SPECTRAFLOW ANALYTICS RECEIVES ORDER FOR AN AIRSLIDE ANALYZER FOR RAW MILL OPTIMIZATION FROM HEIDELBERG MATERIALS HISPANIA ARRIGORRIAGA, SPAIN
After the very successful installation of the first two SpectraFlow Analyzer units (Ciments Calcia Couvrot, France and Ciments du Maroc Marrakesh, Morocco) this is the 3rd SpectraFlow Analyzer installation within the globally acting Heidelberg Materials Group.
Cementos Rezola, with its cement production facility located in Arrigorriaga close to the city of Bilbao in Northern Spain, ordered one SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer to optimize the raw mill production. As the factory is using an ever-increasing amount of variable raw materials, it got necessary to increase the frequency of the chemical information of the raw mill product to enhance the control of the additive ratios fed to the raw mill. As sampling has strict limitations in increasing the frequency of the chemical information, Cementos Rezola selected the state-of-the-art SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer to increase the frequency of the chemical information of the raw mill product, while on the other hand eliminating the dependency of sampling for the additive weight feeder control.
Cementos Rezola is already using a state-of-the-art QCX raw mix control system from FLS, which is currently based on hourly samples taken after the raw mill. By installing the SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer this sample-based control will be replaced by the analyzers real-time minute results, which make control actions for the FLS QCX software much more efficient. The software will be able to react much faster on quality variations of the raw material, which will result in a decrease of the variation in LSF, SM and AM.
This will be achieved without the need of automated sample transport systems, highly available lab equipment and operators.
Additionally, the SpectraFlow Online Analyzer (Crossbelt for Crusher Optimization and Airslide for Raw Mill Optimization) is free of any radioactive sources, neutron generators or any other hazardous components, which makes the analyzer completely free of the requirement of import permits, operational licenses or radiation officers. This results in very low operational costs with a completely safe technology.
About Cimentos Rezola and the Heidelberg Materials Group:
Cementos Rezola started the Arrigorriaga factory in 1963 and joined in 1989 the European group of Ciments Francais. In 1992 the company became part of the multinational Italcementi group, after which the group obtained the UNE-EN ISO 9001, The UNE-EN ISO 14001 and the UNE-EN ISO 50001 certificates. In 2016 Heidelberg Cement Group completed the acquisition of Italcementi Group and also Cementos Rezola.
Today the Heidelberg Materials Group is among the leading global producers of building materials. It operates 156 cement plants with an annual cement capacity of 197 million tons, more than 1’700 ready-mixed concrete production sites and over 600 aggregates quarries. Furthermore, the company has activities in around 60 countries, with 63’000 employees working at more than 3’000 production sites.
SpectraFlow Installation for Raw Mill Optimization:
The SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer is an online analyzer to be able to measure raw materials in airslides. As raw materials are processed through a crusher and raw mill these are statistically homogeneous and therefore the analytical results of the SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer are highly accurate.
By using a SpectraFlow Airslide Analyzer and a site-specific raw mix proportioning strategy the variation in the local raw materials can be balanced out to increase consistency of the raw meal and therefore kiln feed quality considerably. Also a variable MgO, Na2O, K2O, Cl and SO3 content is optimally monitored. The highly consistent kiln feed results in fewer kiln stoppages, refractory problems and simultaneously increase the clinker production.
The summarized benefits are:
- The analyzer is free of any radioactive sources, neutron generators or any hazardous components. This means the SpectraFlow Analyzer does not require any permits or licenses regarding importation, operation or maintenance.
- The SpectraFlow Analyzer is completely safe, maintenance can be done by the plant personal.
- Raw meal quality will be homogeneous and on setpoint. That results in stable and optimized kiln operation.
- The Airslide Analyzer eliminates the need of automatic sample transport systems, automatic laboratories, high availability of operators and maintenance personal for controlling the raw mill operation.
SpectraFlow has 54 analyzers installed in the Cement Industry and totally 76 analyzers (41 Crossbelt & 35 Airslide) in 28 countries worldwide.
SpectraFlow Analytics Ltd. Switzerland are the experts in providing online analysis for the cement, bauxite, gold, platinum, copper, potash, phosphate, coal and other minerals industries without any radioactive sources nor neutron generators. The NIR technology used for the SpectraFlow Analyzers is not requiring any permits or licenses and there are no restrictions in buying, importing or maintaining the analyzers. This results in very low operating costs and high availability of the analyzers combined with highly accurate measurement results.
