Product category:
Gas monitoring and analysis
News Release from: Servomex | Subject: Servomex 2500, 1800 and 4900
Edited by the Processingtalk Editorial
Team on 30 August 2005
Improved cement plant efficiency
Major operational and business benefits for Kosmos Cement Co following the installation of several Servomex 2500, 1800 and 4900 gas analysis systems
Servomex announces that major operational and business benefits were accrued by Kosmos Cement Co, of Louisville in Kentucky, following the installation of several Servomex 2500, 1800 and 4900 gas analysis systems to replace poorly performing existing equipment Greater gas monitoring accuracy has led to significantly fewer situations where carbon dioxide liquid and vapour has had to be fed into the coal mill to avoid a fire risk, which saves on the cost of CO2 and reduces downtime
This article was originally published on Processingtalk on 3 Jul 2008 at 8.00am (UK)
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Further, the analyzers' accuracy has resulted in far better RATA (Relative Accuracy Test Audit) performance, with Kosmos gaining a 100 percent pass record with zero failures since the Servomex analysers have come on line.
Prior to the Servomex instruments being installed, Kosmos Cement Co was using products from another supplier.
Although these did a reasonable job in many respects, the company found that every few days there would be an alarm situation in the coal mill, and CO2, in the form of liquid and vapour, would be required to inert the atmosphere and avoid a fire hazard.
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This was very costly in terms of the CO2 consumption and the fact that the coal mill - and downstream processes - would have to shut down, which caused lost production.
Each inert situation was costing Kosmos thousands of dollars.
Kosmos was also coming under pressure for failing RATA tests on the plant emissions, and this was as a direct result of the underperformance of the CEMS (Continuous Emissions Monitoring System) that was operating at that time.
The company was getting poor response from their previous instrumentation supplier and had to take urgent action, so it opened discussions with what it saw as the two major players in the US, one of which was Servomex.
Kosmos felt that Servomex had a justifiably strong reputation for its products and customer support, and heard good feedback first-hand from other end users of Servomex products.
Darrell Wiley, the lead electrical engineer for the upgrade project, states: "We held a pre-bid meeting with Servomex and they were clearly well prepared.
It was also reassuring that senior management were involved, and it was obvious that Servomex was committed to working in the cement industry.
Overall we got a good impression and were confident that Servomex would be the better partner for this project".
Servomex supplied a number of different systems for the Kosmos plant.
Two Servomex 4900 analysers were provided to meet the state-mandated CEMS requirements.
In addition, an air-conditioned stainless steel cabinet was delivered with a sampling system to monitor two coal mill exhausts (a switching system enables one analyser to monitor two sampling points).
This system is equipped with a Servomex 1800 oxygen analyser and a Servomex 2500 analyser for measuring CO2.
A second similar cabinet contains a sampling system for use with the pre-heater, this time switching between three sampling points.
This system also has Servomex 1800 and 2500 analysers.
Both cabinets are fully controlled by Allen-Bradley PLCs so that the stream switching, blow-back (to clean the sample probe filters) and calibration are automated, alarms are triggered if temperatures or pressures stray outside specified limits - even the pressure in the calibration gas bottle is monitored so that plant operators are automatically notified when supplies are running low.
This level of automation keeps the equipment easy to use, despite its inherent sophistication.
The two Servomex 4900 CEMS analysers, which are each capable of making up to four measurements are used here to measure O2, CO, NO2 and SO2, whereas the system it replaced could only measure CO.
Because Kosmos now has data for O2 as well as CO, the plant operator is able to make better informed decisions about combustion that enable the plant to be operated at a higher efficiency.
Further, Kosmos has passed every RATA inspection since the Servomex instruments were installed, whereas failures were a common occurrence beforehand.
In the systems monitoring the coal mill exhausts and preheater, CO reading is used to indicate a possible smouldering fire, and the level of O2 is monitored for safety purposes.
Nevertheless, accurate measurements of these gases allow alarm levels to be set such that remedial action can be taken prior to a shutdown being necessary.
With the previous system, inerting of the coal mill was required every few days, costing thousands of dollars every time.
But now the Servomex instruments are installed, there is only one such event every five or six months - which will save Kosmos tens of thousands of dollars year-on-year.
Good communication was a hallmark of the Servomex approach as the project progressed.
"They kept asking the right questions and made sure we were involved at every step," comments Wiley: "Right throughout the specification and design phases the Servomex team worked closely with us to make sure we got what was right for our plant".
Although Kosmos carried out the installation work, Servomex provided guidance and subsequently came on site to commission the equipment.
"This is highly specialized instrumentation and we were anticipating some initial teething problems.
But Servomex always gave us very prompt support and made sure we solved every issue satisfactorily as quickly as possible.
We could not have asked for better support than that".
Following the success of this project, Kosmos Cement is now in discussions with Servomex for a second phase of the plant upgrade that will involve a further two gas analysis systems.
More information about the Servomex 2500, 1800 and 4900 gas analysers and sample systems, as well as other Servomex gas analysers, all of which are available and fully supported worldwide, can be obtained from the Servomex website.
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