Possibilities of gas analysis in Cement industry

Cement industry is the core sector industry of building materials.

Cement is rather difficult to be replaced nowadays, therefore it plays a crucial role in modern construction. The demand for the products of cement plants continues to grow steadily, and in the medium term, it will surpass the offer. It should be noted that the cement industry is cyclical in nature and depends on the place of construction in the country. Russia is now on the upward trend of the cycle industry and in the medium term will have high growth rates of production volumes.

At the same time, cement production is a complex process in which fuel-energy resources (FER) and raw materials are the most essential components in the cost structure of final products. The cost of electricity, gas and raw materials (clinker, limestone, clay, gypsum, granulated slag) is constantly growing for objective reasons from year to year and in aggregate reaches 45-50% of all costs.

The growth of costs for raw materials and energy resources occurs due to the high prices set by its´ providers. Therefore the companies (cement manufacturers) are nor able to influence these factors.

On the other hand, the reserve for the growth of competitiveness of the industry in the domestic and foreign markets can be seen as the improvement of technological processes, such as application of modern hardware design. This allows to identify the ways of rational use of existing equipment as well as to choose the most efficient ways of using raw materials, other materials, and fuel.

There are several methods of cement production such as dry, wet, semi-dry, and combined. Each method of cement production has its own technological features and is characterized by the presence of hot, corrosive and highly dust-laden gases. At the same time, the analysis of these gases allows to obtain valuable information not only for process control but also for process optimization in a continuous mode.

The use of gas analysis systems “Analytic 001” manufactured by our company optimizes technological process, saves fuel, increases productivity and the quality of the final product as well as to reduce costs for the maintenance.

The system of gas analysis “Analytic 001” is operating in the arduous conditions of the production of clinker and ensures not only a continuous analysis of highly dust and hot gases, but also allows the obtained data to optimize the technological process in real time.

Gas system “Analytic” consists of the following functional blocks:

– the system of selection and preparation of gas sample for analysis;
– analyzer;
– output unit of visual information and data to the remote process control.

To implement functional and accurate gas analysis in the extreme environment of cement production it is required the continuous gas sampling. Taking into account the aggressive environment in which the systems of sampling and sample preparation are to operate, our specialists together with technologists of several cement enterprises have chosen an optimum scheme of selection system and system of gas analysis, which provides not only absolute reliability of the results of continuous analysis, but also the continuous functioning of “Analytic 001” without special maintenance.

Measurement of the concentration of all gases, essential for the process of clinker production, allows to:
– control the firing process in the furnace by maintaining optimal levels of O2;
– optimize fuel consumption by controlling the level of O2. Since the process of each kilo of clinker excessively consumes 15 kcal (the error in the determination of the coefficient of excess oxygen by 1%), cement plant which produces 3,500 tons of cement per day is losing approximately 50,000 kcal. In other words, optimization of the combustion process is very important;
– reduce emissions of harmful substances by adjusting the levels of O2 and CO in the process;
– prevent an explosive situation by controlling the O2, CO and CH4. In particular, the system is used for the protection of electrostatic precipitators included in the standard equipment of cement production, shutdown (according to the data from “Analytic” system) which prevents the explosive situation by measuring the concentration of CO in flue gases either in the precipitators, or in immediate proximity to them;
– control the quality of clinker throughout the analysis of NO;
– increase the overhaul life of equipment and prevent emergency shutdowns of the furnace by controlling the O2, CO and SO2.
Thus, it can be stated that the application of the system “Analytic 001” allows to see the problematic points of the technological process, saving energy and raw materials, as well as to automate and optimize processes. The use of modern scientific equipment can also be an additional incentive to attract young workers who prefer working with the brand new equipment. On aggregate with a low payback period (less than one year) use of gas analysis systems “Analytic 001” gives the company additional opportunity to enhance the quality and competitiveness of its products and, thereby, to achieve a leading position in the industry.