Raw Material Preparation

Raw Meal Homogenization and kiln dust management

PE LatAm 2012

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Homogenising Silos

Refreshing the basics

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Goals of a Homogenising Silo
Material stock between raw mill and kiln
Requirement: Cover raw mill downtime

Even out quality fluctuations in raw meal

Capacity requirement: Multiple of fluctuation frequency
Uniformity target: sLSF < 1.2 (kiln feed, short term)

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 Homogenising Principles
Mixing Blending
Through agitation of an Combining different
inhomogeneous batch qualities

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Homogenising Silos
Three basic systems

Air-fluidized systems
Multi-Pack gravity systems

Homogenising
silo

storage
silo

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 Air-Fluidised Silo
Batch operation
Blending factor up to 10:1
High energy consumption
Compressed air for mixing chamber
Aeration
air supply
For lines up to 3000 t/d
Lighter material rises in
homogenizing columns

Aeration
quadrant

Blending Air cycling

air supply Blending valve
quadrant
Denser material Aeration Homogenizing
moves downward air supply air supply

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CMS-MPT/LIA
 Aerated Gravity Silo
Continuous process
Energy efficient
Blending factor up to 5:1
High filling degree needed

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CMS-MPT/LIA
 Multi-Pack Silo
Sequential filling / simultaneous reclaiming
Separate chamber for kiln dust
Suitable for critical material (segregation, quality control)
High CAPEX
Blending factor 3:1

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Homogenising Silos

Assessment measurements

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Homogenising Performance

c o n c e n tr a tio n in le t
Silo inlet fluctuations

time
c o n c e n tr a tio n o u tle t

Outlet fluctuations with

continuous type blending silo
range of residual
goal mean fluctuations
value

Aerated gravity silo

Air-fluidised silo time
Multi-pack silo

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CMS-MPT/LIA
 Standard Deviation
Primary value to assess homogeneity

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CMS-MPT/LIA
 Influencing Factors
Feed uniformity
Filling degree / Mixing chamber capacity
Aeration pressures (600-800 mBar sopladores)
Aeration flow quantities 1M3/hora
Aeration duration (depende de la altura)
Aeration sequence (Lo + Opuesta entre una y otra)

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CMS-MPT/LIA
 Targets
Kiln feed uniformity
Short term Long term
hourly samples over 24
daily values over one month
h
LSF standard deviation < 1.2 < 1.0
SR standard deviation
< 0.04 < 0.03
AR standard deviation

Aeration depending on silo type

Example of an air-fluidised silo:
- Active aeration: 2 m3/m2/min @ 2 bar
- Passive aeration: 1 m3/m2/min @ 0.6 bar
- 10 minutes per segment, 2 circles

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 Homogeneity Assessment
1. Check if targets are reached
If they are not reached, find the root cause (quarrying,
preblending, homogenising, ). If short term fluctuations
are an issue

2. Test blending efficiency of homogenising silo

If blending efficiency is lower than required (and lower
than achievable with your silo system)

3. Check homogenising silo operation parameters

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
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 Blending Efficiency Testing
BF = sin/sout=sraw meal/skiln feed
LSF values are already a good indication, but also SR and AR are
required for a complete test.
Amount of samples: At least 30
choose frequency accordingly
Min. sample size: 100-200g 1kg to minimize error
Spot samples only
Period for batch homogenising silo: 3 batches
E.g. 3x8h one sample every 30min.
Period for continuous homogenising silo: 24h
Typically one sample every 30min.
Kiln feed sampling normally every 30min.
Spreadsheet
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CMS-MPT/LIA
 Segregation Testing
Segregation can have an impact on kiln feed uniformity
E.g. when kiln dust has a different chemistry than raw meal
To determine the segregation factor, the fine fraction has
to be analysed independently

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 Required Information
Inspection sheet
..\Tools\Homosilo.xlsx
Drawings of the silo(s) with aeration arrangement
Aeration sequence (from CCR)
Pareto analysis
Flow sheet
Original equipment data sheets
Pictures

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 Parameters to Measure / Find out
Aeration air pressure
Aeration air flow
Aeration sequence
Silo filling degree
LSF / SR / AR of raw meal & kiln feed

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 Inspection Checklist (1/4)
System Design
Drawings, silo sections
Silo dimensions and volumes
Details of the aeration system
- Air pad dimensions and arrangement
- Blower specifications (air rates and pressures)
- Sector aeration times and sequence
- Type of air distribution

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Inspection Checklist (2/4)
System inspection
Condition (tightness) of silo roof and walls
Raw meal coating on silo walls and bottom
Problem of lump formation
Silo emptying degree
Silo operation
Raw mill production rate
Raw meal distribution at silo feed (material layering)
Range of operating filling degrees
Aeration sequence
- Sector activation sequence, sector aeration time

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 Inspection Checklist (3/4)
Kiln feed
Kiln feed mode
Dust handling mode during direct kiln operation
Operating kiln feed range

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 Inspection Checklist (4/4)
Raw meal characteristics
Grain size distribution
Residual humidity
Chemical composition
Separation factor
Kiln dust characteristics
Grain size distribution
Chemical composition
Kiln feed characteristics
Grain size distribution
Chemical composition
Clinker characteristics
Chemical composition
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 Measurement Tools
Observation Anemometer

Manometer
Sampling Laboratory

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Holcim Group Support Ltd 2012 PE LatAm 2012 5/4/17
CMS-MPT/LIA
 Homogenising Silos

Field exercise

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 Location

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 Tasks
Find out aeration sequence
Correlate filling degree and kiln feed uniformity

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