AU2007100728A4 - Compact Launders - Google Patents

Description

o Launder innovation description Having successfully rebuilt and refurbished the fire damaged factory portion of the plant, Mecrus has recruited staff and commissioned the plant into full time production and instigated a series of R&D projects to improve plant operational performance, understanding inefficiencies, improve safety and overall product o quality.

One of these projects is the design and development of an improved brown coal briquette production process incorporating the new compact post forming plant stage for briquette transporting and cooling.

O The "Launder" 0 The original Morwell Briquetting plant was built in the 1920s, and despite numerous upgrades and a major O overhaul completed in 2004 after a fire in December 2003, some of the legacy manufacturing processes still O remain in use.

The "Launder" (as it is known) is one of these remaining legacy briquetting plant stages. It is 100 metres long, a roofed part of the plant and used to cool freshly formed briquettes while transporting them away for storage and eventual shipment.

Due to their old design, maintaining launders is very labour intensive and maintenance personnel are highly exposed to injury. This consideration, combined with the potential for improved efficiencies from a new and improved post-forming process, provides sufficient justification for the "Launder Removal" project.

Briquette Manufacturing Process The briquettes are manufactured from processed coal. The coal is hammer-milled to an optimum size required for briquette production and then dried to remove moisture. The dry coal particles are delivered into the feed hopper of an extrusion press where rams force the coal through the apertures formed in steel dies (forms) inserted at the front of press compression chambers.

The heat that is generated through the compression stage seals the outer edge of the properly formed briquette, helping to prevent moisture ingress and mechanical degradation during the post-production stage and handling.

The briquetting process raises the calorific value of the original raw material (brown coal) from 9 MJ/kg to 24 MJ/kg. The form allows a "stringer" of six briquettes to be formed together. The newly formed 6 hot briquettes are placed on the launders where they cool down while travelling slowly along 100 metres of the launder length.

The end result of the project will be a newly installed stage of the plant that will split the briquette stringers close to the press area, exposing greater surface area of the formed briquette to facilitate increased cooling rates.

A waste handling conveyor system which will be automated to capture the waste product close to the source, in turn reducing amount of waste by replacing the existing method of dumping grus along the launder length.

Page 1 Innovation descriptionV3

OO

0 0

;Z

ci) 0

CA

0 O0 0 ci Primary Technical Objective Design and development of an improved brown coal briquette production process incorporating a new compact post forming plant stage for briquette transporting and cooling.

Technical Sub Objectives Remove the legacy "launders" post forming stage of the plant while maintaining high product quality and sustained volume of briquette production.

Reduce mechanical damage to briquettes by shortening the transport distance from 100 metres (legacy launders) to 6 metres (new conveyor belt system).

Reduce amount of waste (grus) produced due to briquette breakage.

Develop new technique for accelerated cooling of briquettes after they come off the forming presses onto the transporter belt.

Background research 1 Research and continuous improvement of the brown coal briquette forming processes.

Specification and functional requirements development Develop conceptual design and drawings for first proof of concept launder replacement subsystems.

2 Develop test plans and KPIs to evaluate launder replacement subsystem performance (correct briquette forming, cooling, grus reduction).

Initial experimentation and prototyping Design and development of the prototype of the proof of concept launder replacement subsystem.

Low volume trials of the proof of concept subsystem 3 Equipment reconfiguration to achieve better briquette cooling rates and lower wastage.

Identify areas for further improvement automation, remote process monitoring Page 2 Innovation descriptionV3 0 0 ci ci 0 00 ci 0 0 0 0 Prototype testing Extensive launder-replacement sub-system prototype trials with systematic evaluation of: Equipment configuration options Variable Feedstock composition 4 Variable Production rates Assess effects of backpressure removal and compare to the baseline legacy launder arrangement.

Monitor variations (increase or decrease) in product quality, productivity and amount of waste.

Results evaluation 5 Continuous evaluation and benchmarking of the new system performance Issue identification and rectification 6 Identify need to increase backpressure to improve output briquette quality and decrease wastage.

Feedback R&D Continue long term monitoring and evaluation of the launder-less subsystem performance.

Detect, log and report incidences of abnormal briquette forming, low cooling rates and waste increases.

Research alternative solutions to increase backpressure and automate spreading operations.

Page 3 Innovation descriptionV3 2007100728 02 Aug 2007 1. Project Scope

O

Cl 0 0 O0 0 0 C- 0 0

(N

Customer requirement Preliminaries Develop Document concept Drawings Communicate concept to achieve desired result Source suitable redundant conveyors Design feed, Transfer and H/e T/e Design electric's sequencing to transfer points conveyors Resource labour Manufacture Removal of existing launders and remediation of footings Manufacture Collecting feed conveyor Manufacture Transfer conveyors X2 Manufacture Head end Tail end launder conveyors Manufacture launder intermediate frames Manufacture of launder offloading points Construction Install feed conveyor Install transfer conveyors Install yard lighting Install intermediate structure of launder conveyors Install all conveyor electrical supply and sequencing Relocate AB spreader to position Automate AB Spreader slew and luffing Install spreader electrical supply and sequencing Install launder conveyor belts Install stockpile fire protection Commission Progressively replace legs of launders and commission Commission new system Commission stockpile management Post Commission Develop and implement operation procedures Develop and implement maintenance polices and procedures Enter new plant items into our MEX PAS system Page 4 Innovation descriptionV3 2007100728 02 Aug 2007 S s l. f 9 X 3 'U S 11OC 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 5,7,~55, .544 *4*~45'.5~5 fls 2.ZA>S4 '97OC'.S'A $5I3~.bA 4g. g.7041' U Ut Ui 3A >~UtVt', 9A3P ;%wtP'tw:. ~AUtU~A ~y4P3YP4'S''P''$' >3