Homogenisation Piles - 2011 - Ah

The Optimisation of
Cement Manufacturing
Operations
Homogenisation of
Unground Raw
Materials
Homogenising Raw
Materials
• A consistent theme so far has been the need for Consistency.
• In the interests of being consistent, that is also the theme now.
• Whatever raw material chemistry is considered optimal for the

kiln and the required product, the composition and physical
characteristics of the material must be as consistent as possible.
• This need starts before the raw material has even left the
quarry face.
Consistency from the Quarry
Face
• Before extracting a single tonne of material, the quarry
manager has a model of the deposit and what material he will
find where.
• This can be anything from an idea he had in the pub to a full

blown computer model with three dimensional chemical analysis
from boreholes at 10 metre intervals.
• Whichever it is, it is the starting point for the entire cement

making process and the closer it is to the idea in the pub and
the further from the full blown model, the more expensive it will
be down the line to make good quality clinker and cement.
Case Study – Raw
Materials Extraction
• This relates to a project to replace an 800tpd wet process
cement kiln with a 3800 tpd precalciner kiln. The starting point
was the knowledge that sufficient raw material was available.
• This was on the assumption that all the raw material could be
used.
• Slight mis-matches in the overall chemistry meant that other

raw materials would be needed to balance the deposit and
achieve the 40 years life required.
Geological Map
Project Birch. Resources
Area
6
Site for the Expansion
Boreholes across the site – CaO%
Boreholes across the site – Silica
Ratio
Fig. 4 Variation of CaO content of chalk through the boreholes.
Ground level is at the left of the plot. The top of the Gault Clay is at the right.
55
50
45
% CaO
40
2 per. Mov. Avg. (GWP 02/04)

35 2 per. Mov. Avg. (b/h 2/64)
2 per. Mov. Avg. (b/h 1/64)
30
39 38 37 36 35 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0
m above top of Gault Clay
Combinability Studies
• The decision on which mix to use will depend on the burnability,
the market and the cost.
• It rarely prioritises the needs of the quarry.
• It is therefore essential that the quarry is able to respond to the

needs of the plant and to provide a well homogenised mix.
• It is also essential for the quarry to be aware of what cannot be

done with the materials available and to flag this up early.
Whole mix
Description without p-fa Chalk mix Clay mix Ratcliffe residue Ratcliffe part 1
Ref AQ1669 AQ1668 AQ1667 AQ1670 AQ1125
SiO2 13.2 9.4 18.7 48.6 46.7

TiO2 0.2 0.1 0.3 0.7 1.0
Al2O3 3.3 2.5 4.3 19.2 26.9
Fe2O3 2.0 2.3 1.5 15.2 9.6
CaO 43.4 46.3 39.6 6.7 3.5
MgO 0.6 0.5 0.8 2.1 2.0
SO3 0.1 0.1 0.2 0.7 1.3
K2O 0.7 0.5 0.9 1.6 2.7
LOI 35.5 37.5 33.0 4.7 5.3
total 99.0 99.2 99.3 99.5 99.0

lsf 1.02 1.50 0.67
sr 2.5 2.0 3.2
af 1.7 1.1 2.9
Materials Free lime %
% 1350°C 1400°C 1450°C
High Carbonate Chalk slurry 57.4
Mix 1 Low Carbonate Chalk slurry 42.6 12.9 7.4 5.0
ash 0
Ash Residue 2.0
Mix 2a Low Carbonate Chalk slurry 32.0 8.5 6.0 4.3
Pt 1 P-fa 2.0
Ash Residue 2.5
Pt 1 P-fa 2.5
Ash Residue 3.0
Pt 1 P-fa 3.0
Ash Residue 4.5
Pt 1 P-fa 4.5
Parameters of Mixes Trialled
Mix 1 Mix 2 Mix 2a Mix 3 Mix 3a Mix 4 Mix 4a Mix 5 Mix 5a
lsf 1.02 1.02 1.02 0.98 0.98 0.98 0.98 0.98 0.97
sr 2.6 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.2 2.1 2.1
af 1.7 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.7 1.5 1.7 1.4 1.7

Range of Combinations
Examined
Chalk 44 – 56%
Chalk Marl 35 – 49%
Sand 1.5 – 2.7%
Oxide 1.2 – 1.3
Pfa 3 - 4%
Combinability Studies
Combinability of kiln feeds
1800 sample 1 sample 2 sample 3
sample 4 sample 5
1700
Firing temperature
1600
1500
1400
1300
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14
Free lime %
Working sequence and layout
• Chalk haulage and access to the quarry
Excavators load trucks which travel along the working
face, split into 5m benches Conveyor
To the raw
material
store by
Access to the floor for conveyor
placement of restoration
materials (also geological
study/drainage works)
Block model
• This is a computer model of the quarry divided into blocks in each
of which the chemistry and other properties are known.
• The block model determines the day to day operation of the quarry
for its lifetime.
• The block model operates independently of the actual geological

structure and is concerned with the chemistry of the material being
extracted.
• If variation within the quarry is high then it will be necessary to

extract from more than one area of the quarry and to operate a
blending system to ensure homogeneity of the raw material supply.
Blending
• Once the block model is in place and the material is being

quarried, most operations will require that two or more
materials should be blended to even out the natural variation in
composition.
• This can be achieved at various points through the process,

primarily through a blending stockpile, through meal blending at
the raw mill stage and through blending silos prior to putting
the raw feed to the kiln.
Chemical Control at the Quarry
• The size of material being extracted from a quarry has historically
precluded more than occasional chemical analysis, because for a
statistically meaningful result impractical quantities of material would
need to crushed, sampled and analysed.
• With the introduction of PGNAA cross belt analysers the whole of a

feed stream can be continuously analysed onto and, if required, off
from the quarry stockpile.
• Experience from such analysis has shown that reductions in standard

deviation of 10:1 can be achieved using longitudinal blending
stockpiles.
• The technique also provides a quality check on the consistency from

the quarry and the accuracy of the block model.
Example of Variability Reduction
Through Process
35
30
Standard deviation of the Lime Saturation Factor
25
20
15
10
0
SD from quarry sd from raw mill sd into kiln sd clinker
Fig. 3 Reduction in LSF Standard Deviation from Quarry to Clinker

Types Of Blending
Systems
• Pre-milling Homogenisation
• Stockpiling
• Post-milling Homogenisation
• Batch blenders
• Cascade blenders
• Low energy blenders
The Blending Stockpile
• Longitudinal
• Circular
• Radial
• Portal
The Longitudinal Stockpile
The Circular Stockpile
The Radial Stockpile
Portal Reclaimer
Stacker Design Parameters

• Specify the capacity of the stockpile, usually in terms of
operating days
• Confirm the stacking rate, which is generally fixed by crusher

size
• Stacker speed should be specified to allow at least 300 layers
General Guidelines:
Length 90 to 180 metres (longitudinal)
Height 7 to 12 metres

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The Optimisation of

• In the interests of being consistent, that is also the theme now.

• Whatever raw material chemistry is considered optimal for the

• This can be anything from an idea he had in the pub to a full

• Whichever it is, it is the starting point for the entire cement

• Slight mis-matches in the overall chemistry meant that other

2 per. Mov. Avg. (GWP 02/04)

• It rarely prioritises the needs of the quarry.

• It is therefore essential that the quarry is able to respond to the

• It is also essential for the quarry to be aware of what cannot be

SiO2 13.2 9.4 18.7 48.6 46.7

total 99.0 99.2 99.3 99.5 99.0

Mix 1 Mix 2 Mix 2a Mix 3 Mix 3a Mix 4 Mix 4a Mix 5 Mix 5a

sr 2.6 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.3 2.2 2.1 2.1

af 1.7 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.7 1.5 1.7 1.4 1.7

Chalk Marl 35 – 49%

Sand 1.5 – 2.7%

Oxide 1.2 – 1.3

1800 sample 1 sample 2 sample 3

• The block model operates independently of the actual geological

• If variation within the quarry is high then it will be necessary to

• Once the block model is in place and the material is being

• This can be achieved at various points through the process,

• With the introduction of PGNAA cross belt analysers the whole of a

• Experience from such analysis has shown that reductions in standard

• The technique also provides a quality check on the consistency from

Fig. 3 Reduction in LSF Standard Deviation from Quarry to Clinker

Stacker Design Parameters

• Confirm the stacking rate, which is generally fixed by crusher

• Stacker speed should be specified to allow at least 300 layers

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