 45 50
Zeisel - 3000 Blaine (kWh/t)
Ratio of Mill shop to Main drive

While the ratio of shop energy and main drive of a ball mill circuit is in the range of 1.15 – 1.20, the
ratio of a VCM shop is > 1.40.
The energy for grinding in the material bed consumes < 50% than that of a ball mill. There is still much
power consumed by the high ventilation (3 m³/kg) and pressure loss caused by significant velocities in
the nozzle ring to create the fluidized bed around the grinding table and to support the high internal
recirculation.
There are some intentions to reduce the internal circuit and to favor external recirculation by
mechanical transportation.
Specific Energy and Product Fineness
The energy savings rise with the fineness of the product compared to grinding in a ball mill. The
specific energy can be calculated by using either the fineness factor or the substitution rate in
combination with the grindability or known values from industrial plants (Polysius’ method). The basis
of the grinding energy calculations are grindability tests made by the “Zeisel” method. An overview of
the grinding energy for slag and clinker at 300 SSA is given in the next picture.
The formula for how to calculate the specific energy W is :
W = Grindability Zeisel (300 SSA) x Factor fineness (VCM) / Bonus Factor (slag/ clinker)

Fineness Factor vs Product Fineness
5
Fineness Factor ( - )
4
Clinker
3
Slag
2
0
3000 4000 5000 6000
Surface area Blaine (cm²/g)
Comparisons of a ball mills and a VCMs are made by Polysius and are defined as energy savings by
Bonus factors. These curves are available for pure clinker and pure slag. See the curves below.
It is remarkable that the Bonus factors for slag are higher and increase from 2 at 300 SSA to > 3 at
600 SSA.
For clinker the Bonus factors start with 1.8 at 300 SSA and raise to theoretically 2.0 at 500 SSA.
Bonus Factor for Vertical Roller Mills compared to

Ball Mills incl. Main Drives (Polysius)
4
Slag
3
Bonus [ - ]
2
Clinker
1
0
3000 4000 5000 6000
Surface area Blaine [cm²/g]
Base : ball mill with grinding aid

SPECIFIC ENERGY and the Slope of the PSD
These above given values for specific energy are given for constant slopes of the PSD (nRSSB > 1.0)
which are closed to values known from ball mill circuits equipped with third generation separators. The
VCM technology allows shifts to the PSD in a wide range so that slopes known from ball mills in open
circuit grinding can be reproduced. But when reducing the RRSB slope, more specific energy is
needed.
The tendency is shown in the following diagram (FLS).
GRINDING AID
The use of grinding aid helps to increase the output and to decrease vibration levels. The positive
influence on the material bed is caused by easier compaction and higher density. There is no
difference in the quantity of grinding aid addition compared to ball mills. The amount should increase
with the fineness.

Grinding aid factor for Vertical Roller
Mills
1.25
Grinding Aid Factor (
Clinker
1.20
1.15
-)
Slag
1.10
1.05
1.00
3000 4000 5000 6000
Surface Area Blaine (cm²/g)
Comparison Ball mill to VCM

A comparison of ball mill power to VCM data is given in the next diagram. One can find results from
diverse reference plants of VCM suppliers against ideal values for ball mill circuits compared to real
values from LAFARGE plants for CEM I products for different finenesses. The savings shown on an
average curve, including all VCM suppliers compared to industrial ball mills, would be quite big and
would exceed 30% for the fineness range of 300 to 400 SSA. The savings compared to ideal ball mills
is still given, but is reduced, especially for finer products.
Vertical Cement Mills - CEM I Performance from References

Against CKHC Ball Mill Data 01
4600
OK
4400
Ballmill ideal FLS
Specific Surface Area ,Blaine cm²/g
4200 POL
Loesche
PFEIFFE
4000 Pfeiffer
ckhc01cemI
3800
ballmill ideal
POL
Ballmill CKHC CEM all VCM ref
3600
Log. (OK)
FLS
3400 Log. (FLS)
Log. (POL)
3200 OK LOESCH Log. (Loesche)
Log. (Pfeiffer)
3000
Log. (ballmill ideal)
Log. (ckhc01cemI)
2800
Log. (all VCM ref)
2600
20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0 50.0 55.0 60.0 65.0 70.0
Specific Energy, kWh/t

4.4. Operation and Control
4.4.1. Operation and Control Levers
When considering the operation and control of a VCM, one must consider what are the important
“levers” or parameters one is aiming to control :
• Feed proportioning
• Product chemistry
• Feed particle size
• Rate of production
• Differential pressure
• Hydraulic pressure
• Vibration level
• Motor power
• Inlet and outlet temperatures
• Mill gas flow rate.
The common control loops on a VRM are :
• Constant gas flow rate controlled by fan speed or damper control
• Differential pressure linked to the mill feed rate, this is to ensure the degree of mill filling is
correct
• Mill inlet pressure control via the recycle gas quantity
• Operational interlocks on parameters such as vibration levels.
Of the suppliers consulted concerning operational control loops, Polysius commented that the major
control loops used would be control of the mill differential pressure, control of the downstream mill
temperature and the pressure upstream of the mill.
Polysius controls the differential pressure across the mill to control the mill feed rate. During
commissioning the differential pressure control is set and this is then used for further optimization. If
the differential pressure is low, then this indicates that there is still static head available from the VCM
fan. The set point can then be slowly raised, therefore, slowly raising the mill feed rate without any
increase in applied grinding force.
The limit of the mill differential pressure is then reached when one of the following conditions exists :
the fan static pressure limit is reached, too many fines are falling through the nozzle ring, or the main
drive power absorbed has reached its maximum. When the optimum differential pressure is achieved
then changes can be made during operation to the applied grinding force.
Increasing the grinding force can reduce the mill differential pressure ; this should give a better
grinding result.

The downstream control of the temperature is designed to keep the temperature downstream of the
mill constant at 90° Celcius. The control of this temperature depends upon the system design.
Generally, the manipulated variable is the heat input generated via a hot gas generator. The quantity
of heat input required is dependant upon the amount required for grinding and drying according to the
moisture content of the mill feed material.
Polysius controls the pressure upstream of the mill to keep the gas volume through the mill constant.
This is achieved by varying the position of the control valve in the return gas duct to control the action
of the downstream temperature control. When the downstream temperature varies from set point then
the action is to correct the deviation via the hot gas generator and hence the hot gas volume varies.
The difference in volume is accounted for by the return gas volume.
For a VCM it is necessary to achieve the desired product fineness. Parameters used in this control by
Polysius are applied grinding force, separator cage speed, gas volume and table speed. The gear box
can be delivered with a 2 or 3 step reducer to adjust the speed. For typical examples, see the table
below :
Cement Slag
Fineness of Product (SSA) <= 380 Up to 450 >450 <=500 >500
Relative Table speed (Acc. 80% 70% 60% 80% 70% two stages
To raw Grinding)
(75% and 70%
three stages
intermediate gear)
Table Speeds depending on SSA Targets
Cement Slag
Maximum throughput Maximum throughput
Sepol Type
@ 300 m²/kg, tph @ 450 SSA, tph
825 508 363
775 450 321
710 376 269
650 316 225
600 269 192
555 230 164
510 194 139
470 165 118
435 141 101
400 119 85
370 102 73
345 89 64
315 74 53
290 63 45
Sepol Separator sizing chart throughputs for cement and slag (examples)
Like Polysius, Loesche monitors the mill exit temperature and controls it via hot gas generator or
another fuel source such as with preheater waste gas as indicated in the drawing below.

Loesche also monitors the mill up stream pressure and controls it to a desired set point by adjustment
of the recirculating damper position. This is linked to the gas flow controller that measures the clean
gas flow rate after the filter, both contributing to keep a constant gas flow through the mill.
MV – gas flow,
controlled by
variable speed of
fan or damper
MV- Mill exit Other Heat

temp controlled source-
via HGG or heat Preheater/
source Cooler Waste
gas, blast
furnace gas,
diesel
generator
exhaust
MV - Static pressure,
controlled at the mill inlet
via the recirculation
damper.
Loesche reports that for Slag milling, VCMs up to 550m²/kg SSA run very smoothly without the need
for any additional measures and that they only consider a variable speed drive for higher SSA
products, as in the case for slag grinding greater than 550 m²/kg SSA.
Pfeiffer uses the same operational control loops for the VCM as it uses in its VRMs. This is namely a
differential pressure control loop to keep the mill filling ratio constant by adjusting the mill feed, a gas
quantity control loop, which serves to keep a constant gas quantity through the mill by controlling the
fan speed. There is also a downstream temperature control loop to control the grinding/ drying
requirement and the static pressure controller which is utilized when process gases are introduced.
For the production of fine cements greater than 450 SSA and slag above 500 SSA, Pfeiffer would
need to conduct testing due to possibly higher vibration levels, in which case they would reduce the
table speed. In the case where different slag or cement qualities are to be produced then the mill
speed would be optimized to the lowest speed. If Pfeiffer was to consider a variable speed drive it
would be in the speed range of 80 to 100% of the standard speeds it uses on the VRM.
The FLS process control loops on the OK mill are shown below. The mill feed rate is under the control
of absorbed mill power. The constant gas flow is to be achieved by measuring the gas flow at the filter

outlet. It is kept constant by the recycle damper control when the mill inlet and outlet temperature
causes control changes to the outlet temperature set point.
The set points for temperature levels depend upon the drying or cooling requirements of the mill. The
mill inlet temperature is typically controlled at 80°100°C for OPC and 200°-300°C for slag grinding.
The maximum mechanical temperature is 400°C.
It is controlled between 95°–105°C for slag to ensure sufficient drying. For the design of the hot gas
generator 110°C is used.
4.4.2. Vibration and Mill Stability
Instability within the mill can occur due to excessive amounts or lack of material in the mill, lack of
material in the mill, extremely dusty mill feed and also due to worn mill rollers and/ or table.

Measures to reduce the vibration level
In order to avoid vibrations which are too high, the following actions must be considered :
- Decrease of pressure
- Injection of water on the track
- Reduction of table speed (if possible)
- Reduction of fresh feed
- Increase of mill ventilation
- Increase of the dam ring height
- Renewing the grinding tools if worn down
FLS has specified that the standard fresh feed requirements, in terms of granulometry are :
Clinker – Min 40% +5mm
Max 2.1 % Dia. for 3-roller mills
Max 1.8 % Dia for 4-roller mills
Other - Max 3.1 % of Dia for 3-roller mills
Max 2.7 % Dia for 4-roller mills
Slag - 0 – 5 mm
(Dia = Nominal Mill size = average table diameter.)
FLS has also commented that it has shortened the allowed maximum time the mill can operate, when
compared to a VRM due lack of feed caused by metal detection.
Loesche parameters for mill feed materials :
Feed Material Appearence Particle Size Moisture
Clinker Hard, abrasive < 30 mm Dry
Gypsum Mainly hard < 50 mm < 10 %

FDG soft, sticky Up to 25 %
Blastfurnace slag Vitreous, abrasive < 5 mm Up to 15 %
Limestone Hard < 50 mm 5 – 10 %
Pozzolana Hard or soft 10 – 50 mm Up to 25 %
Fly ash – moist Sticky Lumpy < 25 %
Fly ash – dry Powdery 2000 – 5500 cm²/g Dry
Polysius and Christian Pfeiffer have not supplied such details to date.

Problems with Vertical mill stability often result in the mill tripping due to vibration as the material bed
stability is destroyed.
One parameter known to affect the stability of the material bed is the dam ring height.
It is difficult to compare each supplier’s dam ring height due to differences in the table designs.
Polysius supply a dam ring that can be adjusted by “extensions” of 70, 90, 120 and 160mm or the
combining of any of these heights to meet the requirement during commissioning.
FLS also supplies a segmented and bolted design that can be easily adjusted during the
commissioning period or afterwards. FLS states that the dam ring height for cement grinding is lower
than the dam ring height when milling slag and that the applied grinding force is higher.
Christian Pfeiffer welds the dam ring to the outer edge of the grinding track. Cutting off or welding on
pieces adjusts the height of the dam ring. With a 4-meter diameter track, the dam ring height would be
expected to be between 40 – 80 mm. The finalized value would be set during commissioning.
Loesche provides an adjustable dam ring with heights varying between 150 — 300mm depending
upon the mill size and material to be ground.
4.4.3. Water injection and grinding aid
All of the suppliers want to avoid the spraying of water, but most of them are convinced that finer
cements can’t be produced without stabilizing the bed by pouring water on the tracks or to the fresh
feed.
Grinding aid is used to compact the bed and to increase the output of the system. It is not necessary
to add grinding aid, but in most of the applications it helps.
Both the water and the grinding aid can be added to fresh feed outside of the mill. Water injection,
however, is more effective if it is sprayed directly in front of the roller.
Water must be evaporated immediately, not to damage the cement. Therefore external heat may be
requested. In the case of grinding
stations, this may be a commercial
disadvantage. Regardless of this,
the drying efficiency of VCMs is
generally very high.
Polysius applies the grinding aid on
top of the feed belt just before the
fresh feed rotary valve. The amount
of grinding aid addition is similar to
ball mill applications at 0.02 –
0.05% of the fresh feed. Water
injection rates shown in reference
texts indicate addition rates of
Polysius water
1.5%. Polysius provides a heated
injection point
rotary valve and feed chute.

Material
Hot gas
Loesche sprays water in front of the rollers to promote stability and hence control vibration levels.
Grinding aid is added to the material just after the material leaves the entrance chute into the mill. In
the past, Loesche commented that they had considered injecting water and grinding aid on the mill
feed belt but it was foreseen that this would create clogging problems in the rotary feed valves. The
other problem foreseen would be the evaporation of the grinding aid with hot clinker.
FLS uses a di-ethylene glycol based grinding aid when grinding cement at an addition rate of 0.02 –
0.035%. The grinding aid is diluted in water at a ratio of 1:4-1:8 for better distribution in the material.
Grinding aid is added at the end of the process chute, the same technique used by Loesche.
FLS Water injection

Point 1.
Grinding aid injection
point 2.

Water injection can be used when grinding slag. The water addition for slag grinding is only required
when the slag is dry. If the raw slag moisture is below approximately 8% then FLS recommends
injecting water in front of the rollers
Pfeiffer claims that the vibration levels in the VCM are of the same level of those in its VRM. However,
because the grinding gap is smaller when milling cement or slag, spraying of water in the roller gap
may be necessary.
Pfeiffer has commented that the use of grinding aid is rarely more beneficial than water injection and
has had, in its experience, a negative impact on the quality of the cement.

4.5. Mechanical
4.5.1. Comparison of grinding systems versus suppliers
From a mechanical point of view, the major modification are linked to the grinding load system. As an
example, FLS has developed the simpler Atox mill from raw and coal milling, while the more
comprehensive OK mill is dedicated to cement and cementitious material.
− Drive unit
For the mill power calculation the supplier’s formulas are similar. The deviation comes from the figures
for coefficient of friction between grinding track and material (µ) and the definition of the table mean
diameter (usually the medium track diameter).
P = µ . Fgrinding load . [3,14 . Dm . n / 60]

with, P (kW) : power F grinding load (kN)= [z . kT . ( Droller . W roller )]
n (rpm) : rotational speed Dm (m) : medium track diameter
z : number of rollers Wroller (m): width of roller
2
kT (kN/m ) : specific grinding pressure
LM 46.2+2 MPS 4250 DOROL OK 33-4

C/S BC RMC 51/26 OKS70
(1)
Power consumption (kW) 2835 3240 2412 2700
Dtable 4600 4250 5260 4400
W roller 630 525 730 792
Dmean power 3970 3725 3800 3608
Speed (rpm) 25.5 22.5 18.5 25.24
Maxi grinding load(kN) 7 641 10 547 9 361 8 089
Number of rollers 2 3 4 4
Grinding load/roller (kN) 3 820 3 516 2 340 2 022
Droller 2360 2250 2600 1950
Project area (m2) 1.49 1.18 1.90 1.54
Maxi specific grinding load (MPa) 2.6 3 1.2 1.3
2
(1) : for this calculation we consider µ =0.07 1 MPa = 1000 kN/m
Based on this calculation for Loesche and Pfeiffer mills, specific grinding pressure is twice that of
Polysius or FLS. In cases of low grinding pressure, a wedge effect between roller tire and grinding
track should induce local pressure increase in order to have the same grinding efficiency. With such
design the tire wear will not be homogeneous.

− The reducer
From a reducer technology point of view, there is no difference between suppliers because they
choose the same manufacturers. For vertical mills, planetary type reducers with two or three stages
are manufactured by one of the three following companies : MAAG, FLENDER or RENK (see drawing
below). Regarding gear design and the value for the service factor there is no agreement between
suppliers. Loesche and FLS specify a SF > 2.5 for an AGMA calculation while Polysius takes only 2.
The Lafarge lifetime requirement is at least 100 000 hours (see 4.5.3 Design criteria).
Standard type of gearbox for VRM
Plain bearing is an interesting alternative technology proposed by RENK. With plain bearings, the
lifetime is much higher.
− The grinding table
For this component the supplier’s background from raw mill operation is useful because the
technology is the same. This part is generally cast in one piece. A two-piece design is possible but
represents higher operational risks due to stresses within the assembly. In either case, analysis of
stresses is necessary. This calculation should take into account the grinding force as well as the
thermal load. Such studies are supported by Finite Element calculations (below example of
POLYSIUS calculation). It was stated by the suppliers that the maximum stress is reached due to the
thermal load and not due to the grinding force. Therefore, there is less stress expected in cement
grinding compared to slag and raw material grinding where temperatures up to 650°C are introduced.
Meshing of table and

liners (Finite element
calculation) / Polysius

− The rollers
The roller suppliers propose various designs. The shape of tire, the number of rollers and the supports
of the rollers are the topics to compare for supplier’s design. The table below gives information (for
sketches see chapter 3.4).
Loesche Pfeiffer AG Polysius FLS
Shape of tires Conical Spherical Spherical Spherical with

central groove
Type of tire One piece Segments One piece Segments
Number of rollers Two + two or three + Three rollers Two pairs of rollers Three or four
three masters/slaves rollers
rollers
Force applied by Rocker arm Common frame Two rollers carrier Rocker arm
Manufacturing Cast Welded Cast Cast
process for support
Force introduction Mill stand Foundation Foundation Mill stand
The sizing method of roller supports and shafts is sensitive and related to the technical risk. During
operation, dynamic loads are induced which consequently cause fatigue. Supplier’s designs should be
validated with mechanical stress calculations (see below Loesche calculation for rocker arm and
Polysius rollers carrier ). Note that repairing welded frames should be easier than cast parts.
Loesche calculation for rocker arm Polysius rollers carrier

− The hydraulic loading system
Vibrations should be at the lowest possible level. Therefore the hydraulic loading system includes
accumulators to limit the effect of strong impacts between rollers and the hard and coarse particles
and to keep the stability of the material bed. These accumulators must be positioned as close as
possible to the hydraulic jacks to have the highest efficiency.
Principle of hydraulic circuit
The rocker arm principle (Loesche and FLS mill) is a much better design regarding vibration than the
pull down design of the frame or the yoke (Pfeiffer and Polysius) due to a lower mass of parts in
motion. But at the same time, the rocker arm supports are not fixed directly to the foundation and this
could be a disadvantage regarding dynamic behavior. Rocker arms are fixed on a separate mill stand.
In the case of a 4-roller design (FLS), 2 opposite rollers are linked to one hydraulic system. Due to the
hydraulic loading principle of this type of vertical mill, operation with a reduced number of rollers is
possible (two instead of four). The remaining output is still 70% of the nominal output with 4 rollers.
This is an effective advantage regarding availability of the mill.
The vibration level figures given by suppliers are not comparable because the vibration measurements
are taken on the foundation or on different parts of the reducer housing (Lafarge minimum requirement
is a vertical vibration measurement on the top of the gearbox) and one on the mill stand near the
foundation.
An important point is the starting procedure of the mill and especially the way roller/table impact is
avoided. (For Pfeiffer design it seems not to be solved until now). Usually, there is an adjustable
blocker installed. There is the ability to install a counter pressure system in case of difficulties (such a
system has been developed by Loesche).
Example of figures Loesche Pfeiffer AG Polysius FLS

Mill type LM 46.2+2 MPS 4250 RMC 51/26 OK 33-4
Pressure max (bars) 120 250 110 150
Pressure nominal (bars) 80 125 60 110
Cylinder nominal diameter (mm) 480 449 450 449
2
Effective cylinder area (m ) 0.119 0.110 0.131 0.119
Nominal force/cylinder (kN) 952 1 375 786 1 309
Cylinder number 2 3 4 4

The risk of tie rod breakage of the Polysius or Pfeiffer loading systems seem to be higher than that of
the rocker arm system. Additionally, for Polysius, very long pull rods are partially exposed in the mill
and are subjected to heat and dust. (With the new Pfeiffer mill design the pull rods are external).
4.5.2. Technology benchmarking
The table below summarizes the technological characteristics of the various vertical cement mills and
gives reliability figures from 2002 that were extracted from a CKHC report and is related to Lafarge
vertical raw mills.
Vertical Cement mill

Suppliers Loesche Pfeiffer Polysius FLS
Type of vertical mill LM mill MPS mill DOROL mill OK mill
Drive unit Very similar and same subcontractors choice for planetary reducer
Grinding table Very similar and same as for raw grinding
Rollers Independent Three rollers with Rollers pair Independent
rollers with spherical shape with spherical rollers with
conical shape shape spherical
grooved shape
Hydraulic loading system Rocker arm for Rne single One carrier per Rocker arm for
each roller common frame rollers pair each roller
Nozzle air ring Mechanical component with no technological difficulty
Separator No specificity due to cement same separators as those used for raw
material beside needs to increase wear protection
Vertical Raw mill – Reliability survey

Supplier Loesche Pfeiffer Polysius FLS
Cement vertical mill Quadropol
design versus raw vertical Same Same or Dorol Atox mill
mill
Number of mill 9 8 6 8
Reliability Factor range 85.5 – 98.9 70.1 – 98.4 N.A. 89.8 – 98.1
(source : CKHC 2002 report)
RF median figure 94.0 86.8 N.A 93.8
(source : CKHC 2002 report)
Reliability Advance Class ranking (source : CKHC 2002 report)

Classes A+B Classes C+D Class E
% of Raw mills [Number of mills] 37% [76] 25% [53] 38% [80]
% of Vertical Raw mills [Number of mills] 25% [9] 33% [12] 42% [15]
The results of an analysis done over a four-year period (1999 – 2002) demonstrate the possibility of
reaching a reliability factor equal to or above 98% for all types of vertical raw mills (black lines on the
drawing below). At the same time, this factor could become worse due to operation and/or

maintenance conditions for cement application (pink lines on the same drawing). FLS and Loesche’s
lowest reliabilities appear to be stabilized after the four-year period.
Raw Vertical Mill ; comparison of three suppliers
FLSmaxi
Loeschemaxi
100 Pfeiffermaxi
FLSmini
Loeschemini
95 Pfeiffermini
90
Reliability factor (range)
85
80
75
70
65
1999 2000 2001 2002
Our experience with slag grinding on vertical mills in Fos-Sur-Mer and Kwang Yang, and pre-grinding
in Richmond and Kanda, show high values for reliability between 96-99 %.
4.5.3. Mechanical component – design criteria
As an introduction to risk assessment, a lot of failure modes versus mechanical parts have been
reported in the table below. The analysis of incident gravity may help to compare the various designs
proposed by the suppliers.
Failure mode Consequence of incident

Grinding table Cracks on the table Possibility to repair by welding (material grade).
Deformation of the table
Grinding track Breakage of liners / loosening Time to repair (assembly system - spare).
Roller Roller tire breakage / loosening Tire with segments is safe in case of cracking but not
for loosening.
Roller bearings Polysius bearings easier to repair.
Grinding load Breakage of parts The less parts are mounted so better it is.
system Welded frame easier to repair than a cast part.
Hydraulic jack Rod breakage Worst case : incident at mill internal (Polysius design).
Oil Leakage
Main reducer Reducer breakage : Accessibility to reducer ? (lower casing design)
rolling bearings or gear teeth Possibility to remove the table ? (mill inspection door)

Regarding major incidents, the requirements given below are based on CTI’s raw mill specification
rev. H.
The grinding table
• Table must be made of cast steel (one single part or two parts).
• Combined bending and twisting stresses in these parts must not exceed 50 MPa.
• The liners must be made from a molding process, with minimum required hardness being
58 HRC
• Hardfacing on liners is usual
The rollers
• The bodies of these rollers will be made of cast steel and/or be of welded structure. In the
case of a welded structure, welds must go all the way through.
• The roller must be protected by a peripheral liner (tire) made of a single piece (shrink-
ring) or in segments.
• The tire parts must be cast, with a minimum required hardness of 58 HRC
• Each roller must be installed on double row rolling bearings. Dust free sealing must be
achieved either by gland packing with slip rings or by air seal.
• Rolling bearings lifetime of 100,000 hours based on L10 calculation according to ISO
281.
• Lubrication must be induced by oil circulation. An autonomous, exterior unit with 40-
micron filtration must be included.
• Under stable operating conditions of the mill, the operating temperature of the rolling
bearings must be less than 80°C.
• Roller support combined stresses (bending + twisting) must not exceed 50 MPa.
The hydraulic cylinder
• They must be equipped with accumulators for shock absorption.
• Each cylinder must also be equipped with a safety pressure cut-off.
• Nominal operating pressure for the cylinders should not exceed 120 bars (design basis). A
20% pressure reserve must be designed in.
• Test pressure for start-up for the whole unit, including pipework and cylinders must be
applied for a period of 8 hours (seal test). Test pressure is equal to maximum operating
pressure x 1.5.
The main reducer
• Size the gear teeth according to the motor's installed capacity for a service life of 100,000
hours, according to ISO 6336 with an application factor of KA ≥ 2.5 and AGMA 2001 B88
with a service factor of SF ≥ 2.5.

• The axial thrust ball bearing supporting the table must be fitted with lubricated footpads.
• The pads have to be lubricated sufficiently to satisfy the hydrostatic and hydrodynamic
requirements of the lubricant film.
• In order to absorb the vertical stresses of milling in the axial thrust roller bearing, the gear
housing of the fabricated reducer must have stiffeners to prevent the sides buckling and
transmit those forces into the foundations of the equipment through the walls of the
reducer.
• The gear housing will serve as an oil tank. If necessary, there will be an independent tank
so as to avoid any risk of emulsion and over-heating, and to provide sufficient ventilation
for the lubricant.
• Reducer lubrication and cooling must be provided by permanent oil circulation and include
a filter that can be cleaned whilst the machine is running, or a twin filter whose filtration
mesh is compatible with the components being lubricated (<40µm).
The reducer and the main motor are linked up by a coupling that is calculated according to a service
factor above 3.
4.5.4. Maintenance
Supplier’s recommendations and user’s experiences show a standard approach concerning the
maintenance policy of vertical cement roller mills. This policy is in line with our concept of Preventive,
Condition based, maintenance. The maintenance operations are generated thanks to checking done
during first level and specific inspection. Usually the maintenance activity is divided in on-going and
major operation.
On-going maintenance
We have some information about on-going maintenance. We have not received or seen any detailed
inspection job-plan proposed by a supplier.
Daily inspections are done while in running. This is a first level inspection looking at the general status
of the mill : leakage of material or oil, status of seals, status of vibration and temperature, rollers/table
clearance relative to the stopper blocks and calibration of bed depth monitor. Each supplier
recommends this daily inspection that can be executed by a production team within a TPM concept.
The duration is around 15 min/day.
Monthly inspection in stopped condition. During a stoppage of about 8 hours (one shift), internal parts
of the mill can be checked : tightening of wear parts, status of seals, separator and feeder. Hydraulic
and lubrication components are also checked during this inspection.
Every 6 months, it is possible to take an oil sample from the gearbox in order to see any evolution of
pollution. FLS recommends an analysis of oil from the bearings. This analysis is not very pertinent
regarding the volume of oil. One plant has detected bearing damage fromhigh global vibration but
without any indication in the oil analysis. This stoppage gives the opportunity to measure the wear on
the rollers and liners, to calculate the wear rate and to decide if a hard facing operation or the
reversing of sleeve (major repair) is required. In the case of slag, this may be done monthly.

In FLS documentation one stoppage is proposed every two weeks for 2 or 3 hours. However, the
experience of plants is more than one stoppage per month. In this case, it is easier to inspect a
cooled mill and minor repairs can be done if necessary. This proposal must be consistent with the
storage capacity of the plant.
Specific inspection in running condition.
This kind of inspection is dedicated to the vibration measurements on the kinematic line (motor and
gearbox). Depending of the configuration of the plant, the vertical roller mill can be strategic.In this
case, an on line monitoring system integral to normal operation. with accelerometer installed onto the
gearbox is recommended.
Major Operation
Major operations concern the maintenance of the main wear parts : roller and table liners.
For each supplier a specific device is necessary to operate an automatic hard facing process. The
type of electrode is not detailed in supplier documentation and has not been studied.
For clinker grinding, a wear rate of 1g/t is expected when applying hard facing, for slag grinding 5 g/t is
expected. Anyway Polysius experience using bainitic cast material is reversing roller pairs after 4000
hours in slag and a use of the pair up to 16 000 hours . For cement the figures should be much higher.
Supplier’s recommendation is different :

Polysius does not recommend any hardfacing even if they admit it is possible to do this kind of
operation. For a specific case, it is necessary to compare, in detail, the two solutions : utilization of
spares versus hard facing.
According to its documentation, Pfeiffer recommends a hardfacing every 2000 hours. We can
understand this figure in cases of pure slag grinding, however, it seems difficult to accept a stoppage
of about 4 days every three months for OPC production.
We have our own experience on Loesche regarding hardfacing and major operation but only for slag.
FLS’ recommendation is confirmed by plant experience, is the following for OPC cement :
• Every year roller reversing or hardfacing is done. Hardfacing can typically be performed at least 10
times on the rollers. Duration of this operation is about 4 days.
• Every two years, hardfacing of the table is done. This operation can be done at maximum 25
times. Duration of this operation is about 2.5 days.
It is important to notice :
• Throughput is reduced when the level of wear is high. It can reach a maximum reduction of 10%
but the vibration level can be heavily affected.
• It is more efficient to perform hardfacing of roller and table together.
• The wear rate is lower when surfaces are hardfaced.
• Equipment for automatic hardfacing must be a part of the initial investment. A short study shows,
with evidence, the advantages of using this device.

Device for automatic roller
and table hard facing
Other things to consider in major maintenance list are :
• Replacement of the wear parts of the separator. Typically every 20 000 hours
• Replacement or repair of housing liners, inlet chute and nozzle ring.
• Repair by welding or changing of the parts of scrapers to extract material at the bottom (if any)
• Repair by welding of the frame supporting the rollers (Polysius and Pfeiffer)
Wear rate
Long time experience was made at the OFUNATO plant, where since 1998 an “OK” vertical mill has
been used to grind cement. The follow up of the wear and the periodical repair by hardfacing showed
following schedule :

Material Costs Work Costs Total Costs
Ratio (-) Ratio (-) (-/1-time) (-/year)
Replacement
(1) 118.8 10.4 129.2 86.1
Roller
tire (2)
Turn over 10.4 10.4 20.8 13.9
replacement
Total 100
Replacement
Roller tire (3) 118.8 10.4 129.2 9.9
replacement (4)
& Turn over 10.4 10.4 20.8 1.6
Hardfacing Hard facing (5) 29.5 3 32.5 20
(8 times)
Total 31.5
Difference 68.5
(1) and (2) : 1 time/1.5 yrs (3) and (4) : 1 time/13 yrs (5) : 8 times/13 yrs
Comparison of the estimated costs between “Roller tire replacement” and “Hard facing”
Pfeiffer recommends following maintenance plan :
Nr Operation Duration
1 Refurbishment of grinding table segments and roller tires 50 hours
1.1 Mill cleaning and mounting of re-welding device for grinding track 4 hours
1.2 Re-welding of grinding segments (350 kg of weld and two welding 18 hours
devices)
1.3 Mounting of re-welding device for roller tires 2 hours
1.4 Re-welding of roller tires (700 kg of weld and three welding devices) 24 hours
1.5 Dismantling of welding devices 2 hours
It is known that the wear rate between different suppliers is difficult to compare because it is
influenced by different parameters :
• Profile of the roller/table
• Quality of steel or hard facing
• Type of production (cement or slag)
• Humidity of the material
From supplier’s documentation and user’s experience we can summarize wear rate for rollers and
table liners as follows :
Wear Rate g/t OPC Slag

Pfeiffer 1.8 (3000 sst) 2.9 (4000 sst) 7.8 (4000 sst) 11.4 (5000 sst)
FLS 1 (3200 sst) 1.25 (3800 sst) 7.5 (4200 sst)
Polysius ≈ 4.4 (3800 sst) ≈ 11.4 (>4000 sst) ≈ 15 (4500 sst)
Loesche N/A ≈ 3.5 (3500 sst)

The higher wear rate for Polysius is due to the choice of material. Polysius’ principle choice is to
change the tire instead of repair it. It is why Polysius has chosen a not so hard material but also
cheaper than others. Moreover, we have not enough accurate information to comment the figure for
Loesche mills. Surfaces are not equal; also cement types comparison is difficult.
From the maintenance stand-point, this difference in wear rate can represent a difference of €30k/y
only for the hard facing.
Maintainability
Access to mills with segmented tires is immediately possible with FLS and Pfeiffer, while complete
tires need a cooling phase (>3hrs) for Loesche and Polysius (and a table cooling phase when drying).
This maintainability is measured by access to the main components of the mill for production and
maintenance. A space around the mill to put a crane and the ease of dismantling (roller/liners table) is
considered.
Mainly the ease of extracting the rollers is different between the different suppliers. Each mill has a
large door to access to the liners.
Loesche and FLS have a hydraulic swinging device for the roller that is integrated to the equipment.
Thanks to large a door, the operation can be done easily. With a crane, a roller can be extracted and
worked in a shop. Where there are 4 rollers (FLS), it is possible to operate with two rollers only.
Polysius : Due to the design of the mill, the extraction seems to be more difficult and needs more time
and people. A hoist hangs from a metallic structure which is needed for this procedure. Before the
extraction of the frame, the dismantling of the rod and lubrication system is necessary.
Pfeiffer : There is an existing lift and swing system. This needs a specific internal handling system in
order to bring the roller in front of the single maintenance door. A hoist device can then extract the
roller from the casing of the mill.

FLS
Swinging device
Pfeiffer
Loesche
Polysius: use of hoist. Need more space around the mill.

Spares recommendation
For the implementation of a vertical roller mill the following items have to be considered as strategic
spares :
• Hydraulic jack
• Roller body
• Roller bearings
These items are more sensitive if the mill cannot produce with a lower number of rollers.
4.5.5. Conclusion of mechanical analysis
The design to introduce grinding pressure is different for each manufacturer.
• Pfeiffer is the most integrating one : three rollers are fixed on the same carrying framework.
• Loesche and FLS have adopted an independent system : each roller is maintained with its
own support and is operated with an independent jack. In the Loesche solution, there are
master and slave rollers.
• Polysius’ solution is an intermediate one : rollers are associated in pairs.
This level of integration does not justify any clear advantage (or drawback) regarding the specific
technologies.
Another difference between the manufacturers relates to the tires. Two designs exist : a tire of only
one part or a tire made up of several segments. The second is preferable.
Concerning the drive unit, the reducer is a critical subject because of the possibilities of inspection are
limited. Repairs are also difficult and expensive. Close attention must be paid to the sizing adopted by
the supplier with respect to the lifetime of the gears and the bearings as well as for the stiffness of the
casing.
Analysis of the background by Lafarge with vertical raw mills for raw material shows that 60% of them
have a reliability lower or equal to 94%. For some raw mills, the reliability is greater than 98%. In
particular we can note the bad results of Pfeiffer mills since five out of eight have had a reliability of
lower than 92% in 2002.
From these operational results we can conclude that a target for reliability above 96% is achievable for
VCM. This is a need to implement a Preventive Maintenance system with a specific focus on the
hydraulic loading system.
A quick analysis of maintenance activities for a cement vertical mill workshop shows that annual
maintenance costs should be lower or at least equal to the cost of a ball mill. An important part of this
cost is due to hardfacing operation for rollers and grinding track of the table. Wear resistance
performance and, consequently, lifetime of tires is very much influenced by the quality of hardfacing
(which type of electrodes and specific devices to weld in automatic mode).

Based on available information from suppliers, plants visits of other cement producers and also
Lafarge plants equipped with VRMs, we can conclude the following :
We are confident in Loesche technology. It is a robust design and proven technology.
With a similar design, we are confident, in principle, with the FLS OK mill but should be confirmed by
operational experience.
The new proposals by Polysius with the Dorol vertical mill seems to be complex to maintain (i.e.
handling of rollers carrier) and more sensitive to vibration phenomena (high degree of freedom of the
rollers carrier). This solution needs more investigation to conclude.
Reliability of the Pfeiffer Vertical Raw mill seems lower than Loesche or FLS technology especially
regarding the equipment bought the last 10 years (loss of knowledge within Pfeiffer company ?).
Nevertheless, the reliability is strongly influenced by local operating conditions and its durability is
questionable.

4.6. Sizing
Different specific points to be considered when sizing a Vertical Mill have already been discussed in
the previous chapters. In this part, only general principles for VCM sizing will be discussed. The sizing
of the filter and exhaust fan will not be mentioned here.
The supplier is responsible for being coherent in terms of sizing the different parts of the plant, such as
the mill motor, the size of the table, rollers and separator, the gas flow volumes, the filter, the fans and
the external recirculation. A verification of this coherence should always be done whenever possible.
Every supplier has his own method of sizing. The sizing is not much different for cement than for raw-
mix.
4.6.1. Installed power (main motor)
Some of the suppliers will probably perform a pilot test to determine the vertical mill’s grinding energy.
Lafarge usually performs the BB10 test in parallel to the suppliers’ tests. However, the BB10 test can
only serve as an indication as it uses a ball grinding process.
In a Pilot test, the material is ground to the desired fineness in a small vertical mill. This test gives the
absorbed power (kW). The kW installed is a simple proportionality between the desired throughput
and the test throughput, as shown by the following formula :
Required throughput (t/h)

kW installed = kW test x
Test throughput (t/h)
Loesche and Pfeiffer use the grinding tests on semi industrial vertical mills (pilot test) to also define the
pressure, the speed of the table and to compare the specific energy as well as the output to standard
products.
In the Polysius design method, a laboratory grinding test for ball mills (Zeisel) is used to specify the
material to be ground. For slag and clinker, substitution factors are taken from given diagrams to
calculate the grinding energy depending on the fineness.
FLS uses a basic specific energy of 16.6 kWh/t for the table drive for a 300 SSA cement. To calculate
the specific energy for other finenesses, a proportional increase of the specific energy to the specific
surface area is proposed. For slag, the reference value is 29.7 kWh/t at 420 SSA.
Assuming a good quality clinker (C3S > 55-60), the industrial grinding energy in a reasonably
optimized ball mill, for a pure cement (CEM I) at about SSA 350, is normally 30-35 kWh/t max.
Considering a bonus factor of 1.8, the value for a VCM will be in this case 16-20 kWh/t.
For a CEM I at SSA 450, the bonus factor can be at least 1.9. This will lead to 22–26 kWh/t.
At higher finenesses and with pure cements, it is possible to use the well-known equation giving :

n
kW 1/kW 0 = (SSA1/SSA0) , where n can be 1.4 (due to high internal recirculation inside the mill and the
high performance separator) and then apply a higher bonus factor.
For blended cements (limestone, pozzolan, etc…), it is highly recommended to perform the same
types of laboratory tests on the additive(s), and made pilot tests with the mixture. The fineness target
will be determined by the compilation of the resulting strength measurements. Compared to pure
cements, it is generally observed that the required fineness for blended cements is higher or much
higher (depending on the addition ratio). The required power is not necessarily lower (with possible
exceptions, in the case of strength-bringing pozzolans, for instance).
The mill-motor size (kW) will be established, for the main product, by multiplying the calculated kWh/t
by the desired production in t/h, plus a margin that should never be less than 10-15%. Discussions for
adjustment will nevertheless take place with the supplier, to take into account their “standard” sizes.
4.6.2. Grinding power (kWh/t)
In the panel of six mills studied in the Annex 6.1, the range for grinding slags and cements is nearly
17-38 kWh/t.
There is really no difference in efficiency due to the types of mills between the suppliers. The whole
range can be explained by the different grindabilities and final finenesses.
• Polysius requires 37 kWh/t for a SSA 470 ground slag (it could be about 60-65 kWh/t in a ball
mill, which would not be unusual).
• Loesche requires 20-25 kWh/t for SSA 350m²/kg ground slag. Compared to Polysius, this is in
line with usual rules giving energy versus fineness. CIMSA slag seems very easy to grind (this
depends a lot on its origin).
• FLS mills require less than 20 kWh/t for pure or blended cements in a range of SSA 3500-
4000. Considering an equivalence of about 35 kWh/t (ratio of 1.8) in ball mill, it is normal.
4.6.3. Table and rollers dimensions, Aeraulic aspects
The supplier will choose the size of the table diameter), according basically to the motor size and the
expected production (t/h).
The aeraulic aspect is also important because of the limits to the maximum gas speed inside the mill
and the maximum possible material lift and recirculation over the table.
4.6.4. Table and rollers dimensions
From the Pilot grinding tests, the mill capacity and size can be extrapolated.
2.5
Loesche applies a rule giving the mill production as being t/h = k1 x (roller diameter) .

2.5
Another similar rule is used by FLS, for OK mills : t/h = k2 x (table diameter) .
These formulas are comparable, because there is a relationship between the diameter of the table and
the diameter of the rollers. For Loesche and Polysius, the roller diameter is normally half of the table
diameter; for OK mills, the roller diameter is 0.6 times the table diameter, sometimes more. Except for
this proportionality between both diameters and to the number and width of the rollers, the production
rate is also a function of the rotation speed of the table.
Instead of the speed of the table, the centrifugal acceleration of the material when leaving the table is
the real physical parameter that (at least for several suppliers) should be kept constant whatever the
2
size can be. When calculating the acceleration, it should be close to 12 to 15 m/s . Higher values (like
in raw-mills) are not recommended, due to the risk of vibrations.
In practice, it is not always easy to calculate the centrifugal acceleration. In these cases, the
verification of the proposed table speed and peripheral speed, in comparison to the classical standard
values of 20-30 rpm and 3.5-6.5 m/s respectively, should be done.
4.6.5. Aeraulic Aspects
The concept of maximum gas speed inside the mill is not simple, because the speed is high at the
nozzle rings (according to the mill design, it can differ from 25 to 60 m/s), medium inside the mill body
(typically 6-12 m/s), and lower at the entrance to the separator cage (around 4 m/s). The mill has to be
sized to meet the required speed ranges. Please refer to 4.7.1.6 - Nozzle Ring, for the different values
recommended by the suppliers.
3 3
Maximum material lift is close to 500 g/m (or 2 m /kg for Pfeiffer and Loesche), but most of the mills
3 3
are around 300-350 g/m (about 3 - 4 m /kg). This determines the gas flow, and through the speeds,
the sizing of the internals : nozzle-ring, table and mill casing diameters, and finally the separator, in
respect of gas entrance speed, like in a classical third generation separator.
4.6.6. Specific Energy (kWh/t) for ventilation
See Visit Reports in Annex 6.3 for additional information.
Polysius : for a “standard” specific grinding energy of 20 kWh/t, Polysius would, in principle, be able to
keep close to 6 kWh/t for ventilation. Thus, they should absolutely be consulted for a VCM project.
However, references with higher production levels than Dunkerque should be checked.
Loesche : for the same conditions, Loesche can now reach 3-4 kWh/t with slag. Why not with
cements ?
FLS : even including the most recent results, they are still behind the others on this criterion, due to a
high internal speed design. However, recent progress to reduce the specific grinding energy has been
done, as it can be seen at the very recent pure cement OK 33 mill in Phoenix (USA), using about 18
kWh/t for grinding (close to Titan and Cementos Progresso), and less than 8 kWh/t for ventilation. We
can consider this value as being their present level and consider it as our target with this supplier.

4.7. Cost comparison
4.7.1. Operation cost
The general approach was to reduce the operating cost by 25% to the ball mill.
Ball Mill VCM

Maintenance 100 % 110 %
Wear 100 % 60 %
Energy 100 % 74 %
EUR/t 2.2 1.65
% 100 75
Structure of operation cost
2,5
2
costs/EUR/t
1,5 Maintenance
Wear
1 Energy
0,5
0
Vertical Cement Mill Ball Mill
4.7.2. Maintenance cost
Apart from the ongoing maintenance cost corresponding to manpower for inspection and some small
repairs, the main expenditure is due to the internal wear parts. At least every year, a hard facing of the
rollers is recommended. Hard facing of the table can last two years.
A quick estimation of the hard facing cost gives about €45k/a in the case of 150 t/h throughput for
OPC.
The amount has to be compared to the total price of a new set of rollers (about 100kEUR each).

We can estimate the maintenance cost to be lower or at least equivalent to a cement ball mill shop
(80% for rollers and wear, 20% for the rest).
4.7.3. Investment cost
The correct comparison of investment costs between ball mill solution and vertical cement mill is not
easy to do.
In addition, the total investment cost of the vertical cement mill will depend on the technical conditions
of the project and in particular :
• Depending upon the required mill temperature and the required cement temperature, a cement
cooler might be necessary for either a ball mill or a vertical cement mill. The installed cost for a
cement cooler of 100 t/h would be in the range of $400k USD.
• Since a vertical cement mill creates less heat, an additional heating facility such as a hot gas
generator (HGG) may be needed in some cases to start with cold clinker and/or to evaporate
water. The installed cost for a HGG of 2 MW would be in the range of $100k USD.
The total additional equipment is then relatively marginal and may represent maximum of 5% of the
total investment cost.
The comparison proposed by the suppliers is as follows independently of both aspects above :
Ball Mill FLS VCM Loesche Pfeiffer Polysius

Min 100 % 100 % 110 % 110 % 120 %
Max 100 % 120 % 140 %
CTS made a project cost comparison on the Roberta project last year, which gave the following
analysis (based on a Polysius mill) for 116 t/h of OPC at 370 SSA. An additional hot gas generator
and a cement cooler was included in the vertical cement mill alternative.
Ball mill solution (4800 kW) $18.5 M USD
VCM solution (2600 kW) $21.6 M USD (+ 17% on the total project, consistent with +20% on the
direct costs excluding Lafarge).
It can be estimated that a VCM grinding solution may require an investment in the range of up to 15%
higher than the equivalent ball mill solution.
Of course, the actual comparison for an actual project will be completely dependent upon the
economical situation of the suppliers bidding for the project. A detailed cost comparison must be done
for each project.
• A vertical cement mill needs no fringe bin that might be necessary for ball mills. The installed cost
for a 100 t/h installation could be 0,25M US$.
• A building would be needed for a ball mill but not absolutely required for a vertical cement mill
(noise reduction !).

Example of EVA comparison of solutions
The cost (direct costs excluding Lafarge costs) estimate for a ball mill grinding plant of 160 t/h (around
1 Mt/year) would be in the range of $15M USD (from and including hoppers to and including bucket
elevator to silos) for a project in Western Europe.
The extra cost for a VCM would be around 15% ($3M USD).
The electrical gains will be in the range of 10 to 15 kWh/t of cement (with a power cost of $30 to $60
USD/MWh yields a profit between $0.30 to $0.90 USD/t).
Depending upon the situation, the extra calorific consumption (max 0.05 GJ/t ?) for a VRM could mean
a gain of an extra of $0.00 to $0.20 USD/t.
Maintenance costs are similar.
Globally, the difference in operation cost may vary from $0.10 to $0.90 USD/t or $0.10M to $0.90M
USD/a for a 1Mt plant.
To be economically efficient with regards to EVA, the ratio between additional investment and annual
profit must be preferably lower than 5 and in any case lower than 7. This means a minimum profit of
between 3/5=$0.6M USD/a and 3/7=$0.4M USD/a. These values are just in the middle of the potential
profit ($0.1M to $0.9M USD/a).
The only general conclusion is that for high power cost and high fineness (profit of 15 kWh/t at $60
USD/kWh=0.9 minus max 0.2 for heat = $0.7M USD/a) the VRM will always be economically better. In
all other cases, a detailed analysis must be made.

5. Recommendations /
Conclusions

5.1. Comparison ball mill to VCM
Ball mill grinding is the widest used technology for the production of cements for all the ranges of
fineness and composition.
Depending upon the circuit design, the additional separator performance and the dust collector, the
ball mill circuits are universal in terms of quality of the product, in reliability of the process, and in
simplicity of control. Ball mills are easy to maintain and last very long. The production costs are mainly
depending on the price of electricity, minor on operation and maintenance.
As prices for electricity rise, alternative solutions become more interesting. Vertical mills, well known
for a long time from their use for raw material grinding, show a very interesting energy saving potential
of 30 to 50% against ball mills. The energy savings increase with the fineness of the product when
compared to the ball mill.
Due to the fast development of wear resistant materials for roller and liners, big improvements in
maintenance costs have been achieved. Lifetimes of rollers allow more than 7000 hours of operation
with cement before re-welding or turning the rollers. This reduced costs associated with wear and also
yielded a higher availability. The reliability of vertical mills is usually very high. Suppliers of Vertical
Cement Mills already promise lower maintenance costs than for ball mills. Production losses and
specific energy increases due to wear on rollers are of minor importance.
Also, in terms of quality, comparable cements can be produced. Less waste heat can be expected, but
this should not be a reason not to achieve a sufficient reactivity from the gypsum. A better control of
the product temperature on VCM can be expected. Only in extreme cases is additional heating
required, and leads to additional cost when no waste heat from the cooler is available. Additionally,
the VCM offers the flexibility to allow a greater degree of control of the product particle size
distribution.
The range of fineness for finer pure clinker products is proven for up to 450 m²/kg. However, high SSA
products >450 m²/kg may be produced by reducing the table speed. The production of blended
cements is proved up to 600 m²/kg if moisture was included in the feed (wet slag, wet trass, wet
limestone, wet fly ash). For a wider variability of fineness, a table speed reduction can be provided.
The control of the VCM is simple and easy to automate. Operational difficulties may occur due to too
fine feed materials.
The fast development of this “new” grinding technology will eliminate the few remaining weaknesses
and will rapidly show how to extend the production range. Further optimization of the energy
consumption, mainly in the process air circuit, will help to save more energy. Further developments of
materials for wear protection will raise the lifetime of the tools.

5.2. Alternative solutions
Beside the VCM, roll presses and HOROMILLS were taken into consideration as alternatives.
Comparison to the Horomill
The experiences with Horomills in Lafarge show that a remarkable energy saving can be achieved,
which is close to the savings of a VCM. From the point of view of quality, most of the products < 400
SSA can be produced without much difference compared to ball mill products – concerning mainly the
PSD. With a two-step separation, the product range can be extended and the PSD can be comparable
with ball mill products.
Because of reliability, still not all of the Lafarge targets were achievable. There is still room to improve
the life time of some machinery parts. Until now, the lifetime of wear parts was not quite satisfactory in
some plants. Of course, production costs are only lower for products containing high amounts of slag,
as the specific energy consumption drops dramatically compared to the ball mill.
On the market only few new Horomills were sold since the start up of the “prototypes” in 1997.
An intermediate report on Horomills process aspects is expected to be launched in the future.
Comparison to the Roller press (RP)
A much higher energy saving compared to ball mills but also to VCMs can be achieved with the use of
roller presses. Due to the very steep PSD of products coming out of integral RP circuits, there was no
major interest to follow this technology for finer products. But a combination of a RP with a ball mill,
even a very small one, the following system advantages can be combined :
1. the high energy saving from the RP.
2. the flattening of the PSD by the ball mill.
There are two major developments that caused a revival of the RP :
1. Materials for wear protection granting a long lifetime without any intervention.
2. Remarkable savings in maintenance costs were achieved. Static pre-separation to reduce
wear in the circuit and to reduce the process air need.
The most interesting developments in a combination of RP with ball mill was seen when both
machines show the same installed power, and when just one two stage separator is used for both
circuits – the RP and the ball mill circuit.
Therefore, it was mentioned that those plants would be investigated in more detail.
A further study will be realized in the future.

5.3. Recommendations
The Vertical Cement Mill is a real option for a new grinding facility and should be considered in any
study for new grinding shops if one of the following conditions is met :
S Medium or high power cost expected ( > 0.35€ / MWh)
S Cements to be ground are mainly between 300 and 500 m²/kg (for blended slag cements up to
600 m²/kg)
S CEM II or CEM III cement production, or separate grinding of slag
S Frequent change of cement types
All of the suppliers mentioned in chapter 3.1 can be asked for an offer, as no significant differences
can be seen.
Restrictions are only seen for :
• Very fine fresh feed,
• Super fine pure clinker cements

Hydraulics and re-welding require a well-trained maintenance team.
It is generally recommended to also consider a modern roll press circuit, a combination of a big roll
press, a 2-stage separator, and a small single compartment mill.

6. Annexes

6.1. Suppliers data comparison (detailed technical data)
VERTICAL CEMENT MILLS LOESCHE LOESCHE LOESCHE FLS FLS FLS POLYSIUS PFEIFFER PFEIFFER
Lucky Lucky
Cement, Pu Cement, Pu Cementos Anneliese, Rocacem, Sagar
Company Shin Shin Pacasmayo Confidential Confidential Confidential Beckum Latacunga Cement
Country Taiwan Taiwan Peru Germany Equator India
LM 46.2+2 LM 46.2+2 LM 56.2+2 OK 27-4 OKS OK 33-4 OK 36-4 DOROL MPS 4250 MPS 2500
Mill Type C/S C/S C/S 70 OKS70 ROKS 40 RMC 51/26 BC BC
Year 1994 1995 1999 1998 1996/1999 2000 1999 2002 2000
1. Functional specifications
1.1 Feed Material CEM II ...
Type of product CEM I GGBS 1 CO CEM I CEM II CEM II CEM I 42,5 MS
Clinker % 91 0 80 94,5 75 79,8 95,5 60 47,5
temperature °C 40 up to 100 200 100 100 10 - 40
Limestone % 0 0 15 0 5 10,3 5 0
moisture % 0 2 2 0,4 2 0
Gypsum % 4,5 1,5 5 5,5 5 6,4 4,5 5 5
moisture % 5 5 5 5 2 0,5 3 5 10
Fly Ash % 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
moisture % 0 0
Slag % 4,5 98,5 0 0 3,5 0 0 47,5
moisture % 8 9 8,3 2 16
Trass % 0 0 0 0 15 0 0 30 0
moisture % 0 15 10 0
Mass sum % 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100 100
total moisture content calc. % 0,6 8,9 0,6 0,3 2,5 0,4 0,1 3,4 8,1
Feed
Feed Density t/mñ 3,0 3,1
Feed bulk weight t/mñ
Feed natural heap angle deg. 38
Abrasiveness high low low
Feed Size k 80 mm fluctuating 2 fluctuating 20 22 fluctuating
Feed Size k 100 Max. mm n/a 5 40 55 50
Grindability Bond kWh/t
Grindability Hardgrove kWh/t
Grindabiliy Zeisel kWh/t 33,5
Indivdual grinding test kWh/t 31,5 19,8 19,2 24
1.2 Finished product type CEM I GGBS 1 CO CEM I CEM II CEM II CEM I 42,5 MS CEM II ...
Nominal throughput, min t/h 120 100 170 66 140 170 105 120 20
Nominal throughput, max t/h 138 120 180 73 155 181 113,2 120 26
Moisture content %H2O < 0,3 < 0,3 < 0,3 0 0 0 < 0,1 < 0,3 1
Fineness R 45 µm 6,00 1,00 11,00 N/A 7,00 3,30 1,95 7,00 21
SSB cmð/g 3400 4300 4200 3779 3800 4378 3855 3900 3600
Theoretical SSB corrected by composition cmð/g 3400 4300 3600 3779 2700 3966 3855 1900 3600
Slope RRSB PSD 0,81 0,98 0,75 0,94 1,01 1,01 0,773 0,9
Position parameter µm 13,1 15,4 14,2 18 19 18 18,5 25
Bulk density of product t/m3 1,00 0,9
Comments lim.hot gas n,(3 - 30µ) (Cilas 1064)
1.3 Product Specifications CEM I GGBS 1 CO CEM I CEM II CEM II CEM I 42,5 MS
mortar speciments acc.ASTM ASTM EN EN ASTM ASTM
Strength development
1d N/mmð 15,3 20 16,9 15 18,4 12,1
2d N/mmð 30
3d N/mmð 25,7 32,9 27,6 36,6 22,4 30
7d N/mmð 29,8 45 44,8 29,8 43,5 27,4 40
28d N/mmð 35,8 61 53,9 40,1 58,4 34 55
workability % 112 111
water demand % 25,8 27,8 25,5 28 25
stiffening start hrs/min 02:16 02:50 01:55 02:48 02:27 2:30
stiffening end hrs/min 05:00 04:00 02:20 04:00 05:08 3:30
bleeding % 9,8 no
comments plant lab
1.4 Concrete results
comparable to ballmill yes yes yes yes yes yes

Lucky Lucky
2. Millperformance C/S C/S C/S 70 OKS70 ROKS 40 RMC 51/26 BC BC
Nominal throughput, min t/h 120 100 170 66 140 170 105 120 20
Nominal throughput, max t/h 138 120 180 73 155 181 113,2 120 26
Output calculated t/h 119 94 191 79 225 207 203 152 13
Output difference t/h 10 16 -16 -9 -77 -32 -94 -32 10
Output difference % 9 17 -9 -12 -34 -15 -46 -21 83
absorbed power min kW 2400 2400 2900 1100 2400 2550 1789 2300 450
absorbed power max kW 2800 2800 3300 1600 2800 3300 2006 2300 550
power variation 1,17 1,17 1,14 1,45 1,17 1,29 1,12 1,00 1,22
friction factor estimated 0,08 0,08 0,08 0,08 0,08 0,08 0,08 0,08 0,08
Power calculated kW 1402 1402 1548 1444 2441 2790 1317 2010 674
installed power kW 3150 3150 4000 1800 3000 3750 2680 2300 600
Mill motor specific power min kWh/t 20,0 24,0 17,1 17,3 17,2 14,4 18,60 19,2 20
Mill motor specific power max kWh/t 20,3 23,3 18,3 20,3 18,5 18,4 18,80 19,2 21,2
Separator kWh/t 1,0 1,0 1,0 1,1 0,7 1,6 0,38 1,0 1,2
Bucket elevator kWh/t 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,5 0,38 0,5 0,5
Auxiliaries kWh/t 0,00
Process air fan kWh/t 7,0 7,0 7,7 9,3 8,2 9,2 6,10 7,3 7
Total specific energy with new grinding tools kWh/t 28,6 32,2 26,9 29,7 27,3 27,7 25,6 28,0 29,3
Total specific energy with used grinding tools kWh/t 33 30 25,5
ratio spec.energy shop/mill 1,43 1,34 1,58 1,72 1,58 1,92 1,37 1,46 1,46
comments refering to the life of the rollers

Lucky Lucky
3.0 Technical specifications C/S C/S C/S 70 OKS70 ROKS 40 RMC 51/26 BC BC
3.1.1 Triple flap gate
Make Pfeiffer
Type DSK 800
throughput t/h 40
Power rating KW 5,5
Type of drive hydraulic
3.1.2 Rotary air lock
Make LOESCHE LOESCHE LOESCHE FLS FLS FLS POLYSIUS PFEIFFER
Type ø1000x1000 1250x1250 1250 x 1250 DSZ 100
throughput t/h 225 250 220
Power rating KW 2,2 4 7,5 4,0
3.2 Mill
3.2.1 Grinding Table
• Outside diameter mm 4600 4600 5600 3600 4400 4800 5260 4250 2500
table area mð 16,6 16,6 24,6 10,2 15,2 18,1 21,7 14,2 4,9
energy density absorbed kW/m^2,5 61,7 61,7 44,5 65,1 68,9 65,4 31,6 61,8 55,7
energy density installed kW/m^2,6 69,4 69,4 53,9 73,2 73,9 74,3 42,2 61,8 60,7
double
• Shape of track flat flat flat curved curved curved groove moulded moulded
• Rotation speed rpm 25,5 25,5 22 27,7 25,24 24 18,5 22,5 29,8
speed variation optional rpm 16,5
speed variation optional rpm 14,7
circumferential speed m/s 6,1 6,1 6,5 5,2 5,8 6,0 5,1 5,0 3,9
circ.speed grinding track m/s 5,3 5,3 5,6 4,3 4,8 4,9 3,7 4,4 3,4
acceleration m/sð 16,4 16,4 14,9 15,1 15,4 15,2 9,9 11,8 12,2
factor c 54,7 54,7 52,1 52,6 52,9 52,6 42,4 46,4 47,1
• Height of dam ring max mm 240 240 290 130 189 130 150 130 75
• Height of dam ring min mm 45 45 45 120 adjustable adjustable
Percentage of table diameter % 5,2 5,2 5,2 3,6 4,3 2,7 2,9 3,1 3,0
Comments
3.2.2 Ported air ring
Nozzel plates inclined yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
inclination of nozzle plates tangential ° 45 45 45 60,0 60,0 60,0 60,0
inclination of air guide plates radial ° 60 60 60 65 65 65
inclination of Amor ring plates radial °
comments adjustable adjustable adjustable
covered from
• Adjusting system: description cover cover cover outside cover cover
open area normal mð 2,2 2,2 2,4 2,5 2,2 6 2,5 2,3 0,387
open area max mð 2,2 2,2 2,4 2,5 4 6 2,95 2,7 0,516
velocity in the nozzle ring zone m/s 53,0 42,9 60,2 26,3 51,8 26,3 36,7 43,5 57,4
velocity in the nozzle ring zone m/s 53,0 42,9 60,2 26,3 28,5 26,3 31,1 37,0 43,1
3.2.3 Rollers C/S C/S C/S 70 OKS70 ROKS 40 RMC 51/26 BC BC
Roller system 2M+2S 2M+2S 2M+2S 4 4 4 2x2 3 3
active roller number 2 2 2 4 4 4 4 3 3
number (for output calculation) 2,5 2,5 2,5 4 4 4 4 3 3
Spherical Spherical Spherical
• Shape conical conical conical with groove with groove with groove concave roundish roundish
• Turning angle to vertical ° 15 15 15 15 15 15 0 15° 15°
comment axes meet above the table center adjustable
• Bearing protection seal air seal air seal air seal air seal air seal air seal air seal air seal air
• Air seal pressure daPa -500 -500 -500 465 860 808
Mill housing Mill housing Mill housing
underpressur underpressur underpressur
comment e e e
forced oil forced oil forced oil circulation- forced
• Lubrication system lubrication lubrification lubrication Oil circulation Oil circulation Oil circulation system lubrication splash
Roller body bearings year 1994 1999 L10 L 10 L 10
calculated lifetime h 100 000 100 000 100 000 100 000
Grinding roller
• Diameter mm 2360 2360 2650 1595 1950 2130 2600 2250 1280
• Width mm 630 630 750 645 792 868 730 525 315
Weight roller t 21 21 32 10 18 24 30 16 3
Weight frame , (yoke, shaft) t 11 11 16 5 9 12 7 37 7
weight per roller unit t 32 32 48 15 28 36 37 53 10
total movable weight t 64 64 97 60 111 145 147 160 30
ratio width to diameter 0,27 0,27 0,28 0,40 0,41 0,41 0,28 0,23 0,25
total projected roller area mð 2,97 2,97 3,98 4,12 6,18 7,40 7,59 3,54 1,21
ratio projected ar./table area 0,18 0,18 0,16 0,40 0,41 0,41 0,35 0,25 0,25
ratio roller dia./table dia. 0,51 0,51 0,47 0,44 0,44 0,44 0,49 0,53 0,51

Lucky Lucky
650 total 380 overall
comment width width
Slave roller(yes/no) yes yes yes no no no no no no
• Diameter mm 1600 1600 1600
• Width mm 630 630 750
comment only for LOESCHE
clamped clamped clamped Swing out Swing out Swing out Swing out
• Dismantling system fixation fixation fixation device device device device Lift & Swing Lift & Swing
tire or segments tire tire tire segments segments segments tire segments segments
operation with 2 roller no no no yes yes yes no no no
output with reduced roller no. % 70 70 70
3.2.4 Support for rollers
slave rollers (yes /no) yes yes yes no no no no no no
master rollers yes yes yes
Swing out jack yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
3.2.5 Mill wear
Table liners CR Cast Cr Cast Cr Cast Cr20 Ni Hard4 CR Cast CR Cast
additional treatment hard-faced hard-faced hard-faced hard-faced hard-faced profiled hard-faced hard faced
• Specific wear g/t 0,6 0,6 5,22
not hard- not hard- high
comment faced faced chromium
re-welding h >3000 1 200 >10000 10 000 >6000 not required 7000 2 200
Roller liners Cr20
additional treatment hard-faced hard-faced hard-faced profiled hard-faced hard faced
• Specific wear g/t 0,6 0,6 5,22
re-welding h >3000 1200 >10000 10000 >6000 not required 7000 2200
3.4 Main drive system C/S C/S C/S 70 OKS70 ROKS 40 RMC 51/26 BC BC
2.4.1 Motor
• Speed rpm 990 893 900 890 490
• Power installed kW 3150 3150 4000 1800 3000 2800 2300 600
comment motor shaft
Motor ; the nominal torque (Nm) 1,83
Motor ; the starting torque (Nm) 1,1 1,2 x T nom 2,5 T nom.
comment min 0,9
3.4.2 Gearbox MAAG MAAG MAAG MAAG Flender
• Type Planetary Planetary Planetary KMP 360
• Output speed = table speed rpm 25,5 25,5 22 27,7 25,24 18,5 22,5 29,8
speed variation no no no no no no 14,7 ..16,5 no
• Design life Hours 100 000 80 000
antifriction
comment bearing
base of base of base of gearbox
vibration measurement at gearbox gearbox gearbox outlet foundation foundation
vibration speed measured mm/s 4 to 6 4 to 6 2 0,4 - 3 0,9 - 1,2 1-2 1-2
vibration speed alarm 12 10 2 2 2 3
vibration speed stop 15 15 4 4 4 5
1,8 acc. to
DIN (app.
Gearbox ; service factor of gears AGMA > 2,6 AGMA > 2,6 AGMA > 2,6 AGMA > 2,0)
3.4.3 Auxiliary drive n/a n/a n/a None None None yes no yes
0,5% of
grinding bowl
Turning speed rpm motor 1180 speed
• Installed power KW 152 11

Lucky Lucky
3.5 Separator
3.5.1 Make Loesche Loesche Loesche F.L.Smidth F.L.Smidth F.L.Smidth POLYSIUS Pfeiffer Pfeiffer
ROKS 40
Type LSKS LSKS LSKS OKS 56 HE, OKS 70, HE, SEPOL 435C SLS-C SLS 1800 C
diameter housing mm 5600 7000 6820 9500 4000 1800
basket rotor , yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
basket diameter mm 4000 4001 4700 3430 4190 4550 4350 4000 1800
basket height mm 2500 2501 2900 2074 2600 2840 2175 2698 1218
ratio height/diameter 0,63 0,63 0,62 0,60 0,62 0,62 0,50 0,67 0,68
number of Rotor blades 210 240 240 164 96 60
distance in-between mm 51 55 60 83 131 94
inclination of rotor blades ° 0 0 0 -30 0 -30
blades dimension height mm 2074 2600 2772
blades dimension width mm 50,00 50,00 80,00 140,00 200,00 132
blades dimension thickness mm 9,00 9,00 8,00
rotor open area mð 31,50 31,52 42,93 18,49 28,70 35,25 29,80 33,99 6,91
radial velocity in the rotor m/s 3,70 3,00 3,36 3,56 3,97 4,47 3,08 2,94 3,22
blade material Cr carbide Cr carbide Cr carbide
rotor speed max rpm 80 80 85 110 110 135 132 150 380
rotor speed min rpm 90 90 75 40 40 33 199
rotor speed max for fineness m/s 16,8 16,8 20,9 19,8 24,1 32,2 30,1 31,4 35,8
rotor speed nom for fineness m/s 18,8 18,9 18,5 7,2 8,8 0,0 7,5 0,0 18,7
guide vanes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
guide vanes adjustment individual individual individual no no individual from outside fixed fixed
inclination ° adjustable adjustable adjustable adjustable adjustable
number of guide vanes 66 120 56 64 72 60
distance in-between 269 185 386 469 177 97
reject collection cone yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
Fines load current g/mñ 286 294 327 278 341 300 318 333 250
Fines load max g/mñ 329 353 346 308 378 319 343 333 325
Separator pressure drop max daPa 140 140 140 300 300 250 175
Separator pressure drop min daPa 100 100 100 200 200 200
max. separator thoughput t/h 100 200 277
max temperature °C 120 120 130 130 110 150
3.5.2 Separator drive system
Motor speed max rpm 1900 969 1866 1800 2268 2390
Motor speed min rpm 690 352 900 450 1080 1250
reduction ratio, i 10,914 6,296
Installed power KW 120 120 160 90 132 325 255 288 55
Bevel,
Flender Flender Flender Flender
Gearbox type B3SV7 FZG B2SV9 B3SV11 B2SV Typ 10 B2SV9
Permissible rating KW 132 325 239 250 250
3.5.3 Fresh feed system (at top/from side) side side side side side side side side side
external recirculation bypass N.A. N.A. N.A. yes yes yes
3.6 Hydraulic System
Pressure max bar 120 120 120 105 148 150 112 250 255
Pressure (nominal/max) bar 80 80 80 80 112 110 58 126 215
Counter pressure bar 25,6 n.a
Flow (nominal/max) l/min 42 48 2 x 18,8 17 5
Power (nominal/max) KW 2 x 15
Motor rating KW 31 13 + 18 8,6 3
Tank capacity litres 900 1000 1250 630 250
Hydraulic cylinder dia. Up mm 480 480 430 429 449 475 450 450 250
rod diameter mm 280 280 220 200 225 250 190 250 140
active area 0,119 0,119 0,107 0,113 0,119 0,128 0,131 0,110 0,034
Hydraulic cylinder dia.down mm 480 480 430 429 449 475 450 449 200
Cylinder movement mm 599
cylinder number 2 2 2 4 4 4 4 3 3
Specific grinding force max kN/mð 800 800 800 1200 1200 1200 950 2000 2000
Specific grinding force nom kN/mð 855 855 670 1024 1036 954 589 1615 2041
Grinding force /cylinder kN 955 955 858 905 1328 1409 758 1385 724
Grinding force /hydraulic kN 1910 1910 1715 3620 5312 5637 3032 4156 2173
Force by weight kN 633 633 950 592 1086 1420 1441 1568 296
Grinding force total kN 2543 2543 2665 4212 6398 7057 4473 5724 2469

Lucky Lucky
3.7 Mill Fan
Height above sea level m 2 800
Press.- loss measured at fan daPa 650 650 650 860 794 798 530 520 520
Volume measured Am3/h 420 000 340 000 520 000 237 000 410 000 567 300 330 000 360.000 80.000
at temperature °C 90 90 90 110 120 100 100 100 95
Volume measured Nm3/h 296 499 240 023 367 093 155 226 263 475 383 951 229 452 250 560 53 499
Pressure loss designed daPa 850 850 750 1 000 900 897 700 800
Design Capacity Am3/h 480 000 480 000 540 000 228 600 N/A 579 600 280 000 400.000 90.000
Inlet temperature 90 90 90 100 110 97 75 90 90
Outlet temperature °C N/A N/A 109 95 95
Power absorbed max kW 850 1 250 1 600 689
Power absorbed min kW 630 1 250 1 600 689
comment at counter
Power calculated kW 1 058 856 1 310 781 1 251 1 740 684 733 163
Motor installed kW 1 200 1 417 2 000 740 1800 290
Motor speed max rpm 994 900 892 1 180 890 750
Motor speed rpm 0 900 892 600 0 660
speed variation VFC Fixed speed VFC variable variable
Specific power fan max calc. kWh/t 8,81 8,56 7,70 11,84 8,94 10,23 6,52 6,11 8,15
Specific power fan min calc. kWh/t 7,67 7,14 7,28 10,70 8,07 9,61 6,05 6,11 6,27
ratio specific power meas./calc. 0,91 0,98 1,06 0,87 1,02 0,96 1,01 1,19 1,12
3.8 Gas circuit
Hot gas to Mill Nm3/h n/a yes 0 174 000 0 0 25959 7 934
Hot gas temperature °C 450 400 400 400 388 700 600
Recirculating air Nm3/h 82 000 0 247 700 153 386 156015 28 350
Recirculating air temperature °C 95
Fresh air to mill Nm3/h 0
Fresh air temperature °C 20
Mill inlet gas temperature °C 90-95 110 to 120 79 120 105 82 184 163
Mill inlet gas static pressure daPa -50 -50 -50 90 50 50 -74 - 50 -50
Mill outlet gas flow Nm3/h 144 000 219 000 302 000 187 055 205340 53 499
Mill outlet gas temperature °C 90-95 90-95 90-95 110 115 104 75 95 95
Mill outlet pressure daPa -500 -400 -550 -780 -610 -670 -385 - 630 -510
False Air Nm3/h 25 000 45 000 57 000 28 058 13 648 3 544
Vapor Nm3/h 1 615 21 456 6 980 7 002 7 595 1 317 3 876 12 040 4 212
Balance Nm3/h -29 999 7 595 4 017 -1 735 2 322 -9 459
Spec. air consumption max Am3/kg 3,50 3,40 3,06 3,59 2,93 3,34 3,14 3,00 4,00
Spec. air consumption min Am3/kg 3,04 2,83 2,89 3,25 2,65 3,13 2,92 3,00 3,08
3.9 Water injection
Capacity m3/h 0 0 2,5 3,3 0 0 1,785 2 2
percentage of dry feed % 4,50 0,00 0,00 1,58 1,7 1,00
place, feed/center/track feed feed N/A N/A center track track
3.10 Levers to flatten the particle size
distribution
roller pressure variation yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
air volume yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
air load no no no yes yes yes yes yes yes
separator adjustment yes yes yes No No No yes yes yes
dam height yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
separator bypass no no no no no no no yes yes
grinding tools /adjustment yes yes yes no no no yes yes yes

Lucky Lucky
4. External Equipment C/S C/S C/S 70 OKS70 ROKS 40 RMC 51/26 BC BC
4.1 Dedusting
INTENSIV IF
Bag house type Jet Pulse Jetpulse (¤) Jet Pulse (¤) JC 80/16-6D
bag length m 6 to 7 N/A #N/A 6,75
bag diameter m
filter area mð N/A #N/A 4479
air/fabric ratio mñ/mðmin 1,23
jet cleaning yes N/A #N/A yes
pressure applied bar 6 to 8 N/A #N/A 6
housing no no no no
4.2 Cyclones n/a n/a
number 0 0 0 0 2 2
diameter m N/A N/A #N/A 5,0 2,25
pressureloss daPa N/A N/A #N/A 100 100
4.3 Hotgas generator
capacity GJ N/A 7,2 18 32 8,0
start up, cold
use for start up sometimes clinker Yes yes
constant use no yes no No (yes) no yes yes
water with feed t/h 0,81 10,73 0,99 0,20 3,80 0,66 0,15 4,02 2,11
water spraying max t/h 0,00 0,00 2,50 3,30 0,00 0,00 1,79 2 0
water total max t/h 0,81 10,73 3,49 3,50 3,80 0,66 1,94 6,02 2,11
Process hotgas available yes/no Nmñ/h n/a yes n/a 0 174 000 0 156 542 25959 25960
cooler waste
Comments: Client supply (*) gas by client by client
4.4 Hausing
full hausing no no no no no no side walls

roof only yes yes no yes no yes yes yes
4.5 Cement Cooler
installed yes no yes no no no no no
temperature °C 55 50 N/A #N/A
comment Air flash
water volume mñ/h N/A #N/A
4.6 Recirculation elevator yes
layout, percentage of feed % 50 50 50 100 100 100 200 100 100
bucket elevator kW 25 110 20
capacity t/h 33 70 85 300 110 20
Recirculation measured t/h <10 <2 <18 5 10 5 120
installed power kW N/A N/A 25
absorbed power kW N/A N/A #N/A
intermediate silo mñ yes no no no no
recirc.dosing yes no no no no
reject bypass of separator no no no no yes yes
4.7 Magnetic-& Metal separation
before mill inlet yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
metal dedector yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
bypass flap yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes
recirculation of bypassed clinker from metal
separator no no yes yes yes no yes no
extraction from table holes holes holes
in recirculation system yes no yes yes yes
5. Environmental aspects
Noise level low low
measured dbA 97
6. Mills in operation 2003 34 36 36 36

new mills sold 2003 6 6 6 6
mills for slag in operation 10 17 17 17 6
mills for cement in operation 18 19 17 17 4

6.2. Quality reports (CTS & LCR)
TEST PROGRAM, CTS laboratories
A. Materials
Industrial ground cements
1 Portland cement: 100g samples ex Cementos Progresso, taken from an FLS study carried out
in 2001, ground on a vertical mill.
2 Portland cement: 100g samples ex Cementos Progresso, taken from an FLS study carried out
in 2001, ground on a ball mill.
3 Portland cement: Ground on a vertical mill obtained by Loesche from Cemex in the Dominican
Republic.
4 Pozzolanic cement: Cementos Progresso in Guatemala (FLS vertical mill)
5 Pozzolanic cement: Cemento Nacional in Ecuador (Pfieffer vertical mill)
Laboratory pilot plant ground cements

6,7,8 Three laboratory ground Portland cements of different finenesses ex Loesche
It was noted none of the Portland cement samples could be classified as pure cements complying to
ASTM C150. Analysis indicated interground calcite was present in the cements.
B. Industrial ground cements

a) Industrial ground Portland cements
Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) results for the industrial ground cements are shown in the
table below and indicate that both VCM samples (1 and 3) had adequate temperature to produce a
sufficient amount of plaster. The amount is almost equivalent to that produced by a typical ball mill.
This suggested there is an adequate temperature in the milling system to control the types of sulfate
formed during milling, to allow good control of early hydration reactions.
Differential Scanning Calorimetry
Sample Sample name Gypsum, Plaster, DG, Syngenite,

No % % % %
1 Progresso Type 1 VCM 0.6 1.7 81 0.3

2 Progresso Type 1 ball mill 0.7 1.8 78 0.1
3 Cemex, VCM 1.1 1.6 64 0
DG = Degree of dehydration

The amount of pre-hydration of the cement caused by water in the milling system reacting with the
cement grains was also measured (see table below) for these 3 samples, the so-called Wk result.
The calcium hydroxide measured is also a result of the reaction between water in the milling system
and in this case, the cement free lime. Values recorded do not necessarily indicate a quality problem,
but suggest pre-hydration reactions are occurring and could be of concern.
Sample Calcium Calcite, WK, Loss on ignition

No Sample name hydroxide, % % at 1000 deg C,
% %
1 Progresso Type 1 VCM 1.52 2.35 0.11 1.85
2 Progresso Type 1 ball mill 2.00 4.34 0.06 2.80
3 Cemex, VCM 0.51 7.38 0.06 4.01
Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA)
The Cementos Progresso samples have higher amounts of calcium hydroxide and Wk values than the
Cemex cement, but this could be because of the age and storage condition of the samples (over 1
year old). It does not confirm the milling conditions were more severe. The Wk of the ball milled
product is twice that of the VCM suggesting a stronger influence in that mill from its water spray
system. The loss on ignition is mainly as a result of the presence of calcite.
No definite conclusion could be reached on cement carbonation. All three cements contain a
substantial amount of calcite. This could be due to carbonation of the calcium hydroxide shown
above, or from CO2 added to the mill system by the direct firing heating system. It could also be due
to carbonate addition to the mill, but suppliers did not mention this was the practice on site.
b) Industrial ground Pozzolanic cements
Two pozzolanic cements were obtained from Cementos Progresso in Guatemala (FLS VCM) and
Cemento Nacional in Equador (Pfeiffer VCM). These cements contained 24 and 31 percent
respectively of natural pozzolanas (containing up to 10% moisture). As a result of this high moisture
content, we expected low levels of gypsum dehydration and some amount of cement pre-hydration.
The DSC and TGA results in the tables below do substantiate this. This would not necessarily
adversely affect the cement quality, because these products are ground to a performance
specification.
Sample Sample name Gypsum, Plaster, DG, Syngenite,

No % % % %
4 Progresso Type 1PM 2.1 0.3 8 0.2
5 Nacional Type 1PM 1.8 0.5 23 0
Sample Calcium Calcite, WK, Loss on ignition

No Sample name hydroxide, % % at 1000° C,
% %
4 Progresso Type 1PM 1.63 6.91 0.16 4.18
5 Nacional Type 1PM 0.73 0.50 0.60 1.71
Thermal Gravimetric Analysis

C. Laboratory pilot plant ground pure Portland cements
DSC results indicate this pilot mill was heated and produced enough plaster to control cement
hydration. The low syngenite, again, probably indicates a low alkali cement.
Sample Sample name Gypsum, Plaster, % DG, % Syngenite,

No % %
6 Loesche Pilot plant cement 2.9 1.1 29 0.1
7 Loesche Pilot plant cement 3.0 1.2 31 0
8 Loesche Pilot plant cement 2.9 1.0 27 0
TGA results measured a substantial amount of calcium hydroxide and indicate water was probably
used during the grinding of these cements and has reacted with the clinker free lime (see table below).
This is similar to what was observed in the industrial cement analyzed above. The Wk levels however,
are very acceptable and indicate low water reaction with the cement grains. This could indicate some
water can react with the cement and may have an effect of cement quality (we are assuming that
calcium hydroxide was not used as a cement addition).
All three samples also contained calcite. This again could be due to carbonation of the calcium
hydroxide or by the CO2 from the direct heat source. Again it could also come from an intentional
addition or a contamination from an un-pure gypsum source. The dolomite found can only be present
from an addition or a contamination from an un-pure gypsum source. The LOI of the cements are
elevated, and again, this is due to the dolomite and calcite present.
Loss on
Sample Sample Name Ca(OH)2, Dolomite, Calcite, Wk, ignition at
No % % % % 1000°C, %
6 Loesche Pilot plant cement 0.98 0.52 1.15 0.02 1.74

Thermal Gravimetric Analysis
D. Particle size distributions

Particle size gradings were conducted on all the cements (next table). The Rosin-Rammler slope
numbers from the VC milled cements varied, but appeared to be no steeper than products from closed
circuit ball milled shops equipped with third generation separators.

Sample Name CTS Number SSA, RR Slope
m2/kg Number
Portland cements
Cementos Progresso Type 1 ball mill 250911 350 1.01
Cementos Progresso Type 1 FLS VCM 250912 406 1.23
Cemex, Dominican Republic, Loesche VCM 251104 340 1.03
Pozzolana (Type1PM) cements

Progresso Type 1PM FLS VCM 250913 - 1.03
Nacional Type 1PM – Pfeiffer VCM 250914 - 1.23
Pilot plant cements

Loesche Pilot plant cement 250821 408 1.03
Comparison Samples from ball mills

rd
O’Sepa separator (3 generation) Bath 370 1.17
st
Sturtevant separator (1 generation) Woodstock 380 1.00
Particle Size Analyses
Fig 1: Vertical Cement Mill Project - Industrial, Pure Portland Cement Comparison
100,00
90,00
80,00
70,00
60,00
% Passing
50,00
40,00
30,00
20,00
Cementos Progresso T-1 Ball mill
Cementos Progresso T-1 FLS VCM
Cemex Republic Dominican, VCM
10,00
Bath TII, BM - O'Sepa
Woodstock TII, BM - Sturtevant
0,00
1 10 100 1000
Laser Particle size distribution, µm

Fig 2: Vertical Cement Mill Project - 1PM Cement comparison
100,00
90,00
80,00
70,00
60,00
% Passing
50,00
40,00
30,00
20,00
Cemento Progresso T-1PM FLS VCM
Cemento National-Equador T-1PM PFIEFFER VCM
10,00
0,00
1 10 100 1000
Fig 3: Vertical Cement Mill Project - Pilot Plant Portland Cements
100,00
90,00
80,00
70,00
60,00
% Passing
50,00
40,00
30,00
20,00
Loesche Pilot Plant, Blaine 408
Loesche Pilot Plant, Blaine 386
10,00 Loesche Pilot Plant, Blaine 410
0,00
1 10 100 1000

CHARACTERISTICS OF OFUNATO VERTICAL MILLED CEMENT
TEST PROGRAM, LCR LABORATORIES
SUMMARY
Samples of portland cement ground in both a vertical cement mill and conventional ball mill at the
Ofunato plant in Japan have been assessed at the LCR laboratories.
The two cements were found to have very similar particle size gradings and similar strengths at all
ages. The main difference centered on the vertical milled cement’s negligible quantity of dehydrated
forms of sulfate compared to the ball milled cement, indicating a low milling temperature, and shorter
setting time in EN 196-3 mixes.
A. INTRODUCTION
Meetings with the 4 suppliers in July and August 2002 provided a good opportunity to assess quality
aspects of cement milling using vertical cement mills (VCMs). These types of mills offer potential
electrical energy savings, but there are some concerns that cement characteristics might adversely
affect a plant’s competitiveness in the market. Samples of VCM (FLS OK mill) and ball milled portland
cements were obtained from Ofunato plant in Japan for verifying comparative mortar, chemical and
particulate data.
B. EVALUATION OF SAMPLES
a) Samples received
Samples of both vertical milled and conventional ball milled portland cements, clinker and gypsum
(added sulfate) were received at LCR’s laboratories from the Ofunato plant.
b) Chemical Characteristics
Results are summarized in the next two tables. Main observations are:
• Bogue C3S levels for both cements are slightly lower than mean values for Lafarge cements
(generally above 50%)
• The eqNa2O levels at 0.49% are relatively low
• The loss on ignition levels of 0.9% (ball mill) and in particular 1.4% for the VCM cement indicate
the presence of a limestone minor additional constituent. Contact with the plant indicated typical
compositions of the cements were 94-95% clinker, 2-3% limestone and around 3% gypsum, with
no water addition (although a diethylene glycol grinding aid is used at a 0.025% addition rate)

Ofunato Ofunato
Chemical
CEM I Ball CEM I
Analysis
mill Vertical mill
SiO2 21,1 20,8

IR 0,18 0,16
Al2O3 6,1 6,0
Fe2O3 3,0 3,0
CaO 64,0 64,0
MgO 1,4 1,3
SO3 (total) 2,08 2,21
TiO2 0,30 0,3
Mn2O3 0,15 0,15
P2O5 0,19 0,20
Cr2O3 <0,01 <0,01
ZrO2 <0,01 <0,01
SrO 0,06 0,06
LOI 0,9 1,4
K20 0,39 0,39
Na20 0,23 0,23
eqNa20 0,49 0,49
w/s K20 0,28 0,27
w/s Na20 0,10 0,10
w/s eqNa20 0,28 0,28
Free Lime 0,6 0,6
LSF 91,5 92,7

SR 2,32 2,31
AR 2,03 2,00
Bogue C3S 46,5 49,2

C2 S 25,4 22,6
C3 A 11,1 10,8
C4AF 9,1 9,1
Chemical characteristics of Ofunato ball and vertical milled cements

Ofunato
Ofunato
Thermal CEM I
CEM I
Analysis Vertical
Ball mill
mill
% gypsum 1,4 2,8

% hemihydrate 0,8 ~0
% total SO3 2,08 2,21

% clinker SO3 0,86 0,86
% SO3 ex gypsum 0,65 1,30

% SO3 ex hemihydrate 0,44 ~0
% SO3 ex anhydrite ~0 ~0
% SO3 ex soluble
anhydrite (by difference) 0,13 0,05
Thermal analysis of Ofunato ball and vertical milled cements
• The total SO3 contents are relatively low at 2.08 (ball milled) and 2.21% (VCM), especially for
an11% C3A cement. The extent of gypsum dehydration is very low for the VCM cement with a
negligible quantity of hemihydrate detected, indicating a relatively low milling temperature.
c) Particulate characteristics
Particle size grading characteristics for both cements are shown in the next table.
Analysis techniques at LCR can be used to more accurately assess the particulate characteristics of
powders. Different particle size gradings can be obtained with the same sample depending upon the
degree of dispersion of individual cement grains. To overcome this scenario, the Laser Granulometry
Specific Area (LGSA) can be calculated using an Excel spreadsheet, and can provide more
representative particulate information (see Figure below). Cement samples were analysed both before
(USO) and after (USM) ultrasonic dispersion in ethanol – after ultrasonic dispersion is felt to provide
more representative results. The difference between these 2 surface areas can be used to calculate
an Agglomeration Index (AI). Values of AI between 10 and 20 are normal for portland cements, similar
to values determined for the 2 cements.
The BET surface area is a measurement of the total specific area of the outer surface and surface of
the porous network accessible to nitrogen molecules. A porosity index can be calculated by dividing
the BET area by the LGSA after ultrasonic dispersion. Porosity indices of the 2 cements are in line
with values for non-porous solids, such as cements (below 2 and generally 1.8 +/- 0.2). Fly ashes, for
example, will have higher porosity indices as a result of their carbon content making the material more
porous.
Microscopic examination did not detect significant differences in the particle shapes of the 2 cements
(there is evidence to suggest, for example, that Horomill milled cements are more angular/less
rounded than ball milled products leading to increased water demands).

Ofunato
Ofunato CEM I
Particle Size Analysis CEM I Ball
Vertical mill
mill
SSA, m2/kg 337 332

% finer 250 mic 100 100
120,7 mic 100 100
88,91 mic 99,6 98,5
65,51 mic 96,4 94,0
41,43 mic 84,8 81,8
30,53 mic 73,5 71,3
19,31 mic 56,1 55,5
14,22 mic 46,0 46,1
4,88 mic 19,3 20,9
1,95 mic 7,5 8,4
Laser granulometyr specific area:

Before Ultrasonics (USO), cm2/g 4034 4119
After Ultrasonics (USM), cm2/g 4561 4770
Agglomeration Index 13,1 15,6
BET surface area, cm2/g 8400 9000
Porosity Index 1,84 1,89
Particle size analysis of Ofunato ball and vertical milled cements
Ethanol - Bulk Ethanol - Bulk

OFUNATO CEMENT CEM1 - Vertical Mill OFINATO CEMENT CEM 1 - Ball Mill
Ethanol - Ultrasonics Ethanol - Ultrasonics
6 7
LGSA[US0] = 4119 cm²/g LGSA[US0] = 4034 cm²/g

5 6 LGSA[USM] = 4561 cm²/g
LGSA[USM] = 4770 cm²/g
Agglomeration Index = 15.8 5 Agglomeration Index = 13.1

4
% volume
% volume
4
3
3
2
2
1 1
0 0
0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1000 0.01 0.1 1 10 100 1000
µm µm
Particle size distribution data
d) Performance in mortar
Results are summarized in the next table. Main observations are:-
• Strengths in EN 196-1 mixes for the VCM cement are similar or slightly higher to the ball milled
cement, with both cements typical of a CEM I class 42,5R product

• Based on EN 196-3 mixes, setting times for the VCM cement are shorter than for the ball milled
cement, whereas water demands are similar for both cements

EN 196-3
% water 27 27
EN 196-1 mortar, Mpa
1 day 12,9 14,7

2 day 23,5 24,6
7 day 44,8 43,6
28 day 55,1 56,4
Ofunato ball and vertical milled cements

6.3. Trip reports
CENTRE TECHNIQUE EUROPE CENTRALE GMBH
REPORT
Date: 17.12.02
Author: W. Stoiber
Date of the visit: 13-23.11.02
Subject: Visit of Vertical Cement Mills
Participants: W. Stoiber, M. Weichinger, P.
Lehoux, R. Souvignet
Distribution: H. Braun, G. Kirchner
+ Participants
Classification: INTERN
1. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
All of the visited VCM’s (Vertical Cement Mills) in Guatemala , Peru , Ecuador , and New Jersey have
reached their target in terms of guarantee for energy saving, production and live time of wear parts.
They produce mainly blended cements with puzzolan, slag or pure slag, but less pure clinker cements.
In comparison with former ball mill operation they gained in specific energy consumption, wear part
costs, production costs, and in addition rate, if the standard permitted higher addition.
In two plants the reliability was rather low in comparison to the Lafarge expectation. The main reason
therefore was the fact, that grinding tools were not revamped at time or that due to high vibration
levels caused by fine clinker the mill had to be stopped, or that filter bags were damaged due to direct
air flow into the dust collector , or that filter bags clogged due to crossing the due point several times a
day.
The main conclusion for the visited plants was to use existing ball mills only in case of emergency or
rarely produced cement types. One of the plants ordered a second VCM and transferred the
production of all the blended cements from the ball mill to the VCM’s.
The suppliers are still working on the optimization of some weak points of the systems, concerning
mainly the gas velocity, the airflow, the pressure loss, the nozzle ring design and the nozzle ring area,
but also the vibration level during finer grinding.
Therefore a 3 stage mechanical speed reducer was installed on the slag mill in Camden with good
success: the mill is able to produce fine slag with >6000cm²/g (Blaine).

Saint Quentin Fallavier, on March 31, 2003
From : B. DE ROBERT To : M. WEICHINGER
Copies: M. PALIARD J. DAWES

F. DESMIDT S. ROMMENS
C. DESCHARMES H. BRAUN
E. DELQUIGNIES W. STOIBER
R. LAMBRECHT J. DENIZEAU
CIRC. PROCESS C. PAXTON
J. VANDERSTICHELEN
Ref. : PPP601-BDR(LP)N1304 03
OK CEMENT MILL VISIT / PROCESS

KAMARI / MARCH 17 - 2003
Participants:
Luis Petersen OK mill Product Manager / FLS
Angeliki Benetatou Production Manager / Kamari-Titan
Sotiris Valsamakis Mechanical Department Manager / Kamari-Titan
J. Dawes Quality / DPC
S. Rommens Technology / DPC
B. de Robert Process / CTI
History:
The first experience of FLS with vertical cement grinding was in Tagawa (Aso Cement) with an
Atox mill in 1982. This experience was not very successful and the mill was dismantled in 1983.
In 1993 FLS acquired the license for the OK mill. “OK” stands for Onoda/Kobe. The OK mill
was inspired by the Pfeifer and Ube/Loesche mills. It is a 4 roller - lever type mill (vs. yoke). Its
main particularity is the shape of the roller with a groove in its middle.

“de-
aeration”
groove
Wedge
shape
contact
It is claimed that the groove allows de-aeration of the bed of material (?) and favor bed stability.
The “wedge shape” of the contact between table and roller claims to allow higher maximum
pressure in the bed. This “wedge shape” is also present in some other brand mills.
Vertical mills
Roller to table profile
Raymond Raymond Babcok-CP AG

F F F
G
G G
A
A A
Polysius FLS Pfeiffer
F F F
G G G
A A
Loesche Kawasaki Onoda-Kobe
F F F
Lafarge Vivier stage broyage
G G G
A A A

Kamari Plant:
Two FLS ≈ 3500t/d 5m& preheater kilns

Operate mostly with coke (and up to 7% S) but => clinker SO3 monthly average max = 1,1%
(equivalent to 50% max high sulfur coke)
Finish grinding shops:
• Two cement ball mill.
• One roller press + ball mill.
• One OK mill commissioned in may 1999.
OK mill characteristics:
Type: 27-4 (<=> table diameter≈ 2,7m and 4 rollers)

Installed power:
Mill: 1 800 kW
Separator: 90 kW
Fan: 1 000 kW
Filter surface: 4868 m2
Output: 65 t/h
Wear and operation:
May 1999: Commissioning
August 2000: 8 000h/500 000t Reverse rollers
December 2000: 10 000h/630 000t Table hard facing (500 kg)
January 2002: 18 000h/1 200 000t Roller hard facing (130 kg/roller)
March 2003: 26 000h / ?? Roller and table hard facing
It is now decided to hard face table and roller always together and every years.
Hard facing of rollers and table represent 700 kg of welding material.
Roller surface is by segments. It was mentioned by FLS that in Japan rollers were hard
faced up to 10 times and table was hard faced up to 25 times before replacement of wear
plates.

Roller and table
Dam ring :
110 mm
= 2,7 m
= 3,16 m = Power ∅ Wear

Pattern
Wear

Flow sheet:
Flow sheet particularities are:

• No hot gases source
• After leaving the production filter, the cement is cooled through a cooling air stream
and a second filter. Although efficient (cement T° < 60°C), this solution is costly (≈ 3
kWh/t + maintenance of bag filter).
• The material resulting from metal detection is fed to a bin. This bin is slowly
extracted with a second metal detection allowing 90% of the good material to go back
to the mill.
• The airlock device for mill rejects is a constant level bin with “stop ‘d go” vibrator
extraction. It was mentioned that it is not good for process stability. It is now
replaced by a double flap on more recent mills.
Cement produced:
CEM I Main product / ≈ 95% KK, 5% gypsum, with/without minor limestone addition
Blaine yearly average: 3800 / Blaine weekly average max 4200
CEM II Small quantities /pouzolana and fly ash addition
Blaine yearly average: 3800 / Blaine weekly average max 4500

Power consumption (at 65t/h):
Comments
Mill motor: 18-20 kWh/t. Comparable to best roller press and
Horomill
Mill fan: 11 kWh/t Mill over ventilated to “kill” vibrations (65mb
ÌP)
Could be optimized at 7-8 kWh/t
Separator: 1 kWh/t
Total for mill: 30 to 32 kWh/t
Flash cooler: 3 kWh/t Usually not existing
Auxiliaries 5 kWh/t Feed and evacuation transport, hydraulic....
Total shop: 38 to 40 kWh/t
Process parameters:
On the short term, the process seems stable.

But the main observation is that the process parameters are highly variable on the longer term.
E.g.: for the same cement, average daily value can vary from 1 000 kW to 1 500 kW at the main
motor. Mill outlet T° can be as low as 65°C (on a daily average) when target is at 105°C....
Our conclusion is that the mill is not operated in optimal condition (e.g. over ventilation of the
mill to “kill” vibrations, fluctuation of gypsum de-hydration, fluctuation of bed depth...). It is not
possible to trust a snap shot (or a spot sample) to draw reliable conclusions.
It was mentioned that depending on table & roller profile (wear) the optimum parameters can be
very different. If this impact justifies the observed variations in process parameters, our
conclusion is: the present reloading frequency for rollers and table (once per year) may be
not enough.
Bed depth:
Because of the “wedge” shape, it is not constant under the whole roller. It goes from 80 mm at
roller inner edge down to ≈ 20 mm on the outer edge (average value = 50 mm). The indication
send to CCR correspond only to the minimal thickness at the outer edge of the roller
(measurement present on the 4 rollers). It was 25 mm in Kamari during operation. FLS
mentioned that the mill can be operated at 13 mm minimum.
Dam ring
The dam ring sector’s eighth is modified several times per year depending on various parameters
(wear, vibration.....(??).). It can range from 80 mm to 130 mm. It was at 110 mm during visit.
The total difference in altitude between the table level at roller inlet and the upper edge of the
dam ring is 360 mm in Kamari. It is 10,3% of table diameter. This value is very high compared
to the 6% of the Loesh Fos mill and the 4% of the Polysius Dunkerque mill (≈ similar product).
The OK mill could be classified as a shallow ball mill.
Illustration: for the Raymond shallow bowl mill, this ratio (total dam ring altitude/ table
diameter) is 10%.

Material pressures:
Oil pressure max:
85 bars max in Kamari, 170 bars in modern OK mills (new pistons dimensioning).
Accumulator pressure = 50% to 70% of hydraulic pressure. The lower figures
correspond to a “hard” spring. The accumulators have been brought physically closer to
the piston in the newer mills.
Specific Pressure (total force / (roller ∅ x roller width):
Normally for OK mills: 1200 kN/m2. Was 750kN/m2 in Kamari during visit. Explains low mill kW
(1100).
Normally for Atox mills: 800 kN/m2
Loesche / Fos nominal: 787 kN/m2
Polysius / Dunkerque nominal 700 kN/m2
The OK mill is a “high pressure” mill.
Maximum pressure inside bed: The calculations is directly derived from the Specific Pressure
with hypothesis on: pressure angle, percent of operational roller width and repartition of pressure
across this surface. The “wedge shape” contact between roller and table most likely increase the
maximum pressure inside bed for a given specific pressure.
The following figures are supplied by FLS.

Normally for OK mills: 200 MPa (equivalent to roller press). Would be 125MPa in
Kamari.
Normally for Atox mills: 60 MPa
These are the results of a calculation - not measurements:

Illustration of maximum pressure inside grinding bed (FLS documentation):
Specific pressure :
Max pressure : 200 MPa <=> <=> 100 MPa
OK « Atox »
Table speed:
For the OK 27-4 the linear speed at power diameter is 4,3m/s.
Each mill –regardless of its size- is designed at constant acceleration at the edge of the table for a
given product.
The OK mill is “slow".
It is illustrated by the comparison of the “ϖ2R” at table edge for different mills:
Cement and slag:
Polysius (Dunkerque) 11,2 m/s2 (double rollers)
FLS OK (Kamari) 12,2 m/s2
Loesche (Fos) 14,6 m/s2
Raw mix (PLN offer)
Polysius 12,9 m/s2
Pfeiffer 14,5 m/s2
Loesche 16,6 m/s2
FLS Atox 17,2 m/s2
Generally, less speed = less vibration.

Water spray and grinding aid:
Both are used for bed stability. FLS mentioned that it can be either/or but it is not possible to
function without both.
At Kamari, the mill was functioning with a water spray of 0,5% of KK production and grinding
aid (HEA2) at 220g/t (diluted one to 7 <=> more O,15% water). Both are sprayed in the
middle of the table, bellow the feed chute.
Vibrations:
The sensor is on the base of the gearbox, 5 cm above the concrete base. It is a position were the
readings are the lowest for a given situation. It was argued by FLS that it is the best position to
compare different mills. Any higher position on the mill may be influenced by stationary waves.
Values were between 1 and 2 mm/s during visit. It was mentioned that normally the mill is
around 0,8 mm/s. The alarm is at 2 mm/s and the trip is at 4 mm/s. It can be compared to the
Ewekoro Atox raw mill where the sensor is high on the mill body: alarm level = 17 mm/s and
trip level = 22 mm/s.
Mill exit T°:

Target is at 105°C. During time of visit, it was stable around 65°C (!) because of cold clinker
(kiln shutdown - no hot air source and maximum re-circulation). Surprisingly, no unfavorable
comments were noted concerning variable concrete performance / workability as a result of mill
T° fluctuation. (Cement SO3 = 2,5 to 3,5% depending on type / natural gypsum addition).
Nozzle ring:
It was originally modifiable in size from the table side. The “slide plates” have been removed in
Kamari so the cross section surface is now maximum. It was done to diminish wear. In the
recent OK mills, the nozzle ring area is adjustable in size from the outside. It can be adjusted for
different products (e.g. more air for slag, less for cement). The armor ring (or air guide cone) has
also been increased by 20 cm in height.
Because of wear on the roller shaft, some guiding vanes were put vertical and a small part of the
nozzle ring was blinded.
Control loops:
Mill exit T°:
Based on water spray or fresh air intake. FLS recommendation is to put it on fresh air
intake as water spray should be constant. Every thing was on manual during visit as the
mill could not reach its T° (no fresh air, minimum water spray and mill exit T° = 65°C.)
Mill draft:
Measured and controlled in volume with fan actuator.
Feed:
Based on mill kW or nozzle ring delta P (between mill inlet and mill body≈ 23 mbar).
FLS recommendation is to put it on mill kW. It was on nozzle ring delta P during visit.
Overall, the loops are fairly basic (nothing on hydraulic pressure and bed depth, no built-in
anticipation mechanism to fight vibration spikes...).
Strangely, the set points of these control loops are sometime drastically different from one month
to the next in the same product. (mill kW from 1000 to 1400, fan kW from 500 to 800...). Refer
to Process Parameter §.

Start up sequence:
First: ventilation
Then table and feed
Then, when mill delta P is achieved the rollers are lowered (different to common practice).
Rejects:
Because the Kamari mill is over ventilated, it operates with close to no rejects in stable operation.
FLS mentioned that “normal” operation is 5% to 10% of mill feed as outside rejects and mill
delta-P < 55 mbar (vs. 65 in Kamari).
Air intakes
The mill is equipped with 3 air intake – the main one is above the reject chute. They are
horizontal for more than 10m. They remain clean because of “clean” air and high ventilation.
Two rollers operation:

The mill can operate with 2 rollers is case of non availability of one or two rollers. It was
experienced during one month at Kamari. The mill was producing 66% of its capacity (50t/h).
Product fineness curve:

It was mentioned that for bed stability, it may not be optimum to have the absolute steepest
fineness curve. The fineness curve of the Kamari OK mill is very similar to the one from the
“mill + roller press” shop (similar separator) in the same plant.
Bag house:
In Kamari, it is an FLS filter (not always the case for OK mills). It was mentioned that on
average 1/3 of the bags are replaced every years. Furthermore, some parts of the hoppers had to
be replaced by wear resistant plates.
These 2 items lead us to the conclusion that the filter (and probably the gas repartition inside it)
is not optimized.
Lower separator bearing:
It is cooled with circulating oil and sealing air in Kamari. It is cooled only with sealing air on
more recent OK mills.
Reliability:
Document produced by Kamari plant OK vertical cement mill
Everything in blue is by BdR / Lafarge / CTI ΜΤ4 STOPS (2002)
Fiab Lafarge Utilisation Lafarge
si "maintenance" = prog MONTH RUNING TIME FULL SILO MECHANICAL ELECTRICAL MAINTENANCE POWER CUT OPERATIONAL
82% 59% janv-02 439,10 0,00 24,20 0,00 170,50 34,80 75,40
95% 83% févr -02 554,40 10,00 19,70 0,00 0,00 75,40 12,50
88% 88% mars-02 655,60 0,00 9,80 3,40 0,00 0,00 74,20
95% 88% avr-02 635,90 0,00 35,90 0,00 47,50 0,00 0,70
87% 82% mai-02 612,80 0,00 43,30 1,90 0,00 42,90 43,10
93% 91% juin-02 654,70 0,00 27,40 0,00 16,00 0,00 21,90
88% 79% juil-02 590,20 5,10 49,30 0,00 35,80 30,40 33,20
94% 69% août - 02 513,60 118,00 10,80 0,00 31,40 48,30 21,90
93% 77% sept-02 555,10 47,70 0,00 29,90 9,50 63,70 14,10
92% 87% oct-02 645,00 0,00 38,10 0,00 23,40 23,30 14,20
93% 80% nov-02 576,10 0,00 22,30 2,30 16,00 87,60 15,70
87% 72% déc- 02 538,37 0,00 76,50 0,00 5,80 108,63 6,40
90,5% 79,6% TOTAL 6970,87 180,80 357,30 37,50 355,90 515,03 333,30
En % utilisation: 79,6% 2,1% 4,1% 0,4% 4,1% 5,9% 3,8%
Fiabilité Lafarge si arrêts programmés = 5j/ans + 8h par mois = 208h/ans

88,8%

A review of the shut downs was done for a short period. Its conclusions are:
• The “operational” incident stoppages (45% of incident stoppages) are composed in they vast
majority of vibrations and material flow problem in feeding (+) or evacuation(-) system.
• The low reliability is not explained by major - hard to solve problems (the reliability for
cement ball mills is marginally higher in this plant).
• Problems on the OK mill –and they solution- are very similar to the one encountered on
vertical raw mills.
The reliability target for a Vertical Cement Mill should be similar to VRM’s (98%).
Frequent table and roller re-loading can easily be done with Lafarge utilization target of 90% for
cement mills.
Reference list:
• 1985 to 1993 (before license from Kobe to FLS).
21 mills – but only 5 for cement (other: pure slag, gypsum, limestone, talc.....)
Medium size = 210 cm/ 1300 kW
Exclusively in Japan Korea and China
• 1993 to present (after license by FLS)
15 mills (14 for cement, one for slag)
Medium size = 310 cm / 2600 kW
Mostly Latin America, India and Greece.
• On order: 4 mills in Nigeria (Dangote), 2 in China.
It was mentioned that none of the mills are installed with cyclone (although FLS keeps it as a
possibility).
Documentation is available upon request in my office (presentations, process calculations,

illustrations, 60 pictures, reference list.....).
Bruno de Robert

Vertical slag and/or cement mills outside Lafarge
Summary of the visits
During the five last years, Lafarge visited some VSM and VCM, when consistent industrial data about
their design and performances were collected:
• CIMSA (Turkey): Loesche LM 46, 2200 kW, started in 1997
• Cementos Progresso (Guatemala): FLS OK 33(4), 3000 kW, started in 1997
• Titan (Greece): FLS OK 27(4), 1800 kW, started in 1999
CIMSA is producing pure slag, but also limestone cement, at 75 tph for both products. This mill was
intended to produce also pure cement, what it is not the case actually.
Cementos Progresso is producing only pozzolanic cement.
Titan is producing mainly pure cement, but also occasionally pozzolanic cement.
These three cases show that, basically, the same type of mill is able to grind different kinds of material
such as slag and pure or blended cements. A case with only slag cement could not be identified, but it
should also be possible to grind (cf. similar experience with Horomill in Karsdorf).
Specific energy for Grinding
In our panel of six mills (including the vertical mills of Fos sur mer, Rouen and Dunquerque), the range
for grinding slag and cements is 17 - 38 kwh/t.
There is really no difference in efficiency due to the type of mills, between the suppliers, and the whole
range can be explained by the different grindabilities and final finenesses.
• Polysius requires 37 kWh/t for a SSB 4700 ground slag (it could be about 60-65 kWh/t in a ball
mill, what would not be unusual).
• Loesche requires 20-25 kWh/t for SSB 3500 ground slag. Compared to Polysius values, this is
in phase with usual rules giving energy versus fineness. CIMSA slag seems very easy to grind
(it depends a lot on its origin).
• FLS mills require less than 20 kWh/t for pure or blended cements in a range of SSB 3500-
4000. Considering an equivalence of about 35 kWh/t (1,8 ratio) in ball mill, it is a normal
performance too.

Tech. Agenda GRINDING CTI/Pro-CD/11-03
TABLE 1: Specific consumption of main motor & other process data VCM study
company LML LAFARGE SRT CIMSA TITAN Cementos

Progresso
location Dunkerque Fos sur mer Rouen Mersin Kamari San Miguel
France France France Turkey Greece Guatemala
mill supplier Polysius Loesche Loesche Loesche FLS FLS
mill type (n. rollers) RMS 36 (4) LM 35 (2+2) LM 35 (2+2) LM 46 (2+2) OK 27 (4) OK 33 (4)
table diameter mm 4000 3500 3500 4600 2700 3300
roller diameter mm 1980 1800 1750 2360 1590 1950
roller width mm 500 500 540 630 648 792
table speed rpm 22,4 27,6 28 25,5 27,6 25,4
table speed (periph.) m/s 4,69 5,06 5,13 6,14 3,90 4,39
dam-ring height mm 160 200 160 120 80-130 80-90
start-up/data (year) 1999/2000 1995/2000 2000/2001 1997/1998 1999/2003 1997/1998
main product SLAG SLAG SLAG SLAG CEM I CEM II
content limestone < 5% pozz 15%, lim. 5%
SSB 4700 3400 3500 4000-4300 3800-4200 3600
production tph 24 57 58 75 65 142
mill power (installed) kW 1200 1680 1680 2200 1800 3000
mill power (absorbed) kW 895 1515 1113 1575 1235 2480
abs./inst. 0,75 0,90 0,66 0,72 0,69 0,83
specific consumption kWh/t 37,3 26,6 19,2 21,0 19,0 17,5
comments high SSB optimisation easy to grind
max. SSB (main prod.) 4400 > 5000
second product CEM II CEM II
content limestone 20% pozzol. & fly-ash
current SSB 3600-3800 3800-4500
production tph 75 75
other products CEM I & II (tests)
fresh feed H2O (usual) % 11 8 9,5 7-10 (slag) 2
hydraulic P (usual) bar 130 60 60 55 / 70(slag) 85 105
Additional comments on table 1,
• The ratio (absorbed power/installed power) is between 66 and 90%. For sizing the motor, we
could recommend, for all suppliers, a range of 75 - 85%.
• The dam-ring height varies from 80-90 mm (FLS CEMENTOS PROGRESSO), 80-130 mm
(FLS TITAN), 120 mm (Loesche CIMSA), to 160 mm (Loesche SRT and Polysius
Dunquerque) and 200 mm (Loesche Fos). It does not exactly increase with the table diameter.
If the mill produces different products, it is recommended to have the possibility of adjustment
of the dam ring height.
• The table speed does not vary so much, from 22.6 rpm (Polysius) to 28 rpm (Loesche at
Rouen). It must be considered also the real peripherical speed, depending on the diameter,
varying from 3.9 m/s (FLS TITAN) to 6.14 m/s (Loesche CIMSA). About 5 m/s could be taken
as a « standard » target. A variable speed is probably not necessary, even when the mill has
to produce slag, pure and blended cements, as it could be highly recommended for fuels
grinding.
• Fresh feed moisture is in a range of 7 to 11%, except in Cementos Progresso, where it is

necessary to spray some water on the table till reaching at least 3-4% H2O, in order to avoid
vibrations. Drying is generally not a problem. In some cases, the installation of a hot gas
generator can be needed.

• For the cement grinding cases (TITAN, Cementos Progresso, CIMSA secondary product, and
tests in FOS), in order to avoid vibrations, it is always necessary to spray some grinding aid on
the table, or at mill feed. Except a very high ratio in CIMSA for CEM II (0,8 kg/t, not optimized),
the standard quantity is about 0.3 kg/t.
• The required hydraulic pressure is about 60 bars for Loesche mills in slag, 80 to 110 bars for
FLS OK mills in cement, and maximum 130 bars for the Polysius slag mill.
Specific Energy for Ventilation
For the analysed mills, the range of the specific energy for ventilation is very wide, from 3 to nearly 12
kWh/t.
The different reasons for this can be:
- a high grinding energy consumption (that is, a material difficult to grind) requires a larger mill. As
the gas speed inside the mill must be rather constant whatever the mill size can be, the result is a
high specific gas flow, thus also a rather high kWh/t for ventilation too, or
- a high total delta P (even with moderate flow), possibly due to a non-optimized design of the mill
and separator internals.
- a mix of both above reasons simultaneously.
Tech. Agenda GRINDING CTI/Pro-CD/11-03

TABLE 2: Specific consumption of main fan & other aeraulic data VCM study
company LML LAFARGE SRT CIMSA TITAN Cementos

Progresso
location Dunkerque Fos sur mer Rouen Mersin Kamari San Miguel
France France France Turkey Greece Guatemala
mill supplier Polysius Loesche Loesche Loesche FLS FLS
mill type (n. rollers) RMS 36 (4) LM 35 (2+2) LM 35 (2+2) LM 46 (2+2) OK 27 (4) OK 33 (4)
table diameter mm 4000 3500 3500 4600 2700 3300
start-up/data (year) 1999/2000 1995/2000 2000/2001 1997/1998 1999/2003 1997/1998
main product SLAG SLAG SLAG SLAG CEM I CEM II
limestone < 5% pozz 15%, lim. 5%
SSB 4700 3400 3500 4000-4300 3800-4200 3600
production tph 24 57 58 75 65 142
fan power (installed) kW 355 500 450 1000 1000 1500
fan power (absorbed) kW 274 365 177 750 715 1295
abs./inst. 0,77 0,73 0,39 0,75 0,72 0,86
specific consumption kWh/t 11,4 6,4 3,1 10,0 11,0 9,1
gas flow at mill outlet m3/h 101000 195000 116000 350000 250000 420000
gas speed at nozzle ring m/s 25 32 35 54
separator Sepol 230 conical cage conical cage conical cage O-sepa O-sepa
material load of gas g/m3 238 292 500 214 260 338
m3/kg 4,2 3,4 2,0 4,7 3,8 3,0
gas flow / table area m/s 2,2 5,6 3,3 5,9 12,1 13,6
material lift kg/m2/s 0,53 1,65 1,67 1,25 3,15 4,61
total ∆P for fan mm H2O 570 600 470 680 850 850
recalcul. fan efficiency % 56,5 86,2 82,8 85,3 79,9 74,1
variable speed no yes yes yes yes ?
comments high figure due standard figure better figure though easy-to- high figure, due rather high figure
mainly to high than Fos, due to grind slag, high to high ∆P (FLS mainly due to high
grinding energy, lower grinding figure due to high mills typical), and ∆P (FLS mills
though reasonna- energy, but also flow (normal ∆P), rather high flow typical)
ble flow and aeraulic optimisa- to be optimized for vibration
low ∆P tion (reduced flow control (?)
and ∆P)

Analysis of aeraulic aspects by supplier (see table 2)
POLYSIUS (one slag mill)

High energy consumption (11.4 kWh/t), but the main reason is the high grinding energy.
Very reasonable flow and gas speeds inside mill (shown by the low ratio m3/s per « m2 of table », at
2.2 m/s, and by the low speed at nozzle ring). This seems to indicate a rather good knowledge in
terms of internal aeraulic optimisation.
The fan is not a variable speed one, and this penalizes the kW performance too.
LOESCHE (three slag mills)

CIMSA LM 46 seems far from being optimized, because though processing a rather easy-to-grind
slag, it requires 10 kWh/t, with a high flow (4.7 m3/kg), when the P itself is not very high, because
of a wide sizing.
FOS, a smaller LM 35 mill, is much better, at 6.4 kWh/t. Compared to CIMSA, the specific gas flow is
25-30% lower ( P reduced as a consequence). This is totally explaining the difference, taking in
account a slightly less easy-to-grind slag in Fos.
DUNQUERQUE (LM 35 too) shows the very interesting aeraulic optimization performed by Loesche
between 1995 and 2000. Of course the slag is slightly easier to grind than in Fos, but this cannot
explain the reduction to 3.1 kWh/t. In fact, the specific flow is reduced at a minimum (2.0 m3/kg), even
if the ratio m3/s per- square-meter-of-table is higher than in Polysius case. The resulting total p at
fan below 500 mm WG is outstanding.
FLS OK (two cement mills)

Both (TITAN OK 27 and Cementos Progresso OK 33) have similar grinding energy requirements, and
thus can be compared here.
In both cases, the ventilation cost is high, respectively 11 and 9.1 kWh/t, with average values of
specific flow (3.8 and 3.0 m3/kg). The most obvious fact, more than high gas-flow, is the very high
speed ratio of more than 12 m3/s per m2 of table, indicating average speed values rather high
everywhere inside the mill (for instance, 54 m/s at nozzle-ring in CEMENTOS PROGRESSO,
unknown in TITAN), resulting in high P (850 mm WG). This seems to be a typical characteristics of
FLS OK mills.
Anyway, FLS is able to progress, as it can be shown with the very recent pure cement OK 33 mill in
Phoenix (USA), using about 18 kWh/t for grinding (close to TITAN and CEMENTOS PROGRESSO),
and less than 8 kWh/t for ventilation: this can be considered as our target with this supplier.
Conclusion about kWh/t for ventilation

POLYSIUS : for a « standard » grinding energy about 20 kWh/t, Polysius would in principle be able to
keep aeraulics close to 6 kWh/t. Thus, they should absolutely be consulted in a VCM project. We must
only keep in mind that references with higher production level than Dunkerque should be checked.

LOESCHE : in same conditions, they can now reach 3-4 kWh/t with slag ; why not with cements ?
FLS : even including the most recent results , they are still late on this criteria, due to a high internal
speeds design, and we can consider 8 kWh/t as their present level. But really they have several VCM
experiences, not only VSM ones.
CONCLUSIONS :
• The good experience in slag grinding in Lafarge with VSM can be used for cement grinding. This
experience, together with cement grinding tests (in Fos sur mer) and the conclusions of the
different visits and data reports of plants grinding slag and cement, or pure and blended cements
is very useful.
• For a mill installed power range of 1680-3000 kW, we get a specific grinding energy range of 17-
38 kWh/t, what can be explained by the differences of the material grindability and fineness and
not necessarily by the a difference in the grinding efficiency related to the different mill designs
(the number and design of rollers, profile of the grinding track, etc).
• Drying is not a problem in any case (already known from raw-grinding), but the use of grinding aid
can probably not be avoided in a VCM (direct and indirect cost).
• There are sensible differences between the suppliers in terms of ventilation costs, due to different
approaches to the mill internals, mill volume, air circulation design, etc… The performance of each
supplier is following a fair evolution (kWh/t reduction), but some differences still remain. Loesche
and probably Polysius are still better than FLS; a target of 6 kWh/t (for 20 kWh/t at grinding) is
possible with Loesche and Polysius. Care must be taken when considering 8 kWh/t for FLS OK
mills.

6.5. Suppliers’ reference lists
Reference List – Vertical Roller Mill

References after 1990 for cement
FLSmidth
Company / Plant Material Type Capacity Motor Year Country

(t/h) (kW)
Asia Cement Mfg. Co. Ltd. Cement Clinker OK36-4/OKS70 3000 1991 Korea (Rep)
Jaechon
Madras Cement Ltd. Cement + Fly-ash OK33-4/OKS70 2900 1995 India

Alathiyur
Ecocemento S.A. Slag/blended OK27-4/FMS54 1800 1996 Argentina

cement
Ecorama
Ecocemento S.A. Slag/blended OK27-4/FMS54 1800 1996 Argentina

cement
Ecorama
Hanil Cement Manufacturing Co. Cement Clinker OK36-4/OKS70 3000 1996 Korea (Rep)
Tanyang
Juan Minetti S.A. Slag/cement clinker OK36-4/OKS74 3750 1998 Argentina

Campana
Onoda Engineering Co. Ltd. Eco-Cement Clinker OK19-3/OKS36 600 1998 Japan
Ichihara
Titan Cement Company Cement Clinker OK27-4/OKS56 1800 1998 Greece

Kamari
Phoenix Cement Company Cement Clinker OK33-4/OKS70 3000 1999 USA

Clarkdale, AZ
Chettinad Cement Corp. Ltd. Cement + Fly-ash OK36-4/OKS74 3750 2000 India
Palayam
Titan Cement Company Cement OK30- 2150 2002 Greece

4/ROKS32.5
Saloniki

KAWASAKI

(t/h) (kW)
Ssangyong Cement Industrial Cement CK-310 100 2900 1996 Korea
Mao-Po Plant

LOESCHE

(t/h) (kW)
Ssangyong Cement Clinker 2 x LM45 1990 Korea

Industrial Co. Ltd
Sangyong Cement Clinker LM3.6.20 1991 Korea
Industrial Co. Ltd
Ube Industries, Ltd Clinker LM30 1992 Japan
(Ube)
Hyundai Cement Co. Ltd Clinker LM50 1993 Korea
Cimento Sanayai Clinker + slag LM 46.2+2 1995 Turkey
Cemento Norte Pacasmayo SA Clinker + slag LM 56.2+2 1998 Peru
Madras Cement Ltd Slag + Clinker LM 46.2+2 1998 India

Jayanthipuran
Anhui Kingbridge Cement Ltd - Slag + Clinker LM 46.2+2 1998 China
Wuhu
Cementos Nacionales SA Clinker LM 56.2+2 1999 Dominican
Republic
Macoris
Cementos Yura SA Clinker LM 56.2+2 1999 Peru
Lucky One Realty Inc Slag + Clinker LM 46.2+2 1999 Philippines

Batangas
Madras Cement Ltd Clinker LM 56.2+2 2000 India
Alathiyur II
Deccan Cement Slag + Clinker LM 35.2+2 2001 India
Bhavanipuran
Vasiliko Cement Slag + Clinker LM 35.2+2 2001 Cyprus
Vasiliko
Holcim SA Slag + Clinker LM 46.2+2 2002 Spain
Carboneras
Holcim Morocco Clinker LM 46.2+2C 2002 Morocco
Ras el Mal
Phuc Son Cement Corp Clinker 2 x LM 46.2+2 2002 Vietnam
Phuc Son

PFEIFFER
(t/h) (kW)
Dessau for JING YANG Cement MPS 5000 BC 300 3000 1995 China
Via Humboldt Wedag ZAB
Akcimento Ticaret Cement + puzzolan MPS 2900 80 1100 1995 Turkey
Istambul
Hauri KG Cement + puzzolan MPS 200 BC 355 1997 Germany
Bötzingen

POLYSIUS
(t/h) (kW)
Cementos y Concretos Clinker 51/26C/RMC435 85 1997 Mexico

Nacionales S.A. de C.V.
320 SSA
Aguas Calientes
Cementos y Concretos Clinker 51/26C/RMC435 85 1997 Mexico

320 SSA
Aguas Calientes
Cementos y Concretos Clinker 51/26/RMC470-C 90 2002 Mexico

360 SSA
Aguas Calientes
Cementos y Concretos Clinker 51/26/RMC 470-C 90 2002 Mexico

360 SSA
Aguas Calientes


Loesche Seminar VCM Study Dec03

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Description:

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Loesche Seminar VCM Study Dec03

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Technical

Advance Lever Production & Process

Vertical Cement Mill

James Dawes, DPC

Lafarge Branche Ciment - Direction des Performances Cimentières

Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

• higher energy savings are achieved when grinding to high finenesses

CEM I/ Type 1 cement Ground blast furnace slag surface

Polysius 450 600

FLS 450 480 (600 at reduced table speed)

Pfeiffer 450 500-600

Loesche 500 560-580

S Particle size distribution

Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

Ofunato CEM I Ofunato CEM I

EN 196-1 mortar, MPa

1 day 12,9 14,7

Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

• Drying: VCM is an excellent tool to dry feed materials

S Global investment Cost

Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

It is recommended to take a VCM into consideration for new projects if one or

S Medium or high power cost expected ( > 0.35€ / MWh)

Technical Agenda Executive su mmary

1. Aim of the study________________________________________________________ 2

2. How the study was done _________________________________________________ 4

3. What types of mills exist _________________________________________________ 6

5. Recommendations / Conclusions ________________________________________ 68

Technical Agenda Page 1

Technical Agenda Page 2

Technical Agenda Page 3

Technical Agenda Page 4

• Study existing literature on this subject

Suppliers invited and installations visited :

The summary of the visits can be found in Annex 6.3.

Technical Agenda Page 5

Technical Agenda Page 6

• IHI (Ishikawajima Harima)

• and FCB, Babcock-CPAG and Raymond for coal mills only

Technical Agenda Page 7

• A rotating, circular grinding table that turns around a vertical shaft.

• A source of pressure on the rollers (weight, hydraulic pressure, springs, etc.).

• A separator mounted directly on the mill housing.

Hot gases Nozzle ring

Technical Agenda Page 8

Technical Agenda Page 9

Pfeiffer general design FLS general design

The main sub-assemblies of a vertical roller mill are :

Technical Agenda Page 10

Loesche Pfeiffer AG Polysius FLS

* OK mill is also available

Technical Agenda Page 11

FLS, OK (Onoda – Kobe)

Technical Agenda Page 12

Technical Agenda Page 13

3.5.1. References in Lafarge

• Fos sur mer Loesche LM 35 (2+2) 1680 kW (installed 1995)

• Rouen Loesche LM 35 (2+2) 1680 kW (2000)

• Dunkirk Polysius RMS 36 1200 kW (1999)

A VSM is also in operation in Japan, but used only as a pre-grinder.

3.5.2. References in the Market