OPTIMIZATION OF HIGH SULFUR COAL IN ROTARY KILN OF CEMENT MANUFACTURING PLANT

Abstract

Coal reserves in Pakistan are distinguished by their high sulfur content ranging from 5% to 7%. The combustion of fuel containing undesired compounds presents substantial challenges to the cement manufacturing industry, increasing the dependency on imported coal and depreciating those of origin. Furthermore, cement companies seek to find a way to ensure uninterrupted, cost-effective, and high-quality cement production that aligns with environmental standards in order to meet market demands. The cement production process mainly focuses on the production of intermediate product clinker where large amounts of thermal energy are required to elevate raw material to sintering temperatures surpassing 1700 K. To meet this energy demand, a variety of fossil and alternative fuels are typically combusted through the primary burner located at the kiln's material outlet. However, the use of high sulfur coal as fuel poses problems such as sulfur oxide emissions and spurrite ring depositions within the kiln leading to reduced kiln efficiency. To address these concerns, a solution was proposed by introducing an Mg(OH)2 mixture as a reactive chemical additive in our process and modifying the equipment rotary kiln and coal mill accordingly. The success of this approach has been observed through increased clinker quantity, reduced power consumption, and minimized process hold ups.