Determination of heat losses of the kiln system at Tororo Cement Limited

Abstract

In this research project, heat loss from kiln system at Tororo cement limited was determined. Analysis was carried out on both the kiln shell and the preheater tower. Only the major heat losses were determined. The heat lost in the kiln exhaust gas was determined by measuring the deferential pressure of the gas stream and calculating the mass flow rate. Its temperature was determined using a thermal-couple. The sensible heat of the preheater flue gas was determined as 441.63 Kcal/Kg-clinker. The heat loss by radiation and convection from the preheater and kiln surfaces was determined by measuring the surface temperature using a radiation pyrometer. The heat loss was determined as 30.8 and 80.21 Kcal/Kg-clinker. Results indicate the presence of waste heat and insufficiency of the whole system. Some possible ways to recover the heat losses and to improve systems efficiency were; Electricity generation from flue gas heat, modification of the butterfly valves to improve the efficiency of the preheater and using a secondary shell to minimise heat loss by radiation and convection from the kiln shell.