Sugar Industry clinches unique boiler design by CS Holdings in R38 million project
May 2000
System Integration & Control Systems Design
CS System Solutions
South Africa's sugar industry has seen the first watertube fitted with a controlled superheater, utilising an integral 'sweetwater' condenser to provide spray water, installed, commissioned and tested at Transvaal Suiker Beperk (TSB)'s Malelane sugar mill. The R38 million turnkey project comprising a dual-fired watertube boiler, civil works, boilerhouse, electrics, instrumentation and gas clean-up equipment was awarded to industrial boilermaker John Thompson Africa in April 1998. The design, supply and installation of all instruments and electrics, programmable logic controller (PLC), scada and software engineering were subcontracted to CS System Solutions, a division of JSE-listed CS Holdings.
The design criteria for the project required a 31 bar watertube boiler capable of generating 150 tons/h of steam firing bagasse (a by-product produced during the processing of sugar cane) or 120 tons/h of steam on coal while maintaining the steam temperature at 400°C - from 30-110% of boiler capacity on each fuel.
This required the design of a superheater capable of achieving this criterion. A two-stage unit with interstage de-superheating was eventually selected. The unique feature of the superheater is that the source of pure spray water for de-superheating is derived from the boiler itself utilising a feedwater condenser system. This 'sweetwater' condenser system was specifically designed by JTA for this project and eliminated the need to supply a demineralisation plant with its associated high capital and operating costs.
JTA's latest generation Continuous Ash Discharge (CAD) stoker was incorporated to achieve the high combustion efficiencies required when burning coal. To support the environmental requirements of the eastern Mpumalanga area, a wet gas scrubber is installed which reduces boiler emissions to below 120 mg/Nm3.
The design and customisation of the control system hardware by CS System Solutions consisted of a Modicon Quantum PLC communicating via the ModbusPlus protocol to existing PLCs and scadas on the plant and its own scada. The PLC is linked by means of an additional two ModbusPlus networks to the Modicon Momentum I/O modules grouped into specific areas of the boiler 6 plant.
"The Modicon Momentum I/O intelligent terminals were selected to engineer this project," says CS System Solutions Marketing Director, Piet de Villiers. "Utilising Momentum I/O modules offers substantial financial benefits - installation costs are decreased because of distances between hardware and field devices, and the saving from reduced cabling, racking and time sees a substantial contribution towards overall project costs and construction time."
Boiler 6 was commissioned at the end of October 1999 and has achieved all of the contracted performance, efficiency and emission criteria.
Further reading:
Understanding the role of AI in generative engineering design
System Integration & Control Systems Design
When a design engineer sets out to design a new part, component, or assembly, the intent is to meet the design requirements for fit, form and function, and also incorporate a certain degree of innovation and elegance to the overall design. There is no reason to re-invent the wheel by introducing a new design.
Read more...
PCS stays up so you don’t have to
PCS Global
System Integration & Control Systems Design
Maybe it’s time to look at a solution that stays online 99,99999% of the time so you don’t have to. This the world of Stratus computer platforms, tailor-made for your critical applications.
Read more...
Four ways the global parts shortage has led to innovation and openness
System Integration & Control Systems Design
For those who use automation parts, the unpredictable nature of the supply chain is one of the biggest problems faced today. The shortfall has impacted every industry, but automation components have been especially affected.
Read more...
Iritron’s year of consolidation
Iritron
Editor's Choice System Integration & Control Systems Design
Despite the multiple challenges faced by businesses in South Africa, the buoyancy of the technology sector worldwide has produced some green shoots for automation specialist, Iritron.
Read more...
Five edge opportunities for SIs to maximise revenue in 2024
Editor's Choice System Integration & Control Systems Design
System integrators continue to face the challenge of doing more with less – supporting complex operations, while meeting production schedules with limited resources, and innovating to increase efficiency, maximise safety and reduce risk.
Read more...
Condition monitoring in a forging press retrofit
Beckhoff Automation
System Integration & Control Systems Design
Significantly increased vibration on machines can result in many forms of negative impacts such as reduced system performance or damage to the machine and foundation. Using the example of retrofitting a forging press with a maximum press force of 2000 tons, Wölfel Engineering explains how efficiently the process was tailored and implemented with PC-based control and measurement technology from Beckhoff.
Read more...
System integration in the digital age
System Integration & Control Systems Design
To meet the challenges of an increasingly competitive marketplace, many manufacturers (end users) must focus on their core competencies and outsource the rest to experts.
Read more...
Choosing a system integrator
Editor's Choice System Integration & Control Systems Design
Automation is an essential part of manufacturing today. Whatever the size, an upgrade or migration project can be complex, and the risks can be high. This is where system integrators (SIs) can help. They can bring together complex subsystems or components of a larger system and make them operate as a whole.
Read more...
Iritron awarded international contract for furnace control
Iritron
System Integration & Control Systems Design
Iritron has been awarded two international, multimillion-Rand furnace drying projects. The company has extensive expertise in furnace drying control systems, and provides solutions in the fields of electrical, instrumentation, control systems, and decision support systems.
Read more...
Capitalise on risks by turning them into opportunities for growth
Iritron
System Integration & Control Systems Design
In spite of the challenges facing the global and local economy, systems integration expert, Iritron remains optimistic for the year ahead, and believes that there are significant opportunities to be found during a challenging economic climate.
Read more...
printer friendly version