Efficient Alternative Fuel

Usage in Cement Plants

By Alex Knoch, HW GmbH
Benefits of Alternative Fuel Utilization
Economical
 Lower fuel costs
 Disposal fees in case of dangerous fuels
 CO2 certificate trading possible

Environmental
 Lower carbon footprint (in case of non-fossil origin)
 Reduction of land-fills ( Thermal as well as material recycling)
 Save disposal of dangerous substances
 Conservation of resources
Co-processing of Alternative Fuels in the Burning Process
Advantages
 Highest temperatures
and residence time.
 High excess oxygen
 Complete
decomposition of
organic compounds.
 Basic kiln atmosphere
(CaO) and therefore
highest scrubbing
effect
 Stable embedding of
heavy metals in
clinker.
 No formation of by-
products
Impact on Process and Quality
Influence on energy Influence on Influence on Influence on clinker
balance operation stability emissions quality

 Increased waste and availability  Reduction of fossil  Reducing

gas volumes.  Fuel feed  fuel related CO2 burning
continuous emissions. conditions (e.g.
 Shifting of
energy supply. AFR raining on
temperature  Positive
clinker bed).
profile.  Formation of Cl influence on NOx.
and S related  Shifting and
 Higher excess  CO formation as
coatings. cooling of the
oxygen. a result of
sintering zone.
 Higher stress for inadequate
 Lower clinker
Refractory calciner  Enrichment of
cooler efficiency.
technology. harmful elements
 Kiln bypass in clinker
 Increased mercury
system, heat
(Hg)
losses
emissions………
……..
Preferred firing points for AF
1st Choice – Calciner

 Temperature 860…890 °C

 Longest retention time 3…5 s

 Suitable for all fuels which can be lifted by gas stream,

(40x40 / 6x6x6)

 Lowest investment costs in direct process equipment if

sufficient retention time is provided

 Pneumatic or mechanic conveying based on fuel

 Lower impact on product quality compared to sintering

zone firing
Preferred firing points for AF

PYROTOP® Mixing Chamber for complete fuel burn-out

Design of Calciner length to reach suitable residence time

(> 5 sec) for complete burn-out

High velocity to ensure lifting of coarse fuels, avoidance

of thick coatings

Orifice to maintain gas balance and avoidance of coarse

fuel fall through
Burner Systems for Alternative Fuels on Standard Calciners
PYROBOX® - Proven Fast Ignition

 Direct ignition of fuel at contact with hot Fuel

Distributor
meal from 2nd cyclone

 No hot spot in calciner, even

temperature profile PYROBOX®
Calciner
 Suitable for all kinds of fuels which do Burner
not get sticky (rice husks, saw dust,
dried sludges…)
PYROBOX®
 One box can be fed from two different LowNOx
sources (coal + alternative fuel) Burner

 Simple retrofit option

 Fuel distributor replaces 2nd dosing

system for LowNOx operation
Burner Systems for Alternative Fuels on Standard Calciners
Direct Injection Burner – For Plastics

 Best choice for materials which get

sticky when heated

 Requires careful placement to ensure

direct ignition of material while avoiding
hot spots in the calciner

 May be combined with PYROBOX®

system and/or liquid fuel burner

Solvent Direct Injection

Burner Burner
PYROCLON® Calciner Technology – Combustion Chamber

 Utilization of coarse fuels with extremely poor ignition and

burning properties like coarse anthracite, petcoke and coarse
secondary fuels or waste derived fuels.

 Ignition and start of combustion in pure air at high

temperature (T > 1200°C).

 Calciner retention time > 7 s

 High efficiency and flexibility.

 Possibility for primary low NOx reduction via staged

combustion (Top Air Duct).

 Lower demand on fuel quality and preparation efforts.

 Mechanical feeding system reduces energy demand

 Saving of alternative fuel costs.

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Preferred firing points for AF
2nd Choice – Kiln hood

Main Burner & Satellite Burner

 Temperature 1350…1450 °C (>2000 ° C flame temperature)

 Kiln retention time ca. 3 s

 Combustion time ca. 1 s

 Suitable for all fuels which can either be atomized or commuted to a size
which fulfills above mentioned requirements

 Best choice for harmful substances due to higher temperature and 2nd
burning in calciner

 Investment costs vary from low to medium

 Pneumatic conveying mandatory

 Stronger impact on product quality compared to calciner firing

Main Burner for Alternative Fuel
 Shall always be considered for new plants or if the main burner has to be replaced anyway

 AF is usually fired through central channels

 The burner shall not be overburdened with too many options  flexible inner tube assembly
is a good choice

 Tasks for the AF-optimized burner

 Fast mixture between fuel and secondary air

 Entrainment of fuel in the flame

 Flexible to adapt to changing fuel qualities

Jet air – efficient driver of the combustion
The Jet Air emerges from the axial nozzles of the burner Secondary Air,
with sonic velocity. This creates a strong suction effect 800...1000 °C
and a most efficient mixture between secondary air and
fuel.

250…350 m/s

Jet Air
 Swirl air – flame stabilisation
The Swirl Air emerges from a multitude of slots in the centrally located
swirl element, creating a low pressure zone in front of the burner. The
recirculation of already burning particles ensures a fast ignition of the
injected fuel. Furthermore, the flame is stabilised by the axial rotation.

Recirculation
Zone

A certain recirculation helps also to reduce the formation of thermal

NOx from the main burner flame and helps to reduce the demand for
tertiary abatement reagents as Ammonia solution.
Heat release profile PYROJET Burner

Conventional Burner

Advantages of a short and fierce flame

+ Main energy release in the sintering zone
+ Lower inlet chamber temperature  less build-ups
+ Smaller clinker minerals  higher reactivity, less grinding energy, less clinker demand
+ Lower transition zone temperature  less refractory wear
Adjustable Swirl System for Alternative Fuels

The adjustable swirl

system enables a better
distribution of alternative
fuels in the flame core.
The main problems during
AF co-combustion,
reducing burning
conditions and increased
inlet chamber
temperatures, are eased.
The Adjustable Swirl
System can be ordered for
new PYROJET burners as
well as retrofit kit for most
burners

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A Retrofit Solution – AF Swirl System for PYROJET® Burners

 Retractable swirl element.

 No additional primary air necessary for
AFR nozzle.
 Adjustable during operation.
 Fracturing, mixing of the AF flow shortly
before entering the kiln (spraying angle).
 Improving the mixture within the flame
core and with oxygen.
 Oxygen enrichment is also possible.

Increase of alternative fuel firing rate

AF Channel with
retractable Swirl Nozzle

16
Swirl System for PYROJET® Burners

RDF Swirl element in front position  Poor RDF distribution

RDF Swirl element in back position  Good RDF distribution into flame

17
Kiln Hood Alternative Fuel Injection System
It’s often possible to use the existing
main burner to introduce AF into the
flame, for example with KHD’s
alternative fuel swirl system. However,
this way is sometimes not practicable,
for example when the burner is too small
to install a central tube.
We have therefore designed an injection
system which can be attached to the
burner kiln hood. The injection tube
protrudes only slightly into the kiln hood,
the fuel is therefore dried and heated by
the radiation when it enters the
combustion zone.

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Kiln Hood Alternative Fuel Injection System

The system has following benefits:

 Easy to install, no modifications on
burner required
 Reliable, wear-protected and Suspension and
pressure-surge proof parts Alignment
 Easy to adjust in both axis to mix the
fuel stream most efficiently with the
flame
 No mechanical stress on conveying
line trough proven telescopic tube
 Complete solution instead of
makeshift assembly
Injection tube

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Summary
AFR - Alternative Fuels and Raw Materials

 Utilization of alternative fuels is a state-of-the-art technology for cement plants.

 Alternative fuels reduce the plant’s CO2 footprint.
 Broad variance in alternative fuels leads to many influences on the clinker process which
have to be known and taken into account.
 Different technical solutions exists for the utilization of secondary fuels in cement plants.
 Due to steadily rising prices for primary fuels, the utilization of alternative fuels will become
more and more a possibility for decreasing or maintaining the operational costs.

 KHD’s 158 years of industrial history and experience helps our customers to
implement alternative fuel projects into their process.