DEDICATION

It is to my dear family that I dedicate this report for their priceless support throughout my life and to the staff at Nzoia Sugar Company Limited for their cooperation and hospitality during my attachment at the company.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I take this privilege to thank the Almighty God for His love, care and protection during my attachment at Nzoia Sugar Company Limited. Secondly I would like to appreciate the Nzoia Sugar Company management, the training centre department for the chance they gave me to undertake my industrial attachment in the company. I would also appreciate the production department under which I worked for the period of twelve weeks (Three months). I personally thank Mr. Elly Owiti whom I worked under as my supervisor and industrial trainer. I wont forget to register my heartfelt gratitude to Moi University School of Engineering, department of Chemical and Process Engineering. I also acknowledge the sacrifice made by my university supervisor Ms Ajiambo for her support and advice. I sincerely acknowledge my family for their material support during the attachment period.

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DECLARATION
I, Michael Mvita, do hereby declare that this report is my original work. To the best of my knowledge and understanding, it has not been presented for any award in any other university or institution for the purpose of learning or examination.

Signature

Date:

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Table of Contents DEDICATION ................................................................................................................................. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENT .............................................................................................................. ii Declaration ..................................................................................................................................... iii PREFACE ...................................................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................. 1 NZOIA SUGAR COMPANY LIMITED ....................................................................................... 1 1.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Occupational Health and Safety ............................................................................................ 2 1.2 Raw Material Base................................................................................................................. 2 1.3 Company Vision and Mission ............................................................................................... 3 1.3.1 Vision Statement ............................................................................................................. 3 1.3.2 Mission Statement........................................................................................................... 3 1.4 Core Values, Objectives and Goals ....................................................................................... 3 1.4.1 Core Values ..................................................................................................................... 3 1.4.2 Objectives ....................................................................................................................... 3 1.4.3. Goals .............................................................................................................................. 4 1.5 Organization Structure of Nzoia Sugar Company ................................................................. 4 CHAPTER TWO............................................................................................................................. 6 SUGARCANE ................................................................................................................................ 6 2.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 6 CHAPTER THREE ......................................................................................................................... 7 COMPOSITION OF CANE AND JUICE ...................................................................................... 7 3.0 Introduction ........................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER FOUR ........................................................................................................................... 9 RAW SUGAR MANUFACTURE AND REFINING .................................................................... 9 4.0 Cane harvesting ..................................................................................................................... 9 4.1 Cane transport ........................................................................................................................ 9 4.2 Cane Weighing .................................................................................................................... 10 4.3 Cane Yard ............................................................................................................................ 11 4.3.1. Post harvest deterioration ............................................................................................. 12
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4.4. Cane Handling. ................................................................................................................... 13 4.5 Cane Preparation (Pre-Milling) ........................................................................................... 16 4.5.1 Swing Hammer fibrizor ................................................................................................ 16 4.5.2. Fibre leveler ................................................................................................................. 18 4.6. Juice Extraction (Milling)................................................................................................... 19 4.6.1. General Mill Description ............................................................................................. 19 4.6.2 Imbibition ...................................................................................................................... 20 4.7 Juice purification: Clarification. .......................................................................................... 20 4.7.1. Juice heating................................................................................................................. 21 4.7.2 Clarifier ......................................................................................................................... 24 4.8 Evaporation .......................................................................................................................... 25 4.8.1 Multi-Effect evaporator ................................................................................................ 25 4.9 Crystallization/Sugar boiling (A- Pan Boiling)/High grade pan boiling ............................. 27 4.9.1 Condenser ..................................................................................................................... 29 4.10. Crystal separation (A Massecuite separation)/ Centrifugaling and purging..................... 31 4.10.1 Batch centrifugal ......................................................................................................... 32 4.11. Sugar Recovery/ Molasses Re-boiling ............................................................................. 33 4.11.1 Continuous centrifugals .............................................................................................. 35 4.11.2 Molasses ...................................................................................................................... 40 4.12. Sugar Drying, Packaging and Bagging............................................................................. 40 CHAPTER FIVE ........................................................................................................................... 44 STEAM GENERATION AND DISTRIBUTION (BOILERS).................................................... 44 5.0. Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 44 5.1.Fire tube boilers ................................................................................................................... 44 5.2. Water tube boilers. .............................................................................................................. 45 5.3. 5.4. 5.5. 5.6. Design Specifications FCB Boilers (Boiler 1 &2) ......................................................... 53 Design Specifications Alpha Boiler (Boiler 3) ............................................................... 54 Cleaning during operation .............................................................................................. 54 Boiler Corrosion ............................................................................................................ 54

5.6.1. Other Causes of Corrosion ........................................................................................... 55 5.7. Boiler Embrittlement ...................................................................................................... 57

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5.8.

Boiler fittings and accessories ........................................................................................ 57

CHAPTER SIX ............................................................................................................................. 59 POWER GENERATION AND DISTRIBUTION (POWERHOUSE) ........................................ 59 6.0. Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 59 6.1. The Energy Conversion Processes ..................................................................................... 59 6.2. Working principle of the Steam Turbine (Prime Mover) ................................................... 59 6.2.1. Impulse Turbines ......................................................................................................... 60 6.2.2. Reaction Turbines ........................................................................................................ 60 6.3. Power generation principle ................................................................................................. 62 6.4. Turbine major components and systems ............................................................................ 64 CHAPTER SEVEN ....................................................................................................................... 68 COMPRESSED AIR SUPPLY (AIR COMPRESSORS)............................................................. 68 7.0. Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 68 7.1 Types of Compressors ......................................................................................................... 68 7.1.1. Centrifugal compressors .............................................................................................. 68 7.1.2. Reciprocating compressors .......................................................................................... 69 7.1.3. Rotary vane compressors ............................................................................................. 71 7.1.4. Rotary screw compressors ........................................................................................... 71 CHAPTER EIGHT ........................................................................................................................ 74 LABORATORY OPERATIONS (Quality Control) ..................................................................... 74 8.0. 8.1. 8.2. 8.3. 8.4. 8.5. 8.6. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 74 Juice analyses ................................................................................................................. 74 Chemical Dozing ............................................................................................................ 75 Bagasse analysis ............................................................................................................. 75 Massecuite analyses ........................................................................................................ 75 Dry Sugar Analysis ......................................................................................................... 75 Boiler Water Analysis .................................................................................................... 76

CHAPTER NINE .......................................................................................................................... 77 WATER TREATMENT ............................................................................................................... 77 9.0 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 77 9.1 Raw Water Tank .................................................................................................................. 77
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9.2 Chemical treatment .............................................................................................................. 77 9.2.1 Coagulation ................................................................................................................... 77 9.2.2 Flocculation................................................................................................................... 78 9.3 Sedimentation ...................................................................................................................... 78 9.4 Filtration .............................................................................................................................. 78 9.5 Chlorination ......................................................................................................................... 79 9.6 Water softening.................................................................................................................... 79 CHAPTER TEN ............................................................................................................................ 80 WASTE WATER /EFFLUENT TREATMENT........................................................................... 80 10.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 80 10.1 Aerobic Lagoon System .................................................................................................... 80 10.2 Cooling towers ................................................................................................................... 83 CHAPTER ELEVEN .................................................................................................................... 85 INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL WORKSHOP............................................................ 85 11.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 85 11.1 Level control ...................................................................................................................... 86 11.2 Pressure control ................................................................................................................. 86 11.3 Flow control ....................................................................................................................... 86 11.4 Temperature control .......................................................................................................... 88 11.5 Alarms and Safety Trips .................................................................................................... 88 11.6 Interlocks ........................................................................................................................... 88 CHAPTER TWELVE ................................................................................................................... 89 MECHANICAL WORKSHOP ..................................................................................................... 89 12.0 Introduction ....................................................................................................................... 89 12.1 Pumps ................................................................................................................................ 89 12.2. Types of Pumps ................................................................................................................ 90 12.2.1. Positive displacement Pumps..................................................................................... 90 12.2.2 Impulse Pumps ............................................................................................................ 93 12.2.3. Velocity pumps .......................................................................................................... 94 12.2.4. Gravity pumps ............................................................................................................ 95 12.2.5. Steam pumps .............................................................................................................. 95
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12.2.6. Valveless pumps ........................................................................................................ 96 12.3 Bearings ............................................................................................................................. 96 12.3.1 Classification of bearings. ........................................................................................... 96 12.4. Welding ............................................................................................................................ 97 CHAPTER THIRTEEN ................................................................................................................ 98 SAFETY ........................................................................................................................................ 98 CHAPTER FOURTEEN ............................................................................................................... 99 PLANT LOCATION AND SITE SELECTION........................................................................... 99 CHAPTER FIFTEEN.................................................................................................................. 106 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA) ............................................................. 106 15.0. Introduction .................................................................................................................... 106 15.1. Purpose of EIA ............................................................................................................... 107 15.2. Steps involved EIA ......................................................................................................... 108 15.3. Potential Health Effects .................................................................................................. 108 15.4. First Aid Measures ......................................................................................................... 109 15.5. Exposure Controls/Personal Protection .......................................................................... 109 15.6. Personal Protection Equipment ...................................................................................... 110 NZOIA SUGAR COMPANY FLOWSHEET ............................................................................ 111 PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED AT THE FACTORY. ............................................................. 112 SOLUTIONS TO THE ABOVE PROBLEMS ........................................................................... 112 RECOMMENDATION .............................................................................................................. 112 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................................... 113 REFERENCES ............................................................................................................................ 114

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PREFACE
Industrial attachment is among the undergraduate programmes at Moi University School of Engineering. The program normally takes a period of eight weeks. Students in the school of engineering have to attend three industrial attachments, one at the end of third year of study, the second at the end of fourth year of study and the last one at the end of fifth year. It helps students to attain practical knowledge. Objectives of industrial attachment i. Make the student familiar with what happens in industry and be able to bridge theory and practice. ii. Comprehend the entire production process in specific industry. iii. Familiarize with different departments at the firm level e.g. laboratory, workshop, production and processing equipment maintenance, stores and procurement, safety procedures etc. iv. Participate in a practical design and understand production management and techniques.

v. Identify and solve engineering problem

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CHAPTER ONE

NZOIA SUGAR COMPANY LIMITED

1.0 Introduction Nzoia Sugar Company is located in Bungoma County, Bungoma South District, and 5 kilometers from Bukembe, off the Webuye-Bungoma highway. The company serves over 67,000 farmers in the larger Bungoma, Kakamega, Lugari and Malava Districts. It was established in 1975 under Companys Act Cap. 486 of the Laws of Kenya and commissioned in 1978. The objectives of the company when it was established were: i. ii. iii. iv. v. vi. vii. To increase the countrys GDP through exports. Open rural industrialization development. Curb rural-urban migration. Create employment. Create-social economic enhancement. Improve rural infrastructure and communications systems. Attain self-sufficiency in sugar production.

The Kenyan Government is the majority shareholder owning 98% shares while Fives Cail Babcock (FCB) and Industrial Development Bank owning the remaining shares. The company produces sugar and supports cane production through the provision of extension services to farmers with an extensive company nucleus estate covering 3,600 ha and an out-grower zone spanning more than 23,500 ha of cane. The company is endowed with water resources from Chalicha Springs and River Kuywa which traverses its nucleus estate. The permanent water source is not only critical for the factory production and domestic use but also for the community surrounding the company.

1.1 Occupational Health and Safety Nzoia Sugar Company puts a lot of emphasis on issues of the environment and safety. The company has put in place policies, set objectives and targets based on the knowledge about its environmental, health and safety impacts associated with its activities, products and services. This ensures that the significant environmental, health and safety impacts associated with these aspects are taken into account in setting the environmental objectives. To achieve these objectives, the company carries out annual environmental, health and safety audits in compliance with the environmental management and co-ordination act 2007. The audits carried out includes: environment audit, safety and health audit, noise level, thermal, air quality, waste water, hazardous substance, fire safety, risk assessments, plant inspections and medical examination among others. The environmental, health and safety aspects identified forms the basis for the development of environmental, health and safety management plan for implementation and continual review. It also forms part of the company strategic plan on addressing potential impact to the organization. To this end, the company has successfully implemented and reserved substantial number of aspects and significant impacts as identified in the audits. These include: installation of a wet scrubber to reduce fly ash emission, replacement of asbestos roofing materials, establishment of additional oxidation ponds to improve on waste water quality, safe handling of used oil, reduction in accidents and incidents, procurement of new and modern fire engine, creating awareness on environment, health and safety, construction of adequate and modern ablution blocks and provision of wholesome water. 1.2 Raw Material Base The company has a nucleus estate spanning 3,600 ha and an out-grower zone spanning 23,500 ha. The out-grower zone encompasses 67,000 farmers in total. Varieties of sugarcane grown include CO421, CO945, N14, EAK70-97, EAK70-76, KEN82472, D84-84, KEN82-808 and KEN83-737. The current sugarcane yields an average 80 tones per hectare (TCH), which translates to 90-120 TCH per Plant crop and 60-80 TCH per ratoon.

To support the cane production programmes, the company provides extension services to farmers on proper crop husbandry through a network of outreach offices where farmers get information and advice on fertilizer, herbicide and seed usage. Weed control is integrated and includes mechanical, manual and chemical interventions. 1.3 Company Vision and Mission 1.3.1 Vision Statement To be globally competitive in production of sugar and other products 1.3.2 Mission Statement To efficiently and innovatively produce and market sugar and other products in a clean and safe environment to the satisfaction of all stakeholders. 1.4 Core Values, Objectives and Goals 1.4.1 Core Values In pursuit of its vision and mission, the company is guided with the values below; i. Teamwork and mutual respect ii. Strong customer service orientation iii. Respect for the environment and the surrounding community iv. Equal opportunity for all the stakeholders v. Dedication and hardwork vi. Transparency and accountability 1.4.2 Objectives Its main objective was to establish sugar cane plantation and produce sugar and molasses as its by-product. Other key objectives are; i. Achieve sales growth ii. Increase profitability iii. Reduce production costs

1.4.3. Goals The company is determined to achieve the following goals; a. To facilitate the economic growth of the country b. To create employment c. Attain self-sufficiency in sugar products d. Improve living standards of Kenyans e. To open up rural industrialization 1.5 Organization Structure of Nzoia Sugar Company The company is headed by a board of directors below which there is the managing director and managers to departments respectively. The composition of the Board of Directors is as follows: 1. Chairman presidential appointee 2. Managing director presidential appointee 3. P.S/Appointee ministry of agriculture 4. PS/Appointee ministry of finance 5. Managing director- IDB 6. General manager/alternative- FCB 7. Company secretary- NSC 8. Bungoma district constituency directors-5 directors

CHAPTER TWO

SUGARCANE
2.0 Introduction Sugarcane is a tropical grass belonging to the same tribe (andropogonae) as sorghum, johnsongrass and corn (maize). More specifically, modern sugarcane is a complex hybrid of two or more of the six species of the genus saccharum: s. barberi Jeswiet, s. officinarum L., s. robustum brandes abd jesw. Ex Grassl, S. sanguinarum Grassl, s. sinese Roxb, and s. spontaneum L. many forms of thses species interbreed making highly diverse genus. The goal of the sugarcane harvest is to produce sugarcane stalks of high quality. Quality is reduced by damaging cane, increasing trash in delivered cane and delaying cane delivery. Removal of cane tops is of prime importance in any harvesting operation. Cane tops have little sucrose but are high in starch and reducing sugars. Starch and reducing sugars lower sugar yield in the boiling house and the residue from the tops absorbs sucrose and emerges from the mills with more sucrose than when it entered. Cane leaves also have a high silica content and contributes to mill wear. The quality of sugarcane tends to improve with age, reaching maximum and gradually declining. Rapid deterioration begins from the moment of harvest. Deterioration may begin before harvest in pest-ridden cane or in fields affected by fire, freezes or wind storms. After cutting, sugarcane loses water (1 to 2 % daily for the first week). This loss gives an apparent but false increase in sugar content. The enzyme invertase, already present, converts sucrose to reducing sugars thus lowering purity. Sucrose inversion varies with temperature and moisture and is most rapid in hot, dry periods. Stale cane is anathema to the industry; growers lose tonnage and processors lose sugars. Unlike sugar beets, sugarcane cannot be stored for processing without excessive inversion; thus harvesting and processing to raw sugar are concurrent.

CHAPTER THREE

COMPOSITION OF CANE AND JUICE

3.0 Introduction When cane is cut and cleaned by hand, and delivered fresh, processors receive the best possible starting material for sugar production. Cane that is cut and loaded by machine invariably contains tops, leaves stubble and roots, as well as soil, water and other extraneous matter. Sucrose in the juice and cellulose in the fibre are the two main constituents of sugarcane and both are made of simple sugars. The simple sugars glucose and fructose occur free in sugarcane, usually in lesser amounts than sucrose. The production of sugar from sugarcane juice is based on the ability of sucrose to crystallize from thick syrup while glucose and fructose remain dissolved. Other sugars occur in cane but not in the free state; these are constituents of gums or cell walls. Sugar, in the ordinary sense, is sucrose. It is the sugar of household and industry and is the most common sugar in the plant kingdom. Sucrose occurs in all parts of the sugarcane plant and is most abundant in the stalk, where it is found in the watery vacuoles of storage cells. The sucrose content is lowest in the actively growing regions, especially the soft portions of the stem tip and the leaf roll. The monosaccharide sugars, glucose and fructose condense to form sucrose and water. Glucose content exceeds that of sucrose only in the actively growing portion of the cane plant. The glucose content of cane juice is high early in the harvest season, decreasing with maturation. Also called fruit sugar, fructose is sweeter than sucrose and glucose but of the three, it is the least abundant in cane. Like glucose, it is most abundant in the growing parts of the plant and least abundant in the lower stalk and rots. Fructose decrease with maturity and may be undetectable in some high purity varieties at maturity. Fructose is usually present in lesser amounts than glucose. Fructose molecules condense to form inulin, a storage product of some plants. In chemical sense, ` inversion means the changing of dextrorotatory optical activity to levorotatory, or the converse. Usage in sugar technology has evolved a new meaning: the acidic or enzymatic hydrolysis of sucrose to invert sugars. `inversion is wrongly but widely used to

refer to deterioration following severe burning or freezing when the sucrose is metabolized by bacteria.

CHAPTER FOUR

RAW SUGAR MANUFACTURE AND REFINING

4.0 Cane harvesting Sugarcane takes 12-16 months to mature. When it is ready for harvesting it stands two to four meters tall. Cane harvesting involves cutting the cane at the base, de-trashing and then topping. This process is labour intensive. Base cutting is important and if it is higher, millable cane stalk is lost and if it is below, ground roots and soil adheres to the stalk. Soil is very abrasive in the milling process and increases milling costs. At Nzoia Sugar Company (NSC), Cane cutting is done by contracted cane cutters. Cut cane is then stack together awaiting transportation.

Figure 1: Cut Sugarcane

4.1 Cane transport Cane transport is done by contracted transporters who use tractors for transportation. The tractors have baskets provided with wire ropes attached to a fixed bar on the right hand side and a removable bar on the left hand side. The removable bar has some gloves which play a key role during offloading. The hooks of the hydro-un-loader hooks on the gloves and when lifted the

cane in the basket is offloaded into the cane yard or the feed tables. The wire ropes loosely lie on the basket and during loading they hold the cane for the ease of offloading. Cane loading into tractors is done by three wheeled grabs. Loaded tractors then transport the cane to the company.

4.2 Cane Weighing Cane weighing is done using weighbridges. The weighbridge is made up of load cells which act as the weighing devices. A load cell is transducer used to convert a force into an electrical signal. The conversion is indirect and happens in two stages; through a mechanical arrangement where the force being sensed deforms a strain gauge. The strain gauge then measures the deformation (strain) as an electrical signal since the strain changes the effective electrical resistance of the wire. The output of the transducer is scaled to calculate the force applied to the transducer and the measurement displayed in master load cell readout (computer or any other display unit). At NSC, there are two weighbridges (western and eastern bridge) lying parallel to each other used to weigh the mass of cane delivered into the factory either from outgrowers or the companys nucleus estate. The loaded trucks with sugarcane arrive at the factory and passes over the western weighbridge which weighs the tonnage of the truck together with the sugarcane. The truck then offloads the cane in the cane yard and passes over the eastern weighbridge which measures the weigh of the empty truck as it leaves the factory. The two weighbridges are computerized and the net weight of the cane is obtained by simple arithmetic difference of the weight of the loaded truck and the empty truck.

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Figure 2: Weighbridge showing electrical connection of load cells

Cane is weighed at the cane weighbridge for the following purposes: i. For purpose of paying farmers based on tons delivered. ii. For contractors payment purposes which include transporters and cane cutters. iii. For effective control of factory operations and planning. iv. For purposes of planning in agriculture department.

4.3 Cane Yard This refers to a specially designated area where cane is temporarily stored as a bank for use when the supply of cane stops during the night. It ensures continued feeding of cane to the factory without unplanned stoppages for twenty-four hours. Cane storage is very critical since cane deteriorates very fast after harvesting The weighed cane is offloaded and stored in a cane yard. The offloading is done in such a way that there is minimal spillage, trampling and crushing of cane.

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The factory has a cane yard with two storage zones where the cane received is stored. The storage zones include zone A and B. In zone A, the cane is manually offloaded from the trucks whereas in zone B the cane is mechanically offloaded by use of hillow cranes.

Figure 3: Sugarcane stored in cane yard awaiting milling

4.3.1. Post harvest deterioration Cane starts deteriorating immediately after it has been cut. This deterioration is caused by: i. Inversion of sucrose by enzymes naturally present in the plant. ii. Infection of the cane by microorganisms which secrete sucrose inverting enzymes. Microorganisms are always present in cane and re-infestation by insect, rain, wind or direct soil contamination occurs rapidly after harvesting.

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The rate at which harvested cane deteriorates is influenced by temperature at the time of harvesting, the state of the stalk (whole/ chopped, burnt/ trashed), the humidity and the variety of cane. For a given cane variety and agricultural practices, temperature is recognized as being a major factor. Cane looses mass as it deteriorates mostly through dehydration since the mass of fibre remains constant. Since the cane mass decrease as cane deteriorates, the mass of pol in the cane decreases with deterioration time. This is direct loss to the industry and it is however not the only loss. As the microorganisms consume sucrose, they secrete a number of impurities which cause processing problems in the factory and these inevitably result in more sucrose being lost, mostly through lower molasses exhaustion. It has been well established that the concentration of impurities such as gums and dextrin increase exponentially with cane deterioration time. These cause severe viscosity problems, slow crystallization rate of sucrose and cause crystal deformation. It is for this reason that cane feeding into the feed table is done in the first in first out procedure to prevent cane staying in the yard too long which would lead to cane deterioration. (Inversion of sucrose to glucose by microbial activity) 4.4. Cane Handling. Several systems are used in the cane yard to store and transfer cane. Hillow cranes are widely used to offload cane from cane trucks. The cane lies on the cradle of chains that line the width of the truck, one end of each chain being attached to a single beam. The cane is offloaded by lifting this beam using the hillow crane, spilling the cane into the feed table or into storage area. This is an overhead crane consisting of a bridge and a trolley. There are two cranes each having a capacity of 12 tonnes. They have a span of 82ft (distance from one side of the rail to the other). They travel on rails of 60m long. The trolley travels on 65 long rails that are mounted on the bridge. The cranes are 49 6 high.

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The bridge is fitted with bumpers made from polyurethane rubber which act as stoppers to the bridge at the end to the travel. The gantry cranes cane and stackers (a caterpillar) are used to stack together offloaded cane in the cane yard. Apart from cane stacking, the cane stacker is also used to clean the yard and loading mud filters (filter cake) to trucks for transportation to farms. Mud filters are used as farm manure. It is also from this section where cane is fed into the cane feed table and then further fed into the cane carrier enroute to pre-milling. There are two types of cane feeding into the cane feed table: direct and indirect feeding. In direct feeding cane is directly fed onto the cane feed table from trucks by help of a hillow crane while in indirect feeding, cane is indirectly fed into the feed table from cane stacks stored in the cane yard by help of overhead gantry crane.

Figure 4: Cane feed table with spiky chain conveyors

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The chain conveyors at the feed table then convey the cane into the cane carriers. The cane carrier is made of metallic slats and conveys the cane into the pre-milling section.

Figure 5: Cane carrier showing metallic slats

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4.5 Cane Preparation (Pre-Milling) The pre-milling process is for the preparation of the cane by breaking down the hard structure and rupturing the cells. This process is done through the first and second knife and a fibrizor. The purpose of pre-milling is for size reduction of cane into fine fibres in order to increase the bulk density of cane thus increasing the capacity of the mills, to break down the hard cell structure (rind) of the cane and to expose cells for easy juice extraction and increase the imbibitions dilution. The offloaded cane is fed onto a feed table that has a revolving chain which takes the cane to a cane carrier. The cane carrier moves the cane to the first knife which has 32 revolving blades powered by a 120hp motor which chops off the cane into small pieces. From the first knife, cane is carried to the second knife by the cane carrier for further size reduction. The second knife has 64 revolving blades and is also powered by a 120hp motor. The cane carrier further carries the chopped cane from the second knife to the swing hammer fibrizor which is powered by a steam turbine with an output power of 11.25hp. The fibrizor is basically a hammer mill consisting of 90 hammers which undertakes finer crushing of cane into cane fibres to expose the sucrose cells. 4.5.1 Swing Hammer fibrizor The Fibrizor prepares cane for juice extraction. The basic function of cane preparation with the Fibrizor is to rupture the maximum possible number of sucrose containing cells while still maintaining the fibre of sufficient length for better mill feeding and improved permeability of prepared cane material. The cells are torn, open, ruptured and disintegrated conveniently and feeds prepared cane to mill for improved extraction with reduced load on the mills. Proper cane preparation increases throughput and reduce load at the mills. Preparation index is expressed as the percentage ratio of brix in ruptured cells to the total brix in the cane. For optimum/best results of juice extraction and manageable loads on the preparation equipment preparation index (PI) should be 80%.

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The Fibrizor hammer design is swing type which is an improved version over fix type hammer design having the following advantages: i. Accommodation of load fluctuations ii. Minimization of breakdowns when foreign material/iron pieces enters

Figure 6: Rotor of the swing hammer fibrizor

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Figure 7: : The swing hammers dimensions 4.5.2. Fibre leveler It is used to restrict or allow the required amount of cane fibre to be conveyed from the Fibrizor via the magnet to mill 1, in order to avoid chokes at the magnet. The cane fibres are then taken to the milling system for juice extraction. As they are taken to the milling system, they are passed through an electromagnet whi which ch removes any metallic materials
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which might be present in the crushed cane. There is also eye observation of the fibres for removal of any foreign non magnetic materials from the crushed cane. 4.6. Juice Extraction (Milling) The milling process of sugarcane is done through a series of five mills. In each of the five mills, there are four rollers: the feed roller, the top roller, the bottom roller and the discharging roller. The rollers contain grooves and studs that crush the cane fibres producing a juice and in the process exposing sucrose molecules. Crushing is done from mill one up to mill five until the fibres are exhausted with sucrose juice. Imbibition water is added to the cane fibre for maximum extraction of sucrose from the fibres. The exhausted cane fibres are referred to as bagasse and are released at 2.5% pol (Pol-Is the percentage of sucrose content in juice) while the mixed juice has a purity of 85% (purity is the sucrose content as a percentage of the dry substance or dissolved solid content) The juice from mill 1 and 2 is known as express juice and the imbibitions water is added to the second mill and last (integrated Imbibition). 4.6.1. General Mill Description All the 4 rollers are provided with a circumferential grooving having a 3 pitch with the angle of grooving being 45o and the depth of 3.The top roller meshes with the feed and discharge rollers. During milling, cane fibre tends to pack at the bottom of the grooves thus reducing the rupturing efficiency. This fibre is removed by the help of scrappers. The feed and discharge rollers rotate in the opposite direction to that of the top roller via the pinions whose profile of teeth are of double involute tooth design that permits operating centres from a maximum of 38.5 to a minimum of 35. The exhausted cane fibres (bagasse) and are released at 2.5% pol. The bagasse is then taken to bagasse storage by use conveyor belts and dried for later usage as fuel to fire the factory boilers. The factory has 3 boilers which are all fired by bagasse thus making process economical and environment friendly. The bagasse heated boilers generate steam which is used to turn turbines in the powerhouse thus generating electricity for the company and the excess steam is directed to the sugar processing plant for use in various reactions that require heat.
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4.6.2 Imbibition This is the addition of water into bagasse to enhance juice extraction. There are two types of imbibitions as described below. i. Simple Imbibition This refers to addition of fresh water. It can be single simple, double simple imbibition and so on as described below. Single Simple Imbibition-this is addition of water between the last mill and its previous mill only. Double simple imbibition is the addition of water between the last mill and the second last mill, and between the 2nd last mill and 3rd last mill. ii. Compound Imbibition This refers to the addition of the juice extracted from the succeeding mill back before the preceding mill. If the juice obtained from the second last mill is pumped to the fibre before the previous mill, this becomes triple compound imbibition and so on.

Biocide is also added to the mixed juice from the mills to prevent microbial growth which would otherwise lead to sucrose inversion to glucose and then screened to remove cush cush (stream of wet bagasse/bagacillo separated from raw juice by juice screens). The cush cush from the screen are then recycled and mixed with fibrized cane from the fibrizor enroute to milling. The mixed juice is then pumped to juice treatment and evaporation section for purification.

4.7 Juice purification: Clarification. The dark-green juice from the mills is acidic and turbid. The clarification (defecation) process, designed to remove both soluble and insoluble impurities, universally employs lime and heat as the clarifying agents. The purpose of this process is to produce the right quality juice and achieve the optimum sugar recovery. Milk of lime neutralizes the natural acidity of the juice, forming
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insoluble lime salts, mostly calcium phosphate. Heating the limed juice to boiling or slightly above coagulates the albumin and some of the fats, waxes, gums and the precipitate thus formed entraps suspended solids as well as finer particles. In the juice purification, the mixed juice is first weighed using a digital flow meter. This is done to determine the number of tonnes crushed per hour which helps to determine the efficiency of the process, estimate boiling house efficiency and estimate the sucrose content in the juice before treatment. The mixed juice is taken to a pre-liming process where milk of lime is added to raise the PH from between 5.2 to 5.8 to between 6.2 to 6.4.The pre-limed juice is then taken to a primary heating process in a shell and tube heat exchanger where its temperature is raised to about 75-80C so as to catalyze the reaction between milk of lime and juice. The juice is then limed by adding more milk of lime which raises the PH of the juice to between 7.5 and 8.0 The limed juice is further heated in a secondary heating process to raise its temperature to about 103-105 C. The juice is now at optimum conditions of PH and temperature. 4.7.1. Juice heating The heating process is done in a series of 5 heaters (heat exchangers) whereby primary heating is done in heater 1 while secondary heating is done from heater 2 up to 5. Heating is done to destroy micro-organism that would cause sucrose inversion to glucose and fructose subsequently causing loss of sugar and formation of a gummy product, provide optimum conditions for liming and enhance chemical reaction. 4.7.1.1 Principle of operation of heat exchangers A heat exchanger is a piece of equipment built for efficient heat transfer from one medium to another. The media may be separated by a solid wall to prevent mixing or they may be in direct contact. They are widely used in space heating, refrigeration, air conditioning, power plants, chemical plants, petrochemical plants, petroleum refineries, natural gas processing, and sewage treatment. At NSC, shell and tube heat exchangers are used for heating of the juice to aid in clarification.

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4.7.1.2 Shell and tube heat exchangers A shell and tube heat exchanger is a class of heat exchanger designs. It is the most common type of heat exchanger in oil refineries and other large chemical processes, and is suited for higherpressure applications. As its name implies, this type of heat exchanger consists of a shell (a large pressure vessel) with a bundle of tubes inside it. One fluid runs through the tubes, and another fluid flows over the tubes (through the shell) to transfer heat between the two fluids. The set of tubes is called a tube bundle, and may be composed of several types of tubes: plain, longitudinally finned, etc. 4.7.1.2.1 Theory and Application Two fluids, of different starting temperatures, flow through the heat exchanger. One flows through the tubes (the tube side) and the other flows outside the tubes but inside the shell (the shell side). Heat is transferred from one fluid to the other through the tube walls, either from tube side to shell side or vice versa. The fluids can be either liquids or gases on either the shell or the tube side. In order to transfer heat efficiently, a large heat transfer area should be used, leading to the use of many tubes. In this way, waste heat can be put to use. This is an efficient way to conserve energy. Heat exchangers with only one phase (liquid or gas) on each side can be called one-phase or single-phase heat exchangers. Two-phase heat exchangers can be used to heat a liquid to boil it into a gas (vapor), sometimes called boilers, or cool a vapor to condense it into a liquid (called condensers), with the phase change usually occurring on the shell side. Boilers in steam engine locomotives are typically large, usually cylindrically-shaped shell-and-tube heat exchangers. In large power plants with steam-driven turbines, shell-and-tube surface condensers are used to condense the exhaust steam exiting the turbine into condensate water which is recycled back to be turned into steam in the steam generator.

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Figure 8: Two pass shell and tube heat exchanger

The heated juice is then taken to flash tank where it is flushed to remove gases/vapour and also lower the temperature to about 95-98 C. Flushed juice is then taken for flocculation as it enters a clarifier. In this process, a flocculant (clarifying agent) is added to assist the colloids suspended come out in form of flake or floc. The flocculant is a high molecular carbon compound that assists in settling down of suspended solid to attain a proper clarity. Flocculated juice is allowed to settle in the clarifier for about 30 minutes to allow the suspended solids to settle through gravitational sedimentation. From the clarifier, a clear juice is obtained on top while mud is obtained at the bottom of the clarifier. The mud is conditioned by addition of milk of lime, water, bagacillo (fine fraction of bagasse obtained by screening or pneumatic separation generally used as a filter aid in filtration) and a flocculant to obtain a slurry. The slurry is then filtered in rotary drum filter operated under
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vacuum to obtain a filtered juice and a mud filter (filter cake). The filtered juice is recycled into the pre-liming process while the mud filter is manually scrapped from the rotary drum and used as farm manure because of its phosphate content. 4.7.2 Clarifier A lamella clarifier (inclined-plate clarifier) is designed to remove particulates from liquids. They are often employed in primary water treatment in place of conventional settling tanks. They are used in industrial water treatment. Unlike conventional clarifiers they use a series of inclined plates. These inclined plates provide a large effective settling area for a small footprint. The inlet stream is stilled upon entry into the clarifier. Solid particles begin to settle onto the plates and begin to accumulate in collection hoppers at the bottom of the clarifier unit. The sludge is drawn off at the bottom of these hoppers and the clarified liquid exits the unit at the top by weir.

Figure 9: The juice clarifier

Clear juice from the clarifier is taken to a clear juice tank from which is then pumped to evaporators for concentration through evaporation in a multi-effect evaporator.

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4.8 Evaporation The clarified juice, having much the same composition as the raw extracted juice except for the precipitated impurities removed by lime treatment, contains about 85% water. Two-thirds of this water is evaporated in vacuum multiple effects evaporator arranged in series so that each succeeding body has a higher vacuum, therefore boils at a lower temperature. At the evaporation station, the clear juice is concentrated in a multi-effect evaporator consisting of 5 evaporator units to a thick syrup of brix of 60-68 brix in the last evaporator body. The evaporator is powered with exhaust steam from mills and vapour from each unit is fed to the chest of the next evaporator thus making the process economical and efficient. For maximum evaporation, juice level in the evaporator bodies is monitored and maintained as set by automatic controls i.e. body 1 should boil at bottom sight glass i.e. a third of the calandria height while body 2,3,4 and 5 should boil between first and second sight glass. Physical conditions of the evaporator such as temperature, steam/vapour pressure and vacuum in the last body are monitored and maintained as follows: temperature in body 1 -125-130C, body 2 -100C, body 3 -90C, body 4 -80C, body 5 -60-65C while exhaust steam from mills to the first body should be between 15-22psi (1-1.5bars), vacuum in the last body of 18-25inHg, raw syrup brix from last body of 60-68brix and condensate to be free of sugar trace. Condensate from body 1 is used as boiler feed water as it is free from sugar drains while that from second body is used as imbibitions water in the milling section to ensure maximum juice extraction and sugar curing in centrifugals. The concentrated raw syrup from the last body is then pumped to a raw syrup receiver at the mother liquor tank (liquor 1 tank). 4.8.1 Multi-Effect evaporator A multiple-effect evaporator, as defined in chemical engineering, is an apparatus for efficiently using the heat from steam to evaporate water. In a multiple-effect evaporator, water is boiled in a sequence of vessels, each held at a lower pressure than the last. Because the boiling temperature of water decreases as pressure decreases, the vapor boiled off in one vessel can be

25

used to heat the next, and only the first vessel (at the highest pressure) requires an external source of heat. Multiple effect evaporation commonly uses sensible heat in the condensate to preheat liquor to be flashed. In practice the design liquid flow paths can be somewhat complicated in order to extract the most recoverable heat and to obtain the highest evaporation rates from the equipment. Multiple-effect evaporation plants in sugar beet factories have up to eight effects. Six effect evaporators are common in the recovery of black liquor in the Kraft process for making wood pulp. At NSC, a five effect multi-effect evaporator is used to concentrate the juice into thick syrup.

Figure 10: An example of multi-effect evaporator with six effects The juice purification, evaporation and mud filtration target parameters are as follows: Juice i. Pre-limed juice ii. Limed juice iii. Clear juice PH 6.0-6.6 7.5-8.5 6.8-7.2 Temperature 70-85 C 100-105 C 95-98 C

iv. The clear juice colour should be yellowish green and sparkling clear and free of suspended solids v. Filter cake pol. vi. Filter cake moisture vii. Filtered juice pH 3.0% 70-72% 7.5-8.0
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4.9 Crystallization/Sugar boiling (A- Pan Boiling)/High grade pan boiling Crystallization is (natural or artificial) process of formation of solid crystals precipitating from a solution, melt or more rarely deposited directly from a gas and it occurs in a crystallizer. Crystallization is therefore is therefore an aspect of precipitation, obtained through variation of the solubility conditions of the solute in the solvent. Crystallization process consists of two major steps: nucleation and crystal growth. Nucleation is the step where the solute molecules dispersed in the solvent start to gather into clusters thus elevating the solute concentration and become stable under the operating conditions. Crystal growth on the other hand is the subsequent growth of the nuclei that succeed in achieving the critical cluster size. Nucleation and growth continue to occur simultaneously while the super-saturation exists. In NSC, crystallization is done in single-effect vacuum pans, where the syrup is evaporated until saturated with sugar. At this point, seed grain is added to serve as nuclei for the sugar crystals and more syrup is added as the water evaporates. The growth of the crystals continues until the pan is full and the discharged. The is process is started by preparation of the pan through admitting hot water and steaming the pan to dissolve out any sugar crystals present in the pan after which footing material is

administered. There are two methods for formation of footing material and either of which can be used depending on the prevailing conditions. The first method is by using fresh syrup. In this method, syrup is admitted into the pan to just cover the calandria top plate. Steam/vapour to the steam chest is opened to start boiling and concentrating the syrup. After concentrating sufficiently and attaining the critical point, slurry which is acts as the seed material is admitted. The second method which is the most commonly used method in NSC is that of using seed magma. B-magma is used as the footing material for A-strikes. B-magma is drawn into the pan to cover the calandria (150HL) and temperature raised upto 70-75C by allowing steam/vapour to the calandria to facilitate sugar boiling. Sugar boiling in the vacuum pan boilers is done under vacuum so as to facilitate boiling of sugar at low temperatures, boiling sugar in suspension and facilitate the movement of vapour and condensate out of the pan. Hot water is gradually let in to
27

wash out the smaller crystals leaving a uniform crop of crystals of the required size (Thinning). Once the magma has been washed, steam/vapour is increased to the calandria and feeding of syrup is started. In case of having grained from slurry, for a time, immediately following the introduction of the slurry, the level of super-saturation should be maintained to allow crystals to grow. During this time, the rate of crystallization and evaporation should be balanced out. A small stream of water is run into the pan to assist crystals in hardening. This water maintains the state of super-saturation which acts as the driving force for crystallization. Care is taken not add a lot of water because it would dissolve the crystals. Once grains/crystals have sufficiently developed, the strike is gradually filled upto 450HL by letting in controlled quantity of syrup. For good boiling and crystallization, the following conditions should prevail: i. A vacuum of 20-22inHg ii. Steam of 8-10 psi (0.5-0.7bar). iii. Good material circulation in the pan iv. Brix of the material in the pan should increase as the pan fills The massecuite is then brixed for exhaustion of sucrose in the mother liquor. The brix of the pan contents increases as it fills up. This is done by regulating the pan feed. When the massecuite is properly brixed, steam supply to the calandria is stopped, vacuum to the pan is broken and the massecuite discharged into a massecuite receiver in a process termed as striking. Once massecuite has been discharged in to the receiver, the pan is thoroughly cleaned by steaming out to ensure all crystals have been washed out. Any sugar left adhering to the calandria poses two dangers: i. Presence of oversized crystals in the next strike. ii. Caramerilization of sugar left over in contact with the hot metal leading to appearance of brown crystals in the next strike. Condensate from the calandria is continuously drained as the pan boils to avoid hammering and heat loss.

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4.9.1 Condenser A condenser is a device or unit used to condense a substance from its gaseous to its liquid state, typically by cooling it. In so doing, the latent heat is given up by the substance, and will transfer to the condenser coolant. Condensers are typically heat exchangers which have various designs and come in many sizes ranging from rather small (hand-held) to very large industrial-scale units used in plant processes. For example, a refrigerator uses a condenser to get rid of heat extracted from the interior of the unit to the outside air. Condensers are used in air conditioning, industrial chemical processes such as distillation, steam power plants and other heat-exchange systems. At NSC, condensers are used to create vacuum in boiling equipment to help boil the juices and liquors at low temperatures than their boiling points. The types of condensers used include barometric condensers and multi-jet spray condensers. 4.9.1.1. Barometric leg condensers Barometric condensers are utilized to de-superheat and condense the incoming vapors plus cool the exiting gases, while developing the lowest possible pressure. 4.9.1.1.1 Design Description There are two principal types of condensers, namely counter flow and parallel flow. The counter flow condensers are constructed so that the vapors and the condensing fluid flow in opposite directions while the parallel flow condensers flow in the same direction. The condensing fluid and condensed vapors are removed by either the use of a tailpipe or a pump. When a tailpipe is utilized, the unit is elevated to a sufficient height to permit drainage by gravity. When a pump is used, the system is called a low level barometric condenser. It should be noted that other items such as level control devices and valves are required in addition to the pump on the low level design Barometric condensers are constructed of cast iron, carbon steel, fiberglass reinforced plastic, Haveg, graphite and all weldable alloys. There are two (2) basic parts of a condenser: (1) the shell body, and (2) the spray device(s). The nozzle connections on units constructed of carbon steel and other weldable alloys may have weld

29

ends rather than flanged and/or screwed. A bolted removable cover is supplied on the top of all units through size 24. Shell internals and spray device(s) can be inspected by removing the top cover. A manhole is supplied on sizes 26 and larger. The spray devices are fastened internally by either a flanged connection or threaded ends.

Figure 11:Barometric leg condenser 4.9.1.2 Multi-jet spray condensers Multi-Jet Barometric Condensers are generally employed where low cost water is available in ample quantity. It is the simplest design of all barometric condensers, and requires no auxiliary air pump or pre-cooler. It is probably the ideal type where load conditions are constant and there is little air leakage. The Multi-Jet Barometric Condenser is also used where the vacuum handled is not high and a moderately large terminal difference is permissible.

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Figure 12: Multi-jet spray condenser

4.10. Crystal separation (A Massecuite separation)/ Centrifugaling and purging Crystal separation is carried out in centrifuge. The centrifuge works using the sedimentation principle, where the centripetal acceleration causes denser substances to separate out along the radial direction (the bottom of the tube). By the same token, lighter objects will tend to move to the top (of the tube; in the rotating picture, move to the centre). The A massecuite from A massecuite receiver is separated in a centrifuge purposely to separate A sugar crystals and A molasses from the A massecuite. In the process of centrifugation, the massecuite from the massecuite receiver is drawn into the centrifugals. The centrifugals consists of cylindrical basket suspended on a spindle perforated on its sides and lined with a wire mesh inside of which is metal sheets which acts as screen. The basket revolves at speeds from 1000-1800 rpm. The perforated lining retains the sugar crystals which are washed with wash water to rinse mother liquor retained on the surface of the crystals. The mother liquor (A molasses) passes through the lining because of the centrifugal force exerted and after the sugar is purged, it is cut down leaving the centrifugal ready for another charge of massecuite. The A centrifuge used herein are batch centrifugals.
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The wet A sugar separated from A molasses is discharged into a vibrating conveyor which feeds a rubber conveyor which conveys the wet sugar for drying. The A molasses is collected and pumped into A molasses storage tank (liquor II tank) while A wash (the water used for washing the A sugar crystals) is stored in one of the two chambers in liquor III storage tank. 4.10.1 Batch centrifugal Batch centrifugals have perforated basket furnished with a backing screen which is a coarse woven stainless steel screen (8 mesh). This screen is covered by another stainless steel screen (5mesh) and this is so called sandwich screen is in turn covered by a perforated sheet of stainless screen designed to retain crystals. To avoid clogging of the screens by small crystals getting stuck in the slots, the slots are made diverging which means that the slots get wider from the insider to the outside. The mother liquor finds its way through the perforations of the screen, the mesh permits it to flow to the wall of the basket where it escapes through the basket perforations into the housing where it is collected and drained off. Massecuite is charged onto the basket from the top and builds up against the screen until a wall of massecuite of a certain thickness is formed. The centrifugal rotates rather slowly at this stage as it is very important that the massecuite is spread evenly over the surface of the screen to prevent imbalance. When the basket has been loaded with massecuite, the machine accelerates to high speed (1000rpm) and the molasses will be separated, water is sprayed on the inside of the sugar wall and it washes away the residue of molasses from the crystals. After spraying, spinning goes on for a short while to remove as much of the wash water as possible. Next, a break is put into action which slows down the basket, the discharge valve opens and the sugar is removed by means of a plough which is lowered into the basket. When the sugar has been removed, the discharge valve is closed again and the basket can take the next load.

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Molasses removal is more efficient when; i. ii. iii. iv. v. The time of spinning at a high speed is longer. The size of crystals is uniform. The crystals are bigger. The viscosity of molasses is low. The thickness of the massecuite walls is smaller.

4.11. Sugar Recovery/ Molasses Re-boiling The A molasses still contain sucrose and it need to be recovered to increase efficiency of the process and prevent loss of sugars in molasses. The process of sugar recovery starts with boiling A molasses in B vacuum pans in a process termed as B-boiling to form B massecuite. The footing material for B-boiling is A-molasses, Cmagma (which acts as seed crystals), C-light molasses from C affination (C double curing) and raw syrup. After preparation of the pan as earlier explained, the footing material is admitted into the pan in the required proportion and granulation done sufficiently, the strike is gradually filled upto 380HL by letting in controlled quantity of syrup. The massecuite is then brixed for exhaustion of sucrose in the mother liquor and the B massecuite strike discharged into B massecuite receivers. The B massecuite is then separated into B sugars and B molasses in B centrifugals. B centrifugals are continuous centrifugals unlike A centrifugals which are operated batchwise. The B sugars are added with hot water and mixed to form B-magma which is then pumped into the B-magma tank for usage as seed for A footing in A-boiling. On the other hand, B molasses is pumped into B molasses storage (liquor IV tank) which is later used as footing material for C boiling. The B molasses from the storage is then drawn and admitted into the C vacuum pan for C boiling. The footing material for C boiling is the B molasses and raw syrup. Upon calculation the amount of syrup and B molasses required to be mixed in order to end up with a given purity of
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the final C massecuite, the given proportions of both materials are admitted into the C vacuum pan for granulation which is further followed with boiling and gradually admitting syrup for the crystals to grow. Boiling is carried under vacuum to allow the boiling of the massecuite to occur at low temperatures. When the massecuite is properly brixed, steam supply to the calandria is stopped, vacuum to the pan is broken and the C massecuite discharged into C massecuite receiver. The massecuite is the taken to C centrifugals for C sugar separation. The C centrifugals operate continuously separating the C massecuite into C sugars and C molasses. C molasses forms the final molasses and is pumped into the final molasses tank ready for sale. The C sugar is added with hot water forming C magma, part of which is pumped to C magma receivers which is later used as seed in B boiling. The remaining C magma is taken for double curing in another centrifuge. In the process of double curing, the C magma is separated into C double cured sugar and C-light molasses. The C light molasses is pumped into the second chamber of liquor III tank and later used as part of the footing material for B boiling. The C doubled cured sugar is screw conveyed into C melt tank for re-melting using raw syrup forming C melt. Apart from re-melting doubled cured sugar, the C melt tank is used for re-melting of sugar from the sugar warehouse which is not properly dried and that which recovered from spills. The C melt is then pumped into the raw syrup tank (liquor I tank) for use in A boiling. The following is a summary of the target parameters for boiling house materials: MASSECUITE A B C BRIX 92-93 94-95 96-98 PURITY 86-88 74-76 58-62

MOLASSES A B C

BRIX 78-80 80-82 84-86

PURITY 72-74 54-56 35-37

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MAGMA B C C-Melt Syrup

BRIX 92-94 60-65 60-68

PURITY 88-92 85-86 85-86 86-88

Generally B and C centrifugals are continuous centrifugals while A centrifugals are batch centrifugals. 4.11.1 Continuous centrifugals These centrifugals have a cone shaped basket; belt driven from underneath by a motor; mounted upside down alongside the machine. The machine rotates at a fixed speed of 1,500 rpm. The continuous centrifuge is designed to separate sugar crystal from the mother liquor in low grade massecuite. The whole process is carried out within a single free standard unit. 4.11.1.1 Principles of operation Massecuite is fed at a carefully controlled rate into a central feed inlet cone on the top of the centrifuge. This feed cone facilities to add steam to reheat and improve the fluidity of the massecuite and to add water in order to lubricate the flow. The massecuite then flows into a perforated inverted cone which accelerates and distributes the flow, ready for uniform feeding into the base of the basket. Centrifugal forces cause the massecuite to flow up the conical basket and also separate the mother liquor from the crystals. The mother liquor passes through the filtering screens and perforations and is collected in the inner chamber of the casing and discharged via a pipe beneath. A spray bar allows the crystals to be washed with water as they move up the basket. The crystals are eventually expelled off the top rim of the basket and fall down the outer annulus of the casing into the discharge chute leading to a conveyor running beneath the centrifuge.

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i.

Water and Steam Systems

Lubrication water is sprayed onto the massecuite rope as it enters the centrifuge from a ring around the inside of the centrifuge feed cone. Wash water is applied onto the sugar crystals as they move up the basket, from the spraying bar inside the centrifuge Reheat steam is also added to the massecuite ii. Discharge Systems

Sugar is discharged from the outer annulus of the monitor casing. A sugar discharge chute attached around the bottom edge of the casing is required to direct the sugar onto a converter running side by side beneath the centrifuge on its anti-vibration mounts. The bottom of the discharge chute must not be rigidly attached to the conveyor. Molasses is discharged from the large bore tube at the back of the monitor casing. iii. Principles of Centrifugal Separation

The separation of the massecuite into its constituent solid crystals and mother liquor is performed in the conical basket assembly. It is basically a filtration process assisted by centrifugal force due to rotation. Massecuite is introduced evenly into the bottom of the basket from the accelerator cone. The angle of the basket causes the massecuite to flow up the basket and at the same time the liquor starts to purge through the finely slatted filtering screen. At this stage, the process is one of the liquor draining through the crystals. As the product moves up the basket, the layer thickness decreases to about a single crystal thickness. This is partly because the circumference of the basket is increasing and partly because the liquor is purging out. As most of the liquor purges away, the color of the product on the screen changes from dark brown to light brown or white. This is clearly visible and is called color-line. Above the color line, the product mainly comprises crystals with a thin layer of liquor adhering to the surface. At this stage the process is drying where the centrifugal force tries to pull these last remnants of liquor of the crystals.

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Low grade massecuite have small crystals and very viscous liquor and are therefore difficult to purge in batch type centrifuges. Product layer thickness and conical basket continuous centrifuge are particularly suitable for separating lower grade massecuite. One disadvantage is that the crystals tend to be damaged by the action of sliding along the screens and the impact with the casing after filing off the basket rim. However, the sugar from the lower grade massecuite is usually re-dissolved for recycling so crystal breakage is not then a process problem. The process objectives for a centrifuge are: i. Optimize the massecuite throughput time to suite the overall process. Usually this involves maximizing the rate that massecuite can be separated so as to require the minimum number of centrifuges ii. Minimize the amount of impurities in or adhering to the sugar crystals. This can be expressed as purging efficiently which is defined as the percentage of impurities in the massecuite that end up in the molasses outlet stream and should be as high as possible. iii. Minimize the loss of sugar through the filtering screens into the molasses. Sugar can pass through the filtering screen either as crystal fragments or as a solution in water. This can be expressed as molasses purity rise and should be as low as possible. A high colour line means that there is a lot of mother liquor (high throughput) and this is therefore not being purged from the sugar until close to the top of the basket (low purging efficiency). With high throughput, the layer of the crystals on the screen will be thicker and a small portion will be lost through the screens (low purity rise). The opposite applies for a low color line. Generally, the best overall performance will be obtained with the color line 25-50% up from the base of the basket. iv. Filtering screens

The crystals are continually sliding over the screens, so the configuration of the perforations is more important than in batch centrifuge. Continuous centrifuge screens are usually perforated with fine slots roughly aligned with the direction of motion of the crystals. The slots should be narrow to reduce the amount of crystals falling through (to avoid a high molasses purity rise) but
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have a larger open area (to increase purging efficiency). Unfortunately, the limitations of manufacturing process mean that it is only possible to have both these screens which are either very thin or hence shorter life or made by special process which increase the cost. For example a screen with slot width of 0.06mm and 10% open area is generally a reasonable compromise for B massecuite (crystal size 0.3-0.5mm) and C massecuite (crystallize 0.2-0.4mm). The abrasive action of the crystal eventually causes deterioration of the screens; the slot wears them to sag into the gasps between the baking mesh wires, which open out the slots to an overall shape. Both these effects allow more crystals to pass through. A progressive molasses purity rise increase of 1-2 % over a short time indicates a worn out screen to reduce the sagging effect, centrifuges incorporate additional finer intermediate mesh between the filtering screen and the coarse baking mesh. This provides a better support and thus extends filtering screen life. v. Water addition

Water can be added either as lubrication water to the massecuite as it enters the feed cone or sprayed directly as wash water onto the product layer as it moves up the screens. In both cases, the water dilutes the mother liquor and reduces its viscosity and surface tension thus improving purging efficiently and paradoxically increasing the final dryness. On the other hand too much water dissolves sugar which increases the molasses purity rise. Generally, adding about 3% by weight of water relative to massecuite is reasonable initial setting. Water addition is confined to adding lubrication water and spray washing below the color line as washing above the color line is wasteful, because the crystals are widely dispersed and the wash does not come into contact with the crystals. There is also a risk of wash liquor being carried over the basket lip. For low grade C massecuite with high viscosity mother liquor, water addition should generally be based more to lubrication rather than spray washing. For intermediate grade B massecuite, spray lubrication water addition. vi. Steam addition

The viscosity of the mother liquor in the massecuite roughly halves for every 10 degrees rise in temperature. A higher massecuite temperature therefore improves purging efficiency, by
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allowing the liquor to flow out more easily through the gaps between the crystals. Adding feed reheat steam to the massecuite as it passes through the centrifuge feed cone can therefore be effective since it tends to heat the mother liquor but do not cause significant dissolving of the crystals. Factors that affect crystal separation i. ii. iii. Viscosity of the massecuite Grain size: false grain formation Amount of wash water applied at the centrifugals (steam)

Figure 13: Continuous centrifuge.

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4.11.2 Molasses Molasses is a syrup, by-product from the processing of sugarcane into sugar. The thick viscous syrup used in jaggeries, production of ethanol and also one that provides the robust bittersweet flavor to baked beans and gingerbread has been available throughout the years since the companys inception 4.12. Sugar Drying, Packaging and Bagging Although the objective of crystallization is to produce a pre-determined number of crystals of a pre-defined size, the reality is that the crystals produced in vacuum pans have a crystal size range, some narrower than others, a crystal regularity, a quantity of fine and coarse crystals, agglomerates and conglomerates. Moreover because of the open molecular structure of the sugar crystal, moisture, or H2O molecules will be present in the crystal structure and can be divided into three types of which only two can be analytically measured: i. Surface water content; the water adhering to the surfaces of the sugar crystal and removed by evaporative drying. ii. Included water content; not able to be measured because it is not possible to extract it from the crystal structure iii. Total water content; by measuring this value, using the Karl Fischer method with a solvent, such as Formamide, as a solvent for the sugar, the inclusion sugar content can be determined by subtraction. In freshly dried sugar, the Total water content should be < 0.1% with the Surface water content being 0.03 0.05%, leaving 0.07 0.05% of Inclusion water content. The problem with the inclusion water content is that it is very difficult to extract, but will migrate slowly to the outer surface of the crystal over time in storage. The quantity of water involved in Inclusion water is a significant percentage of the Total water content of dried sugar and caking, lumping together of sugar crystals can occur readily in storage, depending on the temperature relative to ambient and relative humidity in the storage facility Plants which bag sugar direct from production will tend to have a subsequent problem with increased moisture. The post-bagging storage conditions become more important, because:
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i.

The sugar will often be warm compared to the storage facility temperature at the time of bagging,

ii.

The bags will generally be stacked (either 50kg or 1 tonne) and the heat will be retained inside the stack for longer, so the outside bag will cake first,

iii.

The migrated Inclusion water has no way of being removed from contact with the sugar crystals and will gather into larger volumes, localizing the caking effect.

The impact of moisture increase in bagged sugar also depends upon the type of packaging used

In order for effective drying and cooling of sugar to take place, the pre-conditions (upstream of the drying equipment) will need to be: i. Good crystallization of sugar liquor in the vacuum pans. This also means a minimum of conglomerated crystals, which will cause both colour and moisture retention problems. ii. Good centrifuging of the massecuite, including purging of the syrup and adequate washing to remove liquor from the surface of the crystal, but also sufficient spinning time to ensure that the surface water content is < 1.0%. iii. Throughput conditions that do not exceed, for any part of any hour of operations, the design conditions for the sugar dryer. iv. Wet sugar conveying systems to the sugar dryer that minimize the crystal breakage, but also encourage natural water evaporation. v. The wet sugar temperature at the sugar dryer inlet at an optimum temperature of 60 oC to permit evaporative drying to take place. The process of drying wet sugar as done through the following mechanism: 1. Evaporation of surface water. The easiest and most obvious drying takes place from all the surfaces of the sugar crystal. The surface moisture is driven off, with the correct drying conditions around the crystal, leaving the permeable surface open for included moisture to migrate through. These correct conditions include: i. An air supply around the crystal that is sub-saturated with water so that it can absorb water from the crystal surface. In counter-flow dryers, the air enters where there is the least free moisture on and around the crystals and the water content gradually increases as it moves

41

through the dryer. If the air becomes saturated before leaving the sugar flow, maximum water extraction will not occur. ii. An air temperature lower than the input temperature of the crystal from the centrifugals to encourage the water to lift off the crystal surface, from a higher to a lower temperature. Where the air temperature is higher than the input crystal temperature, there is a risk that the saturated layer of sugar liquor at the crystal surface will rapidly become super-saturated and seal the crystal surface, trapping internal water within the crystal iii. An air flow high enough to move the water away from the crystal surface, but not high enough to carry the crystal away. Fine crystals will be carried away with the air flow, both because they are light and because they will dry quickly, but this is a beneficial effect of removing the fines (dust) from the product sugar. iv. An agitation system in the dryer, either by lifting and dropping or by stirring, vigorous enough to expose all surfaces of the crystal to the airstream, but not enough to cause excessive crystal breakage v. A mean sugar crystal size suitable for the design of the sugar dryer. Most of the sugar drying equipment has been designed for a defined throughput rate and a specific crystal size, in the range 0.5 0.7 mm, with an average of 0.6 mm. vi. A retention time in the drying section, particularly, sufficient to allow enough time for the surface water to be driven off all the crystals. Most of the current equipment design is sufficient for this purpose.

2. Migration of inclusion water. This water is much more difficult to remove and requires two particular conditions i. A retention time in the drying unit to encourage it to move to the surface because it will move slowly and needs time to work its way to the surface. This retention time may be as much as 150% more than the retention time needed for the surface water, based on the relative percentages of water to be removed. None of the equipment currently designed takes this into account, mostly because of cost and space considerations. ii. An air temperature lower than the crystal temperature to prevent sealing of the crystal surface, which would also prevent migration.

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3. Evaporation of the migrated inclusion water. Once the included water has reached the surface of the crystal, the conditions for its removal are the same as for the surface water.

The dried sugar is then cooled to reduce the temperature of the dried sugar to a level at which it can be safely stored and bagged. This temperature should always be less than 30 oC and between 20 and 25 oC whenever ambient conditions allow.

At NSC, sugar drying is done using a rotary drum dryer/cooler consisting of 6 drums rotating as a unit. The drums are interconnected at the rear end of the drums. Wet sugar from A centrifugal is conveyed to the dryer by use of rubber conveyer. At the entrance to the dryer there is a radiator which heats air forming hot air which is later for drying the sugar using the mechanism explained above. Inside the drum there are baffles which directs the sugar forward co-current with the hot air from the radiator thus evaporating the moisture from the sugar thus drying it. At the end of the drum the sugar empties to another drum with baffles which direct the sugar backward counter-currently against cold air which cools the dried sugar. The dried and cooled sugar is then let out of the drier through a chute which drops the dried sugar on a vibrating screen which screens out larger particles and allows the correct sized crystals to drop into a rubber conveyer which conveys the dried sugar onto bucket elevators which lifts and empties the sugar onto the sugar storage bin ready for packaging. There is also another chute which drops light sugars which is carried by the air but screened out. At the other end of each drum there are screen which screens out larger particles which would have been carried by the air sucked by the fan. There is also a fan which sucks both the cold and hot air and the fine sugar particles and directs it to a cyclone. As the fine sugar powder rises up to the cyclone, cold water is sprayed on to it forming sweet water which is again used to dissolve sugar overflows from the sugar screen and the solution formed recycled to the syrup tank. The dried sugar from the sugar storage bin is then weighed and bagged in 250g, 500g, 1kg, 2kg, 5kg and 50kg bags. The bagged sugar is then stack in the sugar warehouse.

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CHAPTER FIVE

STEAM GENERATION AND DISTRIBUTION (BOILERS)

5.0. Introduction Steam generators (boilers) are closed vessels in which water under pressure is transformed into steam by the application of heat. Boilers are designed to absorb maximum amount of heat released in the process of combustion. The heat is transformed to the boiler water through radiation, conduction and convection. Steam boilers are broadly classified as fire tube and water tube types. If the combustion gases are confined inside the tubes, and the tubes are surrounded with water, the boiler is called fire tube boiler, while the opposite of this arrangement, i.e., water being inside the tubes and hot gases outside the tubes makes it a water tube boiler. The maximum working pressure in a fire tube boiler is limited to only about 17.58kg/cm2 (250psi) gauge. For central steam stations of large capacity the use of water tube boiler is now universal as higher pressures can be used with comparatively lesser increase in cost of the plant. However, fire tube boilers for smaller pressures are cheaper and capable of meeting large fluctuations in steam demands due to greater water storage in the drum. 5.1.Fire tube boilers A fire tube boiler is a water-filled vessel containing a number of tubes, which serve as channels for the flow of the combustion product gases. Heat is transferred from the hot gas through the tube walls to the pressurized water in the vessel. The classes of fire tube boilers include externally or internally fired; horizontal, vertical or inclined; and straight through or return tube types. In the external fired boilers, the furnace is placed away from the boiler shell, while in the internally fired it is built with the shell. The horizontal, vertical and inclined designs refer to the arrangement of the drum and fire tubes in it. In a direct through type of a fire tube boiler, flue gases flow from the furnace end to the chimney end without changing direction, while in the return tube type the gases flow back and forth before exiting.

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Some fire tube boilers has up to about 8200kg/hour of steam generation have been made into self-contained units having fans, feed pump, furnace, drum and automatic controls, all mounted on a sub-frame. Such boilers called packaged fire tube boilers have found great application in industries, such as for heating or process work. The fire tube boiler system is limited in size, steam pressure and degree of operating safety. In the event of a major tube failure, high-pressure water can be forced directly into the furnace area, rapidly creating large quantities of steam which have the potential for major boiler explosion. 5.2. Water tube boilers. The safety concerns and limitations of the fire tube boiler led to the development of the water tube boiler. In this design, the water flows through the inside of the tubes and the combustion gases flow on the outside. Heat is again transferred from the hot gas through the tube wall to the water, which is now on the inside of the tube. The advantages of water tube boilers may be summarized as: i. A large heating surface is available by use of large number of tubes which carry water so that the boilers have high evaporative capacity. ii. A rapid and uniform circulation of water in tubes results in better heat transfer to the mass of water, and better efficiency of the plant. iii. Since steam raising surfaces can be arranged in the boiler with a great deal of flexibility, the furnace can be independently designed on combustion considerations. iv. A large ratio of heat surface to water volume permits quick raising of steam. As size of drum is small, high pressures can be used easily. Since most of the volume of water is distributed in a large number of water tubes, the boiler is safer in operation. v. The space occupied by the boiler is much less than by the fire tube boiler. vi. There is a better overall control on the plant. vii. Scales from inside the tubes can be easily removed. Water tube boilers are available in a number of different designs. These may be straight or bent tubes; longitudinal or cross drum; horizontal, vertical or inclined tube; forced or natural circulation; single or multi-drum; sectional or box header; cross or parallel baffle; marine or

45

stationary. Modern large capacity steam generators employ pressures ranging between 60 to 170kg/cm2 (900 to 2400psi) absolute and temperatures from about 427 to 538C. The capacities are as high as about 1,700,000kg/hr. The most important aspect in the design of water tube boiler is the circulation of water within the tubes. Forced circulation is used in special designs of boilers using high steam pressures. Most of conventional water tube boilers depend upon natural circulation of water through the tubes. The essential elements of such a boiler relative to its circulation system consist of the drum, the down-comer or feeder, the lower header, the water walls, the upper header and the riser.

Figure 14: Natural circulation water tube boiler

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Figure 14 shows a schematic of an early-pulverized coal unit, which combined the radiant boiler and natural circulation concepts. Water flows downward from the mud drum to headers feeding the tubes lining the walls of the radiant furnace. The low-density steam-water mixture in these tubes rises to the steam drum at the upper right. The steam is separated and flows to the central drum, where it is removed (the central drum, being relatively quiescent, allows droplet carryover to settle out). Feed water enters the drum at the left and mixes with the saturated liquid in the left and central drum. The cooler liquid flows down to the mud drum. The hot gases leaving the radiant zone still contain a substantial amount of energy that must be utilized. Some of this energy is transferred by convection from the hot gases to the boiler tubes running from the mud drum to the two steam drums at the right. Additional energy is transferred by convection to the steam flowing inside the superheater tube banks. Further cooling takes place by convective heat transfer to the feed water in the "economizer" tube bundle running from the mud drum to the steam drum at the upper left. Water tube boilers are sometimes classified on the basis of tube design, into straight and bent tube boilers. In the straight tube design, straight parallel tubes are rolled into headers at each end, and placed below the drum which may have the same longitudinal direction as the tubes or be placed crosswise with respect to the tubes. The advantages of straight tube boilers are: lower manufacturing and erecting costs, ease of inspection and ease of cleaning. The rear header is provided at the bottom with another small header, called the mud drum, to collect solids in the boiler water. These solids are eliminated occasionally through the blow-off connection. Hot gases from the furnace traverse the tubes in a number of passes, being directed by baffle plates. The bent tube boiler is the one most commonly used due to its simplicity, as the headers are eliminated thereby reducing maintenance costs. The bent tubes enter directly into the drum, and it is possible to arrange them in such a way as would give good circulation of water. The improvements in water softening and purifying techniques have reduced extent of scaling and these boilers can now be conveniently used. The arrangement of drums is done by placing some drums high and one or two drums low, these latter serving as mud drums.

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At NSC, there are three forced circulation water tube boilers fired by bagasse used for generation of superheated steam for use in the plant. Bagasse is the solid fibrous material which leaves the delivery opening of the last mill after extraction of the juice. It is the residue from the milling of cane. Bagasse from the last mill is dropped into a bagasse elevator which lifts and drops it to a chain carrier referred as bagasse distributor which distributes bagasse into the three boilers 1, 2 and 3 for use as fuel. There are chutes (ducts) that receive bagasse from the bagasse carrier and drop it into the boilers via the bagasse feeders which regulate the rate of bagasse flow to allow a required amount to enter into the boilers. The chutes have sliding doors at the top which can be closed if bagasse is not required into the boiler. The chutes are also made narrow at the top and wider at the bottom to avoid choking. The bagasse feeders consist of the drum feeder and the rollers. The rollers pass bagasse to drum feeder which has spikes that tears it into combustible pieces and drop into the boilers. The excess bagasse which could not have been fed into the boilers is carried ahead and dropped to another conveyor belt which conveys it to the bagasse storage shed. The last conveyer is fitted with a movable deflector which helps in dropping bagasse at different points in the storage shed. Bagasse is stored in the shed to shield it from wetness which could cause it to ferment, decay and loose a large proportion of its value for use as fuel. Bagasse from the storage shed is reclaimed and used as fuel in boilers by use of a shovel tractor which feeds bagasse to a conveyor belt which conveys bagasse to bagasse distributors which feeds it into the boilers. Reclaiming bagasse from the storage shed is done when milling is stopped due to a break down, low steam pressure, low steam temperature or interlock of the system. Bagasse is also reclaimed when starting up boilers after maintenance before milling kicks off. The moisture content of bagasse should be between 40-50% for proper combustion of bagasse in the boiler furnaces. High moisture content and dissolved substances lead to poor combustion which in turn leads to generation of steam with poor properties.

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The boilers are made up of the following main components: Steam drum, mud drum, down comers and risers tubes, super heater, economizer, fittings for controlling steam pressure and temperatures, ID fan, FD fan, SA fan, safety valves, gauge glass, body work, air pre-heater, wall water headers, Chimney. Auxiliary components include Feed water tank, de-aerator tank and feed pumps. De-aerator tank A de-aerator is a device that is used for the removal of oxygen and other dissolved gases from the boiler feed water. Dissolved oxygen in boiler feed water causes serious corrosion damage in steam systems (tubes) by attacking the walls of the metal tubes and other metallic equipment and forming oxides (rust). Dissolved carbon dioxide combines with water forming carbonic acid that causes further corrosion.

Figure 15: De-aerator tank

Feed Water Tank Feed tank stores water which is pumped into the boiler.

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The Steam Drum This drum is installed on top of the boiler and it contains both water and steam. It is the entry point of feed water and steam from the boiler. The water level in this drum may be read directly from the gauge glass or other remote level indication instruments. The percentage quantity of water in this tank should range between 30 to 80 percent. The safe operating water level for the boilers is 50 percent. Running at extremely high water levels may lead to carry over, resulting in the water hammer effect and low steam temperature. The Mud Drum This drum is installed at the bottom part of the boiler, and is linked to the steam drum via a series tubes (down comers and risers). It supplies water to the wall headers and is always full of water. Down Comers They are pathways for the downward flow of relatively cool water. They are positioned outside the furnace and away from the heat of combustion. They act as a link between the steam drum and the mud drum. Risers They are a series of conduits that carry steam and hot water upward to the boiler steam drum The Super Heater It is a heat exchanger installed along the path of the flue gas. It is made up of a series of similarly shaped tubes, whose diameter is less than that of the down comers and risers. They receive saturated or slightly wet steam coming from the boiler steam drum and deliver it in a superheated state to the main steam header. The Economizer It is a heat exchanger placed along the exit path of the boiler flue gases. Water pumped from the boiler feed water tank first passes through the economizer to raise its temperature. The economizer comprises of tubes with fins through which the water circulates in series. It is made of cast iron to decrease the corrosive action of flue gases and ashes.
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Induced Draught (ID) Fan It is a fan placed out side of the flue circuit that produces the suction of the flue gases into the chimney. Forced Draught (FD) Fan It is a fan that feeds air under pressure below the grate in the distribution chamber. The required amount of air is passed through the furnace and over the fuel bed in order to maintain the temperature and rate of combustion. It suspends bagasse above the grate so as to boost combustion. Secondary Air (SA) Fan/Distribution Fan This is the fan that blows air into the furnace below the bagasse deflectors to distribute bagasse evenly in the furnace. It is aimed at ensuring good combustion and thus boosts the steam generation. Turbulence Fan It blows air into the furnace from the rear wall so as ensure that the bagasse blown by the distribution fan does not pile at the far end of the furnace but is instead centered in the furnace Safety Valves They have been mounted on the boiler steam drum and the super-heaters so as to ensure that the maximum boiler pressure does not exceed the safe value. A 28 and 29 bars safety valves are mounted on the steams drum whereas the 27 bar safety valve is mounted on the super heater. Safety valves are made of alloys of cast steel which can withstand high temperatures and pressure. The Chimney and the Wet Scrubbing System The Chimney is a vertical tunnel which metes out flue gases sucked by the ID fan together with fly ash into the atmosphere.

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Steam Separator (Moisture Separator) This is a device used for separating water droplets from superheated steam. The water droplets are removed because: i. In all engines, wet steam reduces the thermal efficiency ii. In piston engines, water can accumulate in the cylinders and cause a hydraulic lock which would damage the engine. iii. In thermal power stations, water droplets in high velocity steam coming from nozzles (or vanes) in a steam turbine can impinge on and erode turbine internals such as turbine blades. The dry steam from the steam separator is then directed into the steam header for feeding of the different points of the plant which require dry live steam.

Figure 16: Forced circulation water tube boiler.

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Advantages of forced circulation are: i. Smaller diameter and small wall thickness can be used for water tubes ii. The tubes which constitute a bulk of heating surface can be disposed in a manner so as to obtain maximum heat transfer. iii. Number of steam drums and their sizes are considerably reduced . iv. Due to compactness, less flow space is required v. Due to less weight, cost of foundation is reduced vi. Scale formation in tubes is reduced due to speed of water vii. Steam can be raised quickly after the boiler is fired viii. The uniform rate of circulation is easily controlled and the temperature rise is steady which eliminates metal strains due to unequal expansion.

5.3. Design Specifications FCB Boilers (Boiler 1 &2) a. Steam flow under normal circumstances - 27 tons/hour b. Design pressure - 29 bars c. Effective pressure at super heaters - 25 bars d. Superheated steam temperature - 330oc e. Feed water temperature - 100oc f. Bagasse calorific value - 1850 Kcal/kg

The design operating parameters i. Flue gas temperatures a. Furnace outlet, approx. 894oC b. Super heater bank outlet, approx. 843oC c. Super heater bank inlet, approx. 748oC d. Vaporizing bank outlet, approx. 355oC e. Economizer input, approx. 341oC f. Economizer outlet, approx. 250oc

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ii. Water and steam temperatures a. Water at economizer input, approx. 100oc b. Water at economizer output, approx. 156oc c. Steam at super heater input, approx. 231oc d. Steam at super heater output, approx. 339oc iii. Boiler Drum Capacities a. Steam drum capacity, 7268Litres b. Mud drum capacity, 3807Litres c. Total boiler capacity, 23901Litres d. Water capacity of boiler up to the level of steam drum=20267Litres

5.4. Design Specifications Alpha Boiler (Boiler 3) a. Design pressure 29 bar b. Operating pressure 22-25 bar c. Steam flow under normal circumstance - 54 tons/hour 5.5. Cleaning during operation So as to keep heat exchange surfaces reasonably clean, the boiler and the economizer should be soot blowed from time to time while operating. The economizer should be scrubbed if required. Soot blowing once every eight hours from the start up is recommended. Before operating the soot blowers, the piping must be heavily bled so as to avoid sending condensates into the flues circuit. The screen of the blow of cocks is drilled so as to let a little amount of steam pass trough and to eliminate the condensates during the operation. Soot blowers will have to be used in the order corresponding to the flues running direction. After soot blowing and closing of the steam sampling cocks open the blow off cocks. 5.6. Boiler Corrosion The most significant contributors to boiler corrosion are dissolved oxygen, acid or caustic in the water and a high temperature. If any of these are uncontrolled, severe pitting, gouging and
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embrittling of the tube metal can occur which will ultimately lead to failure. A good understanding of the mechanisms and control of these factors is extremely important. Water will rapidly corrode mild steel; as the temperature increases, the reaction accelerates. The following reaction is typical of iron corrosion in a boiler: 3 Fe + 4H20 Iron + Water/Steam Fe3O4 + 4H2 Magnetite + Hydrogen gas

The magnetite produced is black iron oxide. Under normal operating conditions, this is the typical product of corrosion. However, it is also this reaction that inhibits excessive corrosion in steaming boilers. In a new or clean boiler, the initial corrosion process produces this magnetite film as a tenacious layer at the steel surface. This magnetite layer prevents any further contact with the steel or water surface. Consequently, the corrosion reaction is self-inhibiting. This magnetite layer grows to an approximate thickness of 0.0004-0.001 inches, at which point any further corrosion process ceases. Periodic weakening or damaging of this protective shell does occur, and proper internal boiler water treatment can repair this layer. The normal corrosion in a clean boiler system progresses at approximately 1 mm per year. The appropriate pH level for maintenance of the magnetite layer is approximately 8.5-12.7, with most systems operating at a pH level of 10.5-11.5. 5.6.1. Other Causes of Corrosion a) Dissolved Oxygen. When dissolved oxygen enters the steaming boiler, corrosion manifests itself in the form of severe deep pits, almost exclusively at the water level in the steam drum. If oxygen attack has occurred, it is readily identifiable during inspection. b) pH Variation (Acidic or Caustic Attack). Previously, a pH of 10.5-11.5 was identified as ideal for boiler operation, excluding high purity systems that could function on other types of treatment programs. Variations from the levels that are considered optimum for maintenance of the magnetite layer can cause general corrosion.

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i)

Acidic Attack. If boiler water pH has dropped significantly below 8.5, a phenomenon called waterside thinning can occur. The normal manifestation of acidic attack is etching. In areas of higher flow, the surfaces are smooth. In addition, any stressed area would be a principal area for attack.

ii)

Caustic Attack. Caustic attack or as it is more commonly known, caustic corrosion, is often encountered in phosphate treated boilers in which deposits occur in high heat transfer areas. In particular, boiler water can permeate the porous deposit. When it is coupled with significant heat flux, concentration of the boiler water occurs. Caustic soda (NaOH) is the only normal boiler water constituent that has high solubility and does not crystallize under these circumstances. This caustic concentration can be as high as 10,000-100,000 ppm. Localized attack due to the extremely high pH (12.9 +) will occur, as will the formation of caustic-ferritic compounds through the dissolving of the protective magnetite film. Once the process begins, the iron in contact with the boiler water will attempt to restore the protective magnetite film. Caustic corrosion (typically in the form of gouging) continues until the deposit is removed or the caustic concentration is reduced to normal. Caustic attack typically appears in the form of irregular patterns and gouges. Frequently, the white salts associated with caustic attack remain in the tube samples. In addition, if caustic attack has proceeded for any extended period of time, significant levels of magnetic iron oxide can be found in any low flow area, such as a mud drum. This is essentially "stripping" of the magnetite film.

Proper corrosion control is a function of several factors. a. Proper boiler chemistry for operating pressures and conditions. b. Close scrutiny and control of boiler water chemistry. c. Frequent testing of boiler water chemistry. d. Thorough inspection of all waterside areas during shutdown.
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5.7. Boiler Embrittlement Embrittlement of boiler metal is normally referred to as caustic embrittlement or inter-crystalline cracking. Failure of a boiler due to caustic embrittlement is normally undetectable during operating conditions; it generally occurs suddenly with catastrophic results. Three major factors must be present to cause inter-crystalline cracking in boiler metal: a. Leakage of boiler water must occur so as to permit the escape of steam and subsequent concentration of boiler water. b. Attack of the boiler metal by concentrated caustic soda occurs from the concentrated boiler water. c. There is high metal stress in the area of caustic concentration and leakage. In the past, caustic embrittlement failures have normally been associated with riveted seams in boiler drums. Modern welding techniques have eliminated this particular factor in today's boilers. The actual phenomenon of caustic embrittlement is through high caustic concentrations traversing the grain boundaries within the crystalline structure of the metal. The caustic does not attack the crystals themselves but rather travels between the crystals. Boiler plants should have embrittlement tests run to determine the characteristics of the boiler water. If they have not been done, they should be recommended. If the testing has been accomplished and embrittling characteristics were not found. a statement should be made to this effect in any proposal for boiler water systems. If the boiler water has been found to be embrittling, then appropriate adjustments in internal treatment are required. 5.8. Boiler fittings and accessories
a. b.

Safety valve: It is used to relieve pressure and prevent possible explosion of a boiler. Water level indicators: They show the operator the level of fluid in the boiler, also known as a sight glass, water gauge or water column is provided.
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c.

Bottom blow down valves: They provide a means for removing solid particulates that condense and lie on the bottom of a boiler. As the name implies, this valve is usually located directly on the bottom of the boiler, and is occasionally opened to use the pressure in the boiler to push these particulates out.

d.

Continuous blow down valve: This allows a small quantity of water to escape continuously. Its purpose is to prevent the water in the boiler becoming saturated with dissolved salts. Saturation would lead to foaming and cause water droplets to be carried over with the steam - a condition known as priming. Blow down is also often used to monitor the chemistry of the boiler water.

e.

Flash Tank: High pressure blow down enters this vessel where the steam can 'flash' safely and be used in a low-pressure system or be vented to atmosphere while the ambient pressures blow down flows to drain.

f.

Automatic Blow down/Continuous Heat Recovery System: This system allows the boiler to blow down only when makeup water is flowing to the boiler, thereby transferring the maximum amount of heat possible from the blow down to the makeup water. No flash tank is generally needed as the blow down discharged is close to the temperature of the makeup water.

g.

Hand holes: They are steel plates installed in openings in "header" to allow for inspections & installation of tubes and inspection of internal surfaces.

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CHAPTER SIX

POWER GENERATION AND DISTRIBUTION (POWERHOUSE)

6.0. Introduction A powerhouse is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. At NSC, the powerhouse generates power and also receives from KPLC and distributes it to various sections in the company. 6.1. The Energy Conversion Processes Electrical energy generation using steam turbines involves three energy conversions: i. Extracting thermal energy from the fuel and using it to raise steam (Using boilers) ii. Converting the thermal energy of the steam into kinetic energy in the turbine and; iii. Convert the turbine's mechanical energy into electrical energy using a rotary generator 6.2. Working principle of the Steam Turbine (Prime Mover) High pressure steam is fed to the turbine and passes along the machine axis through multiple rows of alternately fixed and moving blades. From the steam inlet port of the turbine towards the exhaust point, the blades and the turbine cavity are progressively larger to allow for the expansion of the steam. The stationary blades act as nozzles in which the steam expands and emerges at an increased speed but lower pressure. (Bernoulli's conservation of energy principle - Kinetic energy increases as pressure energy falls). As the steam impacts on the moving blades it imparts some of its kinetic energy to the moving blades.

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There are two basic steam turbine types, impulse turbines and reaction turbines, whose blades are designed to control the speed, direction and pressure of the steam as is passes through the turbine. 6.2.1. Impulse Turbines The steam jets are directed at the turbine's bucket shaped rotor blades where the pressure exerted by the jets causes the rotor to rotate and the velocity of the steam to reduce as it imparts its kinetic energy to the blades. The blades in turn change the direction of flow of the steam however its pressure remains constant as it passes through the rotor blades since the cross section of the chamber between the blades is constant. Impulse turbines are therefore also known as constant pressure turbines. The next series of fixed blades reverses the direction of the steam before it passes to the second row of moving blades. 6.2.2. Reaction Turbines The rotor blades of the reaction turbine are shaped more like aerofoils, arranged such that the cross section of the chambers formed between the fixed blades diminishes from the inlet side towards the exhaust side of the blades. The chambers between the rotor blades essentially form nozzles so that as the steam progresses through the chambers its velocity increases while at the same time its pressure decreases, just as in the nozzles formed by the fixed blades. Thus the pressure decreases in both the fixed and moving blades. As the steam emerges in a jet from between the rotor blades, it creates a reactive force on the blades which in turn creates the turning moment on the turbine rotor.
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Figure 17: Types of turbines; impulse and reaction turbines. Back-Pressure Turbines, this category do not use condensers. Also called Atmospheric or NonCondensing Turbines, they do not waste the energy in the steam emerging from the turbine exhaust however, instead it is diverted for use in applications such as sugar boiling in the pans and evaporators. These industries may also use the available steam to power mechanical drives for pumps, fans and materials handling. The boiler and turbine must of course be oversized for the electrical load in order to compensate for the power diverted for other uses. To reduce axial forces on the turbine rotor bearings the steam may be fed into the turbine at the midpoint along the shaft so that it flows in opposite directions towards each end of the shaft thus balancing the axial load. The output steam is fed through a cooling tower through which cooling water is passed to condense the steam back to water.

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6.3. Power generation principle The generation of power starts by heat energy in the boilers that heats water to generate steam which possesses kinetic energy. The kinetic energy in steam is converted to mechanical energy by the turbine which in turn is converted to electrical energy by the alternator and then supplied to all places in the factory and the estates. Power from the alternator is transmitted to the main circuit breaker from which is passed through two sub-main circuit breakers then transformers, fuse, isolator to the main bus bar from which it is supplied to the various stations of the company

Turbo Alternator 11KV

Main circuit breaker (11KV, 1200A)

Sub-main circuit breaker-1 breaker-2 (11KV, 1200A) 1200A) Transformer-1

Sub-main circuit

(11KV,

Transformer-2

3000A fuse Isolator 1

3000Afuse Isolator 2

Main bus bar 415V

The system is a three phase but a single line is used above for demonstration. The Dresser Rand steam turbine used is a high speed multi-stage non condensing impulse steam turbine with throttling capability. It runs at a speed of 5400 rpm which is reduced by the gearbox to 1500 rpm which is the speed of the alternator. A speed governor maintains the set turbine
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speed. During operation the speed governor controls shaft speed by varying the opening of the governor valve proportional to the load variations on the turbine.

Pinion Mechanical pump High speed coupling

Low speed coupling Turbine Wheel Alternator

The alternator comprises of a stator with three windings, a rotor with four windings paired up as N-S poles. The driven end has a special exciter consisting of a magnet and windings on the rotor shaft. When the turbine starts running the windings in the exciter starts cutting across a magnetic field thus inducing an emf of 55v in the windings. This emf is taken to the diodes and rectified into DC and transmitted through the hollow rotor shaft to the rotor windings of the alternator. The rotor windings will be magnetized giving a strong magnetic field which will be cut by the stator windings as the rotor rotates hence inducing an emf in the stator windings (three windings), this emf is tapped as 11KV and taken to the main circuit breaker to the main bus bar as 415V. The 3 stator windings have one end tied together to make a star point.

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11KV Star point 11KV 11KV

The exhaust steam from the steam turbine is generated at a pressure of 0.8-1.5 bars and a temperature of about 133oc. To achieve these conditions of steam, the turbine should be properly loaded since at very low loads the exhaust steam pressure will be low as well as well as the temperature because the governor valve would have closed the steam delivery into the turbine. The exhaust steam is used for sugar boiling in the evaporators, heaters and vacuum pans. 6.4. Turbine major components and systems a. Speed governor It is purpose is to maintain the set turbine speed. During operation the speed governor controls shaft speed by varying the opening of the governor valve proportional to the load variations on the turbine. It is driven by a worm gear on the turbine shaft. Governors used include Woodward direct acting type as it is for DR/TA, full oil relay type or electronic governor. DR/TA uses UG40 hydraulic governor which normally isochronous i.e. it maintains a constant turbine speed for all load changes within the capacity of the turbine, except momentarily at the time the load change occurs. However speed droop automatically divide and balance load between units driving the same shaft or paralleled in an electrical system. Stalling work capacity of the UG40 governor is 40 foot pounds. It has the following controls: i. The synchronizer/speed setting-it is used to change the governor speed setting when running alone or to change the load when the turbine is paralleled with other units.

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ii. iii.

The speed indicator-indicates the number of revolutions of the synchronizer knob. Speed droop-varies the compression of the speeder (speed adjusting) spring as the terminal shift rotates during fuel correction. Increased fuel reduces spring compression, reduces the governor speed setting accordingly and the unit will gradually reduce its speed as load is applied. This relationship between load and speed acts as a resistance to load changes when the unit is interconnected with other units either mechanically or electrically. As droop is reduced towards zero the unit becomes able to change load without changing speed. As a rule units running alone should be set on zero droop, interconnected units should be run at the lowest droop setting that will give satisfactory load division.

iv.

Load limit-mechanically and hydraulically limits the load that can be put on the engine by restricting the angular terminal shaft rotation of the governor and consequently, the maximum quantity of fuel supplied to the turbine. The control may also be used for shutting down the turbine by turning it to zero.

v.

Synchronizing motor-is in a special cover and provides remote speed control. It is use enables in matching the frequency of the alternator with that of other units or a system before synchronizing and to change load distribution after synchronizing. b. Trip throttle valve

This valve performs two functions i. ii. Controls by throttling the steam admitted to the turbine when bringing it up to speed Act as a quick closing emergency valve

Systems with direct acting governor is used to shut down the turbine on a fault condition. The trip throttle valve is held in the latched (open) position by oil pressure. It is unlatched automatically by decreasing oil pressure. In this system a solenoid dump valve may be included to artificially create the low oil pressure condition. The trip throttle valve must be manually latched open to start the turbine after oil pressure is established.

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c. Governor valve After steam passes trough trip throttle valve it is admitted to the 1st stage nozzles trough governor valve. The valve is controlled by the mechanical speed governor trough direct mechanical linkage (direct acting). d. Over speed governor The over speed governor (emergency trip) acts to shutdown the turbine if speed reaches the set trip out speed. The parts are located in a cup on the steam end of the turbine shaft or directly in the shaft. At tripping speed, the centrifugal force of the weight overcomes the force of spring and strikes the trip finger and automatically closes the trip throttle valve and shut down the turbine. e. Low oil pressure trip device The purpose of this is to shut down the turbine when the bearing lubricating oil pressure drops to the value specified on the turbine data sheet or factory set value. It consists of spring loaded bellows, a bellows stem and spring loaded plunger rod. Oil under pressure is taken from the bearing lubricating system and piped to the bellows housing. Under normal conditions the oil pressure compresses the bellows and the plunger rod is held in its latched position by the bellows stem. If the oil pressure to the bellows decreases the force of the bellows spring expands the bellows stem, causing the spring loaded plunger rod to strike the trip finger and the turbine trips. In order to reset the low oil pressure trip the bearing oil pressure must be restored to the required value. f. Solenoid dump valve This allows the turbine to be shut down from a remote station. It is located in the oil pressure system, in line with the low oil pressure trip device or in line with the throttle valve trip cylinder. During turbine operation the valve is closed and normal oil pressure maintained throughout the pressure system. When the valve is actuated, it opens and dumps oil back to drain. This causes a low pressure condition in the trip system and the turbine is shut down.

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g. Main oil pump It is usually gear driven from either the turbine shaft, gear shaft or governor shaft. No adjustment or special maintenance required. h. Auxiliary oil pump It is usually controlled automatically by a pressure switch to cut in and out at a certain line pressure. i. Bearings The turbine rotor is carried on two main bearings which are designated as the steam end and exhaust end bearings from their location. The bearings are babbited, sleeve type with shoulders on the ends to maintain their axial position. A stop pin prevents them from rotating with the shaft. When bearing clearances become excessive new bearings must be installed. Clearance may be considered excessive when it become approximately 0.004 (10mm) over the normal maximum clearance. The bearings are longitudinally split to permit their removal and replacement with the shaft in place. Thrust bearing-a ball or shoe type thrust bearing, located on the steam end of the turbine shaft, prevents axial movement of the turbine rotor beyond designed limits. The bearing is properly positioned on the turbine shaft with shims at the factory and should require no adjustment. The shims are responsible for the proper nozzle ring to wheel clearance (0.035 or 90mm). The bearing operates in a continuous oil bath from the oil supplied to the steam end bearing case. j. Shaft packing Carbon or labyrinth rings are provided at each end of the turbine where the shaft passes through the turbine case. On multistage machines, a packing ring is installed in each diaphragm. On non condensing (back pressure) machines limits and controls the flow of steam along the shaft. On condensing machines, the packing controls the outward leakage of steam at the steam end where the pressure inside the turbine case is greater than atmospheric, and the entrance of air into the casing at the exhaust and where the pressure inside the turbine case is less than atmospheric.
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CHAPTER SEVEN

COMPRESSED AIR SUPPLY (AIR COMPRESSORS)

7.0. Introduction A gas compressor is a mechanical device that increases the pressure of a gas by reducing its volume. An air compressor is a specific type of gas compressor. Compressors are similar to pumps: both increase the pressure on a fluid and both can transport the fluid through a pipe. As gases are compressible, the compressor also reduces the volume of a gas. Liquids are relatively incompressible; while some can be compressed, the main action of a pump is to pressurize and transport liquids. Compressed air is air kept under a pressure that is greater than atmospheric pressure. 7.1 Types of Compressors 7.1.1. Centrifugal compressors Centrifugal compressors use a rotating disk or impeller in a shaped housing to force the gas to the rim of the impeller, increasing the velocity of the gas. A diffuser (divergent duct) section converts the velocity energy to pressure energy. They are primarily used for continuous, stationary service in industries such as oil refineries, chemical and petrochemical plants and natural gas processing plants. Their application can be from 100 horsepower (75 kW) to thousands of horsepower. With multiple staging, they can achieve high output pressures greater than 10,000 psi (69 MPa).

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Figure 18: Centrifugal compressor

7.1.2. Reciprocating compressors Reciprocating compressors use pistons driven by a crankshaft. They can be either stationary or portable, can be single or multi-staged, and can be driven by electric motors or internal combustion engines. Small reciprocating compressors from 5 to 30 horsepower (hp) are commonly seen in automotive applications and are typically for intermittent duty. Larger reciprocating compressors well over 1,000 hp (750 kW) are commonly found in large industrial and petroleum applications. Discharge pressures can range from low pressure to very high pressure (>18000 psi or 180 MPa). In certain applications, such as air compression, multi-stage double-acting compressors are said to be the most efficient compressors available and are typically larger and more costly than comparable rotary units. Another type of reciprocating
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compressor is the swash plate compressor which uses pistons moved by a swash plate mounted on a shaft. Household, home workshop, and smaller job site compressors are typically reciprocating compressors 1 hp or less with an attached receiver tank. Many large snowmaking operations (like ski resorts) use this type of compressor. They are also used in internal combustion engines as superchargers and turbochargers. Centrifugal compressors are used in small gas turbine engines or as the final compression stage of medium sized gas turbines.

Figure 19: Vertical single-acting reciprocating compressor

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7.1.3. Rotary vane compressors Rotary vane compressors consist of a rotor with a number of blades inserted in radial slots in the rotor. The rotor is mounted offset in a larger housing that is either circular or a more complex shape. As the rotor turns, blades slide in and out of the slots keeping contact with the outer wall of the housing. Thus, a series of decreasing volumes is created by the rotating blades. Rotary Vane compressors are, with piston compressors one of the oldest of compressor technologies. With suitable port connections, the devices may be either a compressor or a vacuum pump. They can be either stationary or portable, can be single or multi-staged, and can be driven by electric motors or internal combustion engines. Dry vane machines are used at relatively low pressures (e.g., 2 bar or 200 kPa; 29 psi) for bulk material movement while oil-injected machines have the necessary volumetric efficiency to achieve pressures up to about 13 bar (1,300 kPa; 190 psi) in a single stage. A rotary vane compressor is well suited to electric motor drive and is significantly quieter in operation than the equivalent piston compressor.

Figure 20: Rotary vane compressor

7.1.4. Rotary screw compressors Rotary screw compressors use two meshed rotating positive-displacement helical screws to force the gas into a smaller space. These are usually used for continuous operation in commercial and industrial applications and may be either stationary or portable. Their applications can be from 3

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horsepower (2.2 kW) to over 1,200 horsepower (890 kW) and from low pressure to moderately high pressure (>1,200 psi or 8.3 MPa). Rotary screw compressors are commercially produced in Oil Flooded, Water Flooded and Dry type.

Figure 21: Rotary screw compressor

Figure 22: Rotary screw compressor rotor

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At NSC, three rotary screw compressors are used for the production of compressed air for use in the plant. Screw compressors are preferred therein due to their ability to produce high volume of air at high pressures. Air from the atmosphere is sucked by a rotary screw pump which is also the compressing element driven by a motors. The sucked air is passed through filters to remove dirty particles before it is compressed by the screw pump. As the air is compressed, it gets mixed with oil which is used for lubrication in the pump; therefore it is taken to the oil separator where the oil drops into the sump as the air negotiates a sharp corner upwards into the radiator for cooling. After cooling compressed air is channeled into the dryer to remove moisture, after which it goes into the receiver tanks at around 7 bars from which it is distributed to various parts of the factory for instrumentation and general purposes. The compressor is set to compress air up to a maximum of 7.1 bars where the unloader valve closes the inlet of air as the pump continuous to run until the pressure drops to 6.6 bars and it opens allowing air to enter. Compressed air is used for the following tasks among others: i. Control of instruments in the plant such as water level in the boilers and operation of pneumatic valves. ii. Controlling (opening and closing) the sugar scale in the warehouse during bagging of sugar. iii. iv. Operation of high grade centrifugals. General use such as cleaning.

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CHAPTER EIGHT

LABORATORY OPERATIONS (Quality Control)

8.0. Introduction The laboratory is established at NSC for quality analysis and hence control of various parameters in the process of sugar production and water quality parameters used as boiler feed water, drinking water and for general factory use. The various analyses carried out in the laboratory include: i. Juice analyses ii. Dosing of biocide into juice before screening iii. Massecuite {mixture of sugar crystals and mother liquor (molasses)} analyses iv. Dry sugar analyses v. Boiler water analyses. vi. Bagasse analyses

8.1.Juice analyses In the juice analyses, various samples are analyzed. These include first express juice (juice from mill one), last express juice (juice from the last mill), mixed juice (screened juice), pre-limed and limed juice, clear juice (clarified juice from clarifiers), raw syrup (concentrated juice from the last body of the multi-effect evaporator) and monitoring mixed juice and imbibitions water flow rates. With the first, last and mixed juice, the analyses carried out include testing the PH using a PH meter, determination of the brix (percentage dissolved solids in juice) using a refractometer and determination of pol (apparent sucrose content in juice) using a polarimeter and finally calculation of the purity of the juices using a conversion table while using the brix and pol data. The pH of first, last and mixed juice are tested to determine the extent of pre-liming and liming in the juice treatment section while the purity of the juices are calculated to determine the maturity of sugarcane being crushed and their effects in the efficiency of the sugar production.
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For pre-limed and limed juice, only PH tests are carried out. These tests are done to establish whether optimum conditions of pre-liming and liming are performed. PH, brix and pol tests are carried out for the clear juice and raw syrup. The tests are carried to establish whether optimum conditions of PH and purity of clear and raw syrup are maintained on the clear juice entering the evaporators and boiling house respectively. There is also the hourly monitoring of the mixed juice and imbibitions water in a flow meter. This is done to determine the amount juice milled and imbibitions water added per hour and hence help in the calculation of the tonnage of juice milled per hour by getting the difference of the two values. 8.2. Chemical Dozing Biocide (chemical composed of peroxide and a hypochlorite with oxidizing properties) is also dozed into the juice before screening to inhibit bacterial activity which results into sugar inversion. 8.3.Bagasse analysis The bagasse analysis involves its determination of pol and its moisture content. The pol of bagasse is monitored and controlled to prevent loss of sucrose through bagasse. On the other hand, moisture content is monitored since very wet bagasse has poor combustion properties at the boiler thus leading to production of low quality steam. 8.4.Massecuite analyses In the massecuite analyses, A, B and C massecuite are analyzed. The tests done are determination of brix and pol to help in the establishment of their purities. The purity of these massecuite are very important in the calculation of the volumes of footing material using combenze formula in order to obtain a certain purity in the final massecuite in B and C boiling. 8.5. Dry Sugar Analysis Dried sugar is also analyzed to determine its moisture content, colour and water insoluble matter (suspended solids). The moisture content of dried brown sugar should be 0.1% to improve on its

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keeping. On the other hand, water insoluble matter (suspended solids) should be at its minimal while the dried sugar colour should be within the recommended KEBS standards. 8.6.Boiler Water Analysis The last analyses done in the laboratory are boiler water analyses. The tests performed for boiler water include the determination of PH, total hardness, dissolved oxygen (O-value), total dissolved solids and sugar trace. The PH of condensate water used as boiler water should be 7(neutral), make-up feed water should be 8.5-9.5 while that of the boilers (in boiler 1, 2 & 3) should be 10.5-11.5. These values are monitored and control at that level since acidity caused by low PH values causes corrosion of boiler tubes. Total hardness, total dissolved solids and sugar trace all cause scaling of boiler tubes and hence are monitored and should not be present in boiler water. Dissolved oxygen should be minimal if not nil. This is because dissolved oxygen in boiler feed water causes serious corrosion damage in steam systems (tubes) by attacking the walls of the metal tubes and other metallic equipment and forming oxides (rust).

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CHAPTER NINE

WATER TREATMENT
9.0 Introduction Nzoia Sugar Company (NSC) obtains its water for industrial use from River Kuywa. This natural water contains some particulates suspended in the water forming colloids that make it unsuitable for its intended applications. Water treatment is a process of making water suitable for its application or returning its natural state. The required treatment depends on the application. Water from the river is pumped into the water treatment plant where water undergoes various treatment processes to make it suitable for industrial use. 9.1 Raw Water Tank This tank acts as storage tank for water from the river awaiting treatment. It also serves as a sedimentation tank since some of the suspended solids settle while the water awaits treatment. 9.2 Chemical treatment This refers to the dosing of chemicals to the raw water. The raw water is dozed with aluminium sulphate and calcium hydroxide to aid in coagulation and flocculation. 9.2.1 Coagulation It is a process where a coagulant is added to water to help form tiny sticky particles (floc) which attract the dirt particles. The combined weight of the dirt and the coagulant (floc) become heavy enough to sink to the bottom during sedimentation. Aluminium sulphate acts as the coagulant in the coagulation process. Coagulation therefore leads to formation of insoluble gelatinous precipitate which grows until a visible particle forms.

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9.2.2 Flocculation It is the reversible formation of aggregates in which the particles are not in physical contact. Flocculants are normally high-molecular-weight material which trap the particulates and settle down together. It is also the growth of large floc. This occurs and allows sedimentation of particles. The calcium hydroxide and aluminium sulphate dozed react according to the following equation forming aluminium hydroxide and calcium sulphate. Al2 (SO4)3 + 3Ca (OH) 2 2Al (OH) 3 + 3CaSO4

Aluminium hydroxide which is the flocculant traps the fine particles and the whole mass settles to the bottom of the vessel carrying with it suspended matter such as microorganisms. During the growth of these particles, they absorb negatively charged color particles. In addition, the gelatinous floc tends to envelope particles as it grows and settles down. Aluminium sulphate is used instead of iron (II) sulphate because its cheaper. Iron salts also impart color to the water, are corrosive and can catalyze undesirable biochemical reactions. 9.3 Sedimentation It is the tendency for particles in suspension to settle out of the fluid in which they are entrained and come to rest against a barrier. At NSC, this process is carried out in a decanter which is basically a sedimentation tank with a residence time of 3hours. The settled particles (sludge) are withdrawn constantly and disposed off while the clarified water is taken for filtration. The sedimentation is wide to ensure proper aeration for removal of odour. 9.4 Filtration This is the process of removing solids from a fluid by passing it through a porous medium. Coarse, medium and fine porous media is used depending on the requirement. At NSC, filtration is carried in sand filters which further purify the clarified water. At this stage the filtered water is ready for use in factory for cooling lubricating oil for turbine bearings and bearings of the mill rollers as well as those of the feed water pumps. Water intended for use as drinking water is further taken for chlorination.
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9.5 Chlorination Water chlorination is a process of adding the element chlorine for disinfection to purify it for human consumption. Chlorine is an effective disinfectant since it kills disease causing microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses and protozoans that commonly grow in water supply reservoirs and on the walls of water storage tanks. The disinfected water is then supply for drinking in the factory, the surrounding community and the company estate. 9.6 Water softening Water softening is the removal of calcium, magnesium and other metal cations that cause water hardness. Filtered water intended for use as make-up water in boiler feed water is further softened for removal of water hardness. Temporary water hardness is caused by bicarbonates of calcium and magnesium while permanent water hardness is caused by sulphates and nitrates of calcium and magnesium. The calcium and magnesium ion that causes hardness also scales boiler tubes thus reducing their heat transfer coefficient. At NSC water softening is done using an ion exchange device to reduce the hardness by replacing the calcium and magnesium ions with sodium ions. Ion exchange resins are organic polymers containing anionic functional group to which the di-cations (Ca++ and Mg++) bind more strongly that the monocations (Na+). Inorganic material such zeolite also exhibit ion exchange properties. The anionic resin used is regenerated upon exhaustion by use of brine (a concentrated solution of sodium chloride

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CHAPTER TEN

WASTE WATER /EFFLUENT TREATMENT

10.0 Introduction Waste water is any water that has been adversely affected in quality by anthropogenic (human activities) influence. At NSC, waste water is treated by use of aerobic lagoon systems and cooling tower. 10.1 Aerobic Lagoon System Lagoons are pond-like bodies of water or basins designed to receive, hold and treat wastewater for a predetermined period of time. If necessary, they are lined with material such as clay or an artificial liner to prevent leaks to the groundwater below. In the lagoon, wastewater is treated through a combination of physical, biological and chemical processes. Much of the treatment occurs naturally but some aeration devices are used to add oxygen to the wastewater. Aeration makes treatment more efficient so that less land area is necessary. Aerators can be used to allow existing systems to treat more wastewater. In naturally Aerobic Lagoons, dissolved oxygen is present throughout much of the depth of aerobic lagoons. They are much shallower than other lagoons so that sunlight and oxygen from air and wind can better penetrate the wastewater. These types of lagoon are better suited for warm, sunny climates, where they are less likely to freeze. Wastewater usually must remain in aerobic lagoons from 3 to 50 days to receive adequate treatment. Wastewater treatment takes place naturally in many aerobic lagoons with the aid of aerobic bacteria and algae. Because they are so shallow, their bottoms are paved or lined with materials to prevent weeds from growing in them. The wastewater in aerobic lagoons is mixed to allow sunlight to reach all of the algae and to keep it from forming a layer that blocks out the air and sun.

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Factors affecting lagoon wastewater treatment i. Wind The amount of wind the lagoon receives is not only important for the oxygen it contributes, but also because it affects the overall hydraulic flow pattern of the wastewater inside the lagoon, which is another physical factor that contributes to treatment. ii. Time Time is another important factor in treatment. Facultative lagoons are designed to hold the wastewater long enough for much of the solids in the wastewater to settle and for many diseasecausing bacteria, parasites, and viruses to either die off or settle out. Time also allows treatment to reduce the overall organic strength of the wastewater, or its biochemical oxygen demand (BOD). In addition, some of the wastewater eventually evaporates. iii. Sunlight Sunlight is also extremely important to facultative lagoons because it contributes to the growth of green algae on the water surface. Because algae are plants, they require sunlight for photosynthesis. Oxygen is a byproduct of photosynthesis, and the presence of green algae contributes significantly to the amount of oxygen in the aerobic zone. The more warmth and light the sun provides, the more green algae and oxygen there is likely to be in the lagoon. The oxygen in the aerobic zone makes conditions favorable for aerobic bacteria. Both aerobic and anaerobic bacteria are very important to the wastewater treatment process and to each other. a. Oil trap Waste water from the factory is passed through an oil trap for the removal of oil. The trapped oil is then scooped and burned. b. Reserve ponds (Lagoons) There are two ponds used as hold up ponds for water whose oil has been removed. The function of these ponds is to allow natural aeration for odour removal and sedimentation of suspended particles.
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c. Weir A weir is a barrier across a water way designed to alter water flow characteristics. It is used to determine volumetric flow rate. The weir is used herein to determine the volume of water being discharged back to the river thus helping in calculating water consumption per day from the river and the effect it has on aquatic life. d. Sedimentation pond This ponds main aim is to ensure a great percentage of suspended solids from the waste water settle. It also helps in aeration of the waste water. e. Primary ponds There are two ponds used as primary ponds. In these ponds there are provisions for mechanical aeration of the water to speed up oxygen supply and odour removal. f. Secondary ponds These ponds are provided for natural aeration. They are larger and much shallow than primary pond to increase their efficiency. g. Final pond In the final pond, there is addition of bacteria (micro-starter) which treat wastewater by converting it into other substances. Aerobic bacteria convert organic wastes into carbon dioxide, ammonia and phosphates which in turn are used by the algae as food. Many of these by-products are then used as food by both the aerobic bacteria and algae in the layers above. Water from the final pond is deemed harmless and is then discharged back to the river.

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10.2 Cooling towers Cooling towers on the other hand are heat removal devices used to transfer process waste heat to the atmosphere. The small FCB cooling tower is used to cool water which is used in cooling lubricating oil for turbine bearings and bearings of the mill rollers as well as those of the feed water pumps. As it cools all these equipments, the cooling water gains heat hence the need to cool it for reuse. Therefore it is channeled to hot water pond from which it is pumped to the top of the cooling tower through a branched and perforated pipe from which water comes out in jets falling on a flat plate at the bottom of the cooling tower thus spreading it sideways falling into the cold water pond. At the top of the tower there is a motor fan which is used to cool water in addition to natural cooling of water as it falls into the pond Cooling fan

Pipes with many perforations

H2O from hot

H2O pond

H2o to Pump Cold water pond Hot water pond

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Arkel cooling towers are used for cooling raw water used for creation of vacuum in condensers used in vacuum pan boiling. When is in use, it receives water from the hot water pond at the top, cooled by a fan as well as natural air as it is sprinkled downwards and allowed to flow into the cold water pond for distribution.

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CHAPTER ELEVEN

INSTRUMENTATION AND CONTROL WORKSHOP

11.0 Introduction Instruments are provided to monitor the key process variables during plant operation. They may be incorporated in automatic control loops or used for the manual monitoring of the process operation. They may also be part of an automatic computer data logging system. Instruments monitoring critical process variables will be fitted with automatic alarms to alert the operators to critical and hazardous situations. The primary objectives of the designer when specifying instrumentation and control schemes are: 1. Safe plant operation: a) To keep the process variables within known safe operating limits. b) To detect dangerous situations as they develop and to provide alarms and automatic shut-down systems. c) To provide interlocks and alarms to prevent dangerous operating procedures. 2. Production rate: To achieve the design product output. 3. Product quality: To maintain the product composition within the specified quality standards. 4. Cost: To operate at the lowest production cost, commensurate with the other objectives.

There are various control loops needed for steady plant operation. These include level controls, flow controls, pressure controls and temperature controls

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11.1 Level control In any equipment where an interface exists between two phases (e.g. liquid-vapour), some means of maintaining the interface at the required level must be provided. This may be incorporated in the design of the equipment as is usually done for decanters or by automatic control of the flow from the equipment. At Nzoia Sugar Company, level controls are incorporated in boiler steam drum and condensate drain tanks.

11.2 Pressure control Pressure controls are necessary for most systems handling vapour or gas. The method of control will depend on the nature of the process. Venting systems are incorporated to vent out excess pressure which would otherwise damage the pressure vessels. Such controls are incorporated in boiler steam drum and calandria bodies of heat exchangers, evaporators and vacuum pans.

11.3 Flow control Flow control is usually associated with inventory control in a storage tank or other equipment. There must be a reservoir to take up the changes in flow-rate. To provide flow control on a

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compressor or pump running at a fixed speed and supplying a near constant volume output a bypass control would be used.

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11.4 Temperature control

11.5 Alarms and Safety Trips Alarms are used to alert operators of serious, and potentially hazardous, deviations in process conditions. Key instruments are fitted with switches and relays to operate audible and visual alarms on the control panels and annunciator panels. Where delay or lack of response by the operator is likely to lead to the rapid development of a hazardous situation, the instrument would be fitted with a trip system to take action automatically to avert the hazard; such as shutting down pumps, closing valves, operating emergency systems. 11.6 Interlocks Where it is necessary to follow a fixed sequence of operations for example, during a plant startup and shut-down, or in batch operations interlocks are included to prevent operators departing from the required sequence. They may be incorporated in the control system design, as pneumatic or electric relays, or may be mechanical interlocks. Various proprietary special lock and key systems are available.

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CHAPTER TWELVE

MECHANICAL WORKSHOP
12.0 Introduction The mechanical workshop is a very important part of the company where various activities are carried out. These include design and fabrication of new machine part, repair of worn out parts and machining of components. The workshop is divided into six sections namely: fitting, fabrication, machining, welding, lubrication and rigging sections. The machining section carries out turning of components using turning machine (lathe), milling of components using milling machine, cutting of key ways and slots using a sharper, grinding components using a grinder and drilling of holes and boring using drilling machines. The welding and fabrication section is used for building of metal structure by cutting, bending and assembly process. Assembly is achieved by welding, binding with adhesives and riveting. Lubrication section is entitled to application of lubricants to reduce friction between moving surfaces while rigging section is used for hoisting heavy machine parts. Fitting section is used for general fitting of pumps and gear systems. 12.1 Pumps A pump is a mechanical device that converts mechanical energy into fluid energy. The pump gives the fluid energy enabling it to move from one part to another. Pumps can be classified into three major groups according to the method they use to move the fluid: direct lift, displacement, and gravity pumps. Pumps operate by some mechanism (typically reciprocating or rotary), and consume energy to perform mechanical work by moving the fluid. Pumps operate via many energy sources, including manual operation, electricity, engines or wind power, come in many sizes; from microscopic for use in medical applications to large industrial pumps.

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Mechanical pumps serve in a wide range of applications such as pumping water from wells, aquarium filtering, pond filtering and aeration, in the car industry for water-cooling and fuel injection, in the energy industry for pumping oil and natural gas or for operating cooling towers. In the medical industry, pumps are used for biochemical processes in developing and manufacturing medicine and as artificial replacements for body parts, in particular the artificial heart and penile prosthesis. 12.2. Types of Pumps 12.2.1. Positive displacement Pumps A positive displacement pump makes a fluid move by trapping a fixed amount and forcing (displacing) that trapped volume into the discharge pipe. Some positive displacement pumps use an expanding cavity on the suction side and a decreasing cavity on the discharge side. Liquid flows into the pump as the cavity on the suction side expands and the liquid flows out of the discharge as the cavity collapses. The volume is constant through each cycle of operation. Positive displacement pumps, unlike centrifugal or roto-dynamic pumps, theoretically can produce the same flow at a given speed (RPM) no matter what the discharge pressure. Thus, positive displacement pumps are constant flow machines. However, a slight increase in internal leakage as the pressure increases prevents a truly constant flow rate. A positive displacement pump must not operate against a closed valve on the discharge side of the pump, because it has no shutoff head like centrifugal pumps. A positive displacement pump operating against a closed discharge valve continues to produce flow and the pressure in the discharge line increases until the line bursts, the pump is severely damaged or both. A relief or safety valve on the discharge side of the positive displacement pump is therefore necessary. The relief valve can be internal or external. The pump manufacturer normally has the option to supply internal relief or safety valves. The internal valve is usually only used as a safety precaution. An external relief valve in the discharge line with a return line back to the suction line or supply tank provides increased safety.

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Positive displacement pumps can be further classified according to the mechanism used to move the fluid: i. Rotary-type positive displacement: internal gear, screw, shuttle block, flexible vane or sliding vane, circumferential piston, flexible impeller, helical twisted roots (e.g. the Wendelkolben pump) or liquid ring vacuum pumps Positive displacement rotary pumps move fluid using a rotating mechanism that creates a vacuum that captures and draws in the liquid

Advantages: Rotary pumps are very efficient because they naturally remove air from the lines, eliminating the need to bleed the air from the lines manually.

Drawbacks: The nature of the pump demands very close clearances between the rotating pump and the outer edge, making it rotate at a slow steady speed. If rotary pumps are operated at high speeds, the fluids causes erosion, which eventually causes enlarged clearances that liquid can pass through, which reduces efficiency.

Rotary positive displacement pumps fall into three main types: Gear pumps - a simple type of rotary pump where the liquid is pushed between two gears Screw pumps - the shape of the internals of this pump usually two screws turning against each other pump the liquid Rotary vane pumps - similar to scroll compressors these have a cylindrical rotor encased in a similarly shaped housing. As the rotor orbits, the vanes trap fluid between the rotor and the casing, drawing the fluid through the pump.

ii. Reciprocating-type positive displacement: piston or diaphragm pumps Reciprocating pumps move the fluid using one or more oscillating pistons, plungers, or membranes (diaphragms), while valves restrict fluid motion to the desired direction.

Pumps in this category range from simplex, with one cylinder, to in some cases quad (four) cylinders or more. Many reciprocating-type pumps are duplex (two) or triplex (three) cylinder. They can be either single-acting with suction during one direction of piston
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motion and discharge on the other or double-acting with suction and discharge in both directions. The pumps can be powered manually, by air or steam, or by a belt driven by an engine. This type of pump was used extensively in the 19th centuryin the early days of steam propulsionas boiler feed water pumps. Now reciprocating pumps typically pump highly viscous fluids like concrete and heavy oils and serve in special applications that demand low flow rates against high resistance. Reciprocating hand pumps were widely used to pump water from wells. Common bicycle pumps and foot pumps for inflation use reciprocating action.

These positive displacement pumps have an expanding cavity on the suction side and a decreasing cavity on the discharge side. Liquid flows into the pumps as the cavity on the suction side expands and the liquid flows out of the discharge as the cavity collapses. The volume is constant given each cycle of operation.

Typical reciprocating pumps are: Plunger pumps - a reciprocating plunger pushes the fluid through one or two open valves, closed by suction on the way back. Diaphragm pumps - similar to plunger pumps, where the plunger pressurizes hydraulic oil which is used to flex a diaphragm in the pumping cylinder. Diaphragm valves are used to pump hazardous and toxic fluids. Piston pumps displacement pumps - usually simple devices for pumping small amounts of liquid or gel manually. The common hand soap dispenser is such a pump. Radial piston pumps iii. Linear-type positive displacement: rope pumps and chain pumps

The various types of positive displacement pumps can be summed as below. 12.2.1.1. Gear pump This is the simplest of rotary positive displacement pumps. It consists of two meshed gears that rotate in a closely fitted casing. The tooth spaces trap fluid and force it around the outer periphery. The fluid does not travel back on the meshed part, because the teeth mesh closely in
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the centre. Gear pumps see wide use in car engine oil pumps and in various hydraulic power packs. 12.2.1.2. Screw pump A Screw pump is a more complicated type of rotary pump that uses two or three screws with opposing threade.g., one screw turns clockwise and the other counterclockwise. The screws are mounted on parallel shafts that have gears that mesh so the shafts turn together and everything stays in place. The screws turn on the shafts and drive fluid through the pump. As with other forms of rotary pumps, the clearance between moving parts and the pump's casing is minimal. 12.2.1.3. Plunger pumps These consist of a cylinder with a reciprocating plunger. The suction and discharge valves are mounted in the head of the cylinder. In the suction stroke the plunger retracts and the suction valves open causing suction of fluid into the cylinder. In the forward stroke the plunger pushes the liquid out of the discharge valve. Efficiency and common problems: With only one cylinder in plunger pumps, the fluid flow varies between maximum flow when the plunger moves through the middle positions and zero flow when the plunger is at the end positions. A lot of energy is wasted when the fluid is accelerated in the piping system. Vibration and water hammer may be a serious problem. In general the problems are compensated for by using two or more cylinders not working in phase with each other. 12.2.2 Impulse Pumps Impulse pumps use pressure created by gas (usually air). In some impulse pumps the gas trapped in the liquid (usually water), is released and accumulated somewhere in the pump, creating a pressure that can push part of the liquid upwards. Impulse pumps include: a. Hydraulic ram pumps - uses pressure built up internally from released gas in liquid flow. b. Pulser pumps - run with natural resources, by kinetic energy only.

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c. Airlift pumps - run on air inserted into pipe, pushing up the water, when bubbles move upward, or on pressure inside pipe pushing water up. 12.2.3. Velocity pumps Roto-dynamic pumps (or dynamic pumps) are a type of velocity pump in which kinetic energy is added to the fluid by increasing the flow velocity. This increase in energy is converted to a gain in potential energy (pressure) when the velocity is reduced prior to or as the flow exits the pump into the discharge pipe. This conversion of kinetic energy to pressure is explained by the First law of thermodynamics, or more specifically by Bernoulli's principle. A practical difference between dynamic and positive displacement pumps is how they operate under closed valve conditions. Positive displacement pumps physically displace fluid, so closing a valve downstream of a positive displacement pump produces a continual pressure build up that can cause mechanical failure of pipeline or pump. Dynamic pumps differ in that they can be safely operated under closed valve conditions (for short periods of time). Velocity pumps include: 12.2.3.1. Centrifugal pump A centrifugal pump is a roto-dynamic pump that uses a rotating impeller to increase the pressure and flow rate of a fluid. Centrifugal pumps are the most common type of pump used to move liquids through a piping system. The fluid enters the pump impeller along or near to the rotating axis and is accelerated by the impeller flowing radially outward or axially into a diffuser or volute chamber, from where it exits into the downstream piping system. Centrifugal pumps are typically used for large discharge through smaller heads. Centrifugal pumps are most often associated with the radial-flow type. However, the term "centrifugal pump" can be used to describe all impeller type roto-dynamic pumps including the radial, axial and mixed-flow variations.

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12.2.3.2. Radial-flow pumps Often simply referred to as centrifugal pumps. The fluid enters along the axial plane, is accelerated by the impeller and exits at right angles to the shaft (radially). Radial-flow pumps operate at higher pressures and lower flow rates than axial and mixed-flow pumps. 12.2.3.3. Axial-flow pumps Axial-flow pumps differ from radial-flow in that the fluid enters and exits along the same direction parallel to the rotating shaft. The fluid is not accelerated but instead "lifted" by the action of the impeller. They may be likened to a propeller spinning in a length of tube. Axialflow pumps operate at much lower pressures and higher flow rates than radial-flow pumps. 12.2.3.4. Mixed-flow pumps Mixed-flow pumps function as a compromise between radial and axial-flow pumps. The fluid experiences both radial acceleration and lift and exits the impeller somewhere between 0 and 90 degrees from the axial direction. As a consequence mixed-flow pumps operate at higher pressures than axial-flow pumps while delivering higher discharges than radial-flow pumps. The exit angle of the flow dictates the pressure head-discharge characteristic in relation to radial and mixed-flow. 12.2.4. Gravity pumps Gravity pumps include the siphon and Heron's fountainand there also important qanat or foggara systems that simply use downhill flow to take water from far-underground aquifers in high areas to consumers at lower elevations. The hydraulic ram is also sometimes called a gravity pump. 12.2.5. Steam pumps Steam pumps have been for a long time mainly of historical interest. They include any type of pump powered by a steam engine and also pistonless pumps such as Thomas Savery's or the Pulsometer steam pump. Recently there has been a resurgence of interest in low power solar steam pumps for use in smallholder irrigation in developing countries. Previously small steam engines have not been viable because of escalating inefficiencies as vapour engines decrease in size. However the use

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of modern engineering materials coupled with alternative engine configurations has meant that these types of system are now a cost effective opportunity. 12.2.6. Valveless pumps Valveless pumping assists in fluid transport in various biomedical and engineering systems. In a valveless pumping system, no valves (or physical occlusions) are present to regulate the flow direction. The fluid pumping efficiency of a valveless system, however, is not necessarily lower than that having valves. In fact, many fluid-dynamical systems in nature and engineering more or less rely upon valveless pumping to transport the working fluids therein. For instance, blood circulation in the cardiovascular system is maintained to some extent even when the hearts valves fail. Meanwhile, the embryonic vertebrate heart begins pumping blood long before the development of discernible chambers and valves. In micro-fluidics, valveless impedance pumps have been fabricated and are expected to be particularly suitable for handling sensitive bio-fluids. Ink jet printers operating on the Piezoelectric transducer principal also use valveless pumping. The pump chamber is emptied through the printing jet due to reduced flow impedance in that direction and refilled by capillary action. 12.3 Bearings Bearings are machine elements that constrain relative motion between moving parts to only the desired motion. They provide smooth running of the rotary elements. The major types of bearing in centrifugal pumps are deep groove ball bearings which are a type of rolling bearings and can operate at high speeds. 12.3.1 Classification of bearings. Bearings are divided into two basic categories: ball bearings and rolling bearings. 12.3.1.1 Deep groove ball bearings Deep groove ball bearings have a deep uninterrupted raceways and a high degree of conformity between balls and raceways. This enables them to carry axial loads in both directions in addition to radial loads even at high speeds. Both single and double row deep groove ball bearings have the same design.

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12.3.1.2 Cylindrical roller bearings They include single row bearings with cage. They are for rolling mill and heavy engineering applications. Single row cylindrical roller bearings have high radial load carrying capacity and high speed capability. 12.3.1.3 Spherical roller bearings They have two rows of rollers with common sphere raceway in the outer ring. They are selfaligning hence insensitive to errors of alignment of the shaft relative to the housing and the shaft bending. They can also accommodate axial loads in both directions. 12.3.1.4 Tapper roller bearings They tapered inner and outer ring raceways between which tapered rollers are arranged. If extended, the tapered surfaces converge towards a single point on the bearing axis. Thus, rolling conditions are at an optimum. The design makes the bearings suitable for the accommodation of combined radial and axial loads. 12.4. Welding Welding refers to the process of fusing two metals together by heat, using an electric current or burning the combination of oxygen and acetylene. There are various types of welding, such as gas welding (combination of oxygen and acetylene) or electric arc welding, whereby an arc is formed by placing an electrode at a distance from the workpiece.

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CHAPTER THIRTEEN

SAFETY
Safety is the state of being protected against recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Safety and loss prevention in process design and plants are considered under the following broad headings: 1. Identification and assessment of the hazards. 2. Control of the hazards: for example, by containment of flammable and toxic materials. 3. Control of the process. Prevention of hazardous deviations in process variables (pressure, temperature, flow) by provision of automatic control systems, interlocks, alarms, trips; together with good operating practices and management. 4. Limitation of the loss. The damage and injury caused if an incident occurs: pressure relief, plant layout, provision of fire-fighting equipment. At NSC, there are various safety measures. These include wearing of protective gears to match with the employees area of work and extent of risk exposed. The proactive gears include safety boots, dust coats/overalls, safety glasses, helmets and gloves. These clothings are worn according to the hazard exposed in different locations of the plant.

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN

PLANT LOCATION AND SITE SELECTION

14.1. Plant Location The location of the plant can have a crucial effect on the profitability of a project and the scope for future expansion. Many factors must be considered when selecting a suitable site, and only a brief review of the principal factors will be given in this section. The principal factors to consider are: i. Location, with respect to the marketing area; ii. Raw material supply; iii. Transport facilities; iv. Availability of labor; v. Availability of utilities: water, fuel, power; vi. Availability of suitable land; vii. Environmental impact, including effluent disposal; viii. Local community considerations; ix. Climate; x. Political and strategic considerations

Marketing Area For materials that are produced in bulk quantities, such as cement, mineral acids, and fertilizers, where the cost of the product per metric ton is relatively low and the cost of transport is a significant fraction of the sales price, the plant should be located close to the primary market. This consideration is much less important for low-volume production and high-priced products, such as pharmaceuticals.

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Raw Materials The availability and price of suitable raw materials will often determine the site location. Plants that produce bulk chemicals are best located close to the source of the major raw material, as long as the costs of shipping product are not greater than the cost of shipping feed. Transport The transport of materials and products to and from the plant can be an overriding consideration in site selection. If practicable, a site should be selected that is close to at least two major forms of transport: road, rail, waterway (canal or river), or a sea port. Road transport is increasingly used and is suitable for local distribution from a central warehouse. Rail transport is usually cheaper for the long-distance transport of bulk chemicals. Air transport is convenient and efficient for the movement of personnel and essential equipment and supplies, and the proximity of the site to a major airport should be considered. Availability of Labor Labor will be needed for construction of the plant and its operation. Skilled construction workers are usually brought in from outside the site area, but there should be an adequate pool of unskilled labor available locally, and labor suitable for training to operate the plant. Skilled craft workers such as electricians, welders, and pipe fitters will be needed for plant maintenance. Local labor laws, trade union customs, and restrictive practices must be considered when assessing the availability and suitability of the local labor for recruitment and training. Utilities (Services) Chemical processes invariably require large quantities of water for cooling and general process use, and the plant must be located near a source of water of suitable quality. Process water may be drawn from a river, from wells, or purchased from a local authority. At some sites, the cooling water required can be taken from a river or lake, or from the sea; at other locations cooling towers will be needed. Electrical power is needed at all sites. Electrochemical processes (for example, chlorine manufacture or aluminum smelting) require large quantities of power and must be located close to a cheap source of power. A competitively priced fuel must be available on site for steam and power generation.
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Environmental Impact and Effluent Disposal All industrial processes produce waste products, and full consideration must be given to the difficulties and cost of their disposal. The disposal of toxic and harmful effluents will be covered by local regulations, and the appropriate authorities must be consulted during the initial site survey to determine the standards that must be met. An environmental impact assessment should be made for each new project or major modification or addition to an existing process. Local Community Considerations The proposed plant must fit in with and be acceptable to the local community. Full consideration must be given to the safe location of the plant so that it does not impose a significant additional risk to the local population. Plants should generally be sited so as not to be upwind of residential areas under the prevailing wind. On a new site, the local community must be able to provide adequate facilities for the plant personnel: schools, banks, housing, and recreational and cultural facilities. The local community must also be consulted about plant water consumption and discharge and the effect of the plant on local traffic. Some communities welcome new plant construction as a source of new jobs and economic prosperity. More affluent communities generally do less to encourage the building of new manufacturing plants and in some cases may actively discourage chemical plant construction. Land (Site Considerations) Sufficient suitable land must be available for the proposed plant and for future expansion. The land should ideally be flat, well drained, and have suitable load-bearing characteristics. A full site evaluation should be made to determine the need for piling or other special foundations. Particular care must be taken when building plants on reclaimed land near the ocean in earthquake zones because of the poor seismic character of such land. Climate Adverse climatic conditions at a site will increase costs. Abnormally low temperatures require the provision of additional insulation and special heating for equipment and pipe runs. Stronger structures are needed at locations subject to high winds (cyclone/ hurricane areas) or earthquakes.
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Political and Strategic Considerations Capital grants, tax concessions, and other inducements are often given by governments to direct new investment to preferred locations, such as areas of high unemployment. The availability of such grants can be the overriding consideration in site selection. In a globalized economy, there may be an advantage to be gained by locating the plant within an area with preferential tariff agreements, such as the European Union (EU). 14.2. Plant Layout The economic construction and efficient operation of a process unit will depend on how well the plant and equipment specified on the process flow sheet is laid out. The principal factors to be considered are: i. Economic considerations: construction and operating costs; ii. The process requirements; iii. Convenience of operation; iv. Convenience of maintenance; v. Safety; vi. Future expansion; vii. Modular construction. Costs The cost of construction can be minimized by adopting a layout that gives the shortest run of connecting pipe between equipment and the least amount of structural steel work; however, this will not necessarily be the best arrangement for operation and maintenance. Process Requirements An example of the need to take into account process considerations is the need to elevate the base of columns to provide the necessary net positive suction head to a pump or the operating head for a thermo siphon reboiler. Operation Equipment that needs to have frequent operator attention should be located convenient to the control room. Valves, sample points, and instruments should be located at convenient positions and heights. Sufficient working space and headroom must be heights. Sufficient working space and headroom must be provided to allow easy access to equipment.
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If it is anticipated that equipment will need replacement, then sufficient space must be allowed to permit access for lifting equipment. Maintenance Heat exchangers need to be sited so that the tube bundles can be easily withdrawn for cleaning and tube replacement. Vessels that require frequent replacement of catalyst or packing should be located on the outside of buildings. Equipment that requires dismantling for maintenance, such as compressors and large pumps, should be placed under cover. Safety Blast walls may be needed to isolate potentially hazardous equipment and confine the effects of an explosion. At least two escape routes for operators must be provided from each level in process buildings. Plant Expansion Equipment should be located so that it can be conveniently tied in with any future expansion of the process. Space should be left on pipe racks for future needs, and service pipes should be oversized to allow for future requirements. Modular Construction In recent years there has been a move to assemble sections of a plant at the plant manufacturers site. These modules include the equipment, structural steel, piping, and instrumentation. The modules are then transported to the plant site, by road or sea. i. The advantages of modular construction are ii. Improved quality control; iii. Reduced construction cost; iv. Less need for skilled labor on site; v. Less need for skilled personnel on overseas sites. Some of the disadvantages are i. Higher design costs; ii. More structural steel work; iii. More flanged connections; iv. Possible problems with assembly, on site;
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14.3. Plant Location and Layout for Nzoia Sugar Company (NSC) Nzoia Sugar Company is located in Bungoma County, Bungoma South District, and 5 kilometers from Bukembe, off the Webuye-Bungoma highway. The company is endowed with water resources from Chalicha Springs and River Kuywa which traverses its nucleus estate. The permanent water source is not only critical for the factory production and domestic use but also for the community surrounding the company. The Bungoma County has good roads for the transportation of the sugar produced, and further power supply is available from the national grid. As for the market, the high population of the western region provides a ready market for sugar produced. Bungoma County has good communication with the rest of the country and the world at large. There are telephone facilities, both mobile and landline and reliable internet connectivity. The large population in the region also provides a source of labour and the community in the County. Social amenities are available in the region like Nzoia Sugar Company Clinic, Nzoia primary and secondary school and Nzoia stadium for sports activities in the region. Nzoias good climate provides the ability to increase the acreage under sugarcane farming. The hot, humid and sunny climate encourages early maturity of sugarcane. The companys sugarcane nucleus estate and outgrowers provide the raw material for the sugar production in the plant. As for the particular site chosen for the plant, the land is level ground and has stable bed rock that supports the foundation weight. The site is also free from flooding and other adverse weather conditions.

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Figure 23: Nzoia Sugar Company Plant Layout

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CHAPTER FIFTEEN

ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)

15.0. Introduction Environmental Impact Assessment can be defined as: The process of identifying, predicting, evaluating and mitigating the biophysical, social, and other relevant effects of development proposals prior to major decisions being taken and commitments made. Environmental Impact Assessment is a process, set down as a repeatable series of steps to be taken, to allow the environmental consequences of a proposed development to be assessed. Nzoia Sugar Company puts a lot of emphasis on issues of the environment and safety. The company has put in place policies, set objectives and targets based on the knowledge about its environmental, health and safety impacts associated with its activities, products and services. This ensures that the significant environmental, health and safety impacts associated with these aspects are taken into account in setting the environmental objectives. To achieve these objectives, the company carries out annual environmental, health and safety audits in compliance with the environmental management and co-ordination act 2007. The audits carried out includes: environment audit, safety and health audit, noise level, thermal, air quality, waste water, hazardous substance, fire safety, risk assessments, plant inspections and medical examination among others. The environmental, health and safety aspects identified forms the basis for the development of environmental, health and safety management plan for implementation and continual review. It also forms part of the company strategic plan on addressing potential impact to the organization. To this end, the company has successfully implemented and reserved substantial number of aspects and significant impacts as identified in the audits. These include: installation of a wet scrubber to reduce fly ash emission, replacement of asbestos roofing materials, establishment of additional oxidation ponds to improve on waste water quality, safe handling of used oil, reduction in accidents and incidents, procurement of new and modern fire engine, creating

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awareness on environment, health and safety, construction of adequate and modern ablution blocks and provision of wholesome water. 15.1. Purpose of EIA An Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is an assessment of the likely positive and/or negative influence a project may have on the environment. The purpose of the assessment is to ensure that decision-makers consider environmental impacts before deciding whether to proceed with new projects. EIA is intended to identify the Environmental, Social and Economic impacts of a proposed development prior to decision making. This means that it is easy to identify: i. ii. iii. The most environmentally suitable option at an early stage. The Best Practicable Environmental Option. Alternative processes

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15.2. Steps involved EIA

Figure 24: Steps involved EIA 15.3. Potential Health Effects Eye contact: Immediately flush eyes or skin with copious amounts of water for at least 15 minutes. Assure adequate flushing of the eyes by separating the eyelids with fingers, and seek medical advice. Skin contact: Immediately flush skin with copious amounts of water for at least 15 minutes while removing contaminated clothing and shoes. Inhalation: If inhaled, remove to fresh air. If not breathing give artificial respiration. If breathing is difficult, give oxygen.
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If swallowed: Wash out mouth with water provided the person is conscious. Call a physician. Wash contaminated clothing before reuse. Chronic Exposure: Marked impairment of vision has been reported. Repeated or prolonged exposure may cause skin irritation. Aggravation of Pre-existing Conditions: Persons with pre-existing skin disorders or eye problems or impaired liver or kidney function may be more susceptible to the effects of the substance. 15.4. First Aid Measures Inhalation: Remove to fresh air. If not breathing, give artificial respiration. If breathing is difficult, give oxygen. Get medical attention immediately. Ingestion: Induce vomiting immediately as directed by medical personnel. Never give anything by mouth to an unconscious person. Get medical attention immediately. Skin Contact: Immediately flush skin with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes while removing contaminated clothing and shoes. Get medical attention. Wash clothing before reuse. Thoroughly clean shoes before reuse. Eye Contact: Immediately flush eyes with plenty of water for at least 15 minutes, lifting lower and upper eyelids occasionally. Get medical attention immediately. 15.5. Exposure Controls/Personal Protection i. Wear approved respirator, chemical resistant gloves, safety goggles, other protective clothing. ii. Use only in a chemical fume cupboard. iii. Safety shower and eye bath. iv. Use non-sparking tools. v. Do not breathe vapor. vi. Do not get in eyes, on skin, on clothing. vii. Avoid prolonged or repeated exposure. viii. Wash thoroughly after handling. ix. Keep tightly closed. x. Keep away from heat, sparks and open flame.
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xi. Store in a cool dry place

15.6. Personal Protection Equipment Respiratory protection: Incase of insufficient ventilation wear suitable respiratory equipment. Hand protection: Neoprene gloves / butyl rubber gloves. Eye protection: Goggles giving complete protection to eyes. Skin and body protection: Rubber or plastic boots, Chemical resistant apron/complete suit protecting against chemicals and helmets.

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NZOIA SUGAR COMPANY FLOWSHEET

SUGAR MANUFACTURE FLOW CHART
(NZOIA SUGAR COMPANY LIMITED) C A N E CANE HARVESTING
- Mature cane (18 - 24 months) -Pol% 13.0,Fibre% 16,Purity 85% -Extraneous matter max. 3% * Time on the ground (max. 48 hrs)

CANE TRANSPORT

CANE WEIGHING

Accurate weighing and recording

CANE OFFLOANDING AND STORAGE

- Avoid spillage, trampling and crushing

CANE HANDLING AND FEEDING

*First in First out

IMBIBITION WATER

200% on fibre

CANE PREPARATION EXTRACTION (MILLING)

*Attain PI ~ 85% LIVE STEAM

CANE FIBRE

CUSH CUSH

MIXED JUICE Pty 85

BAGASSE *Texture(fine *Pol 2.5% * Moisture EXHAUST STEAM

STEAM GENERATION

LIVE STEAM STEAM - 25.0 bar - 330C - 108 t/h

ELECTRICITY GENERATION

EXHAUST STEAM

MIXED JUICE SCREENING

-Proper Sanitation

(Hot water, biocides,)

SCREENED MIXED JUICE (pH 5.5)

MIXED JUICE WEIGHING

MILK OF LIME - Brix 15 Be - Available CaO -65% - Attain correct pH (6.2 - 6.4)

PRE-LIMING
pH 6.4

PRELIMED JUICE FILTERED JUICE - pH - Brix - Purity VAPOUR 2

PRIMARY HEATING 75 C

- Attain correct temperature 75 - 80 C CONDENSATE

LIMING
pH 7.8

MILK OF LIME - Brix -15 Be - Available CaO% ~ 65% - Attain correct pH (7.8 - 8.0)

LIMED JUICE - Attain correct temperature 103 - 105 C CONDENSATE

VAPOUR 1 Water Bagacillo Milk of Lime Floculant

SECONDARY HEATING
105 C

FILTERED JUICE

FLUSHING

- Remove gases - Reduce temperature 95 - 98C VAPOUR/GASES FLOCCULANT - Attain concentration (0.05%)

WASH WATER

FILTRATION

MUD CONDITIONING

MUD

FLOCCULATION AND SETTLING

- Attain proper clarity

CLARIFIED JUICE (Brix 12 - 15 ) EXH STEAM 20 PSI,125OC - Through-put

FILTER CAKE - moisture 70 - 72% - pol. 2.0%

EVAPORATION

CONDENSATE RAW SYRUP - Brix ~ 60 - 65

( Boiler feed water)

SULPHITATION SULPHITED SYRUP

SULPHUR DIOXIDE - Attain pH 5.6 - 5.8

SYRUP STORAGE
VAPOUR 1

- Avoid contermination - Prevent inversion - Boiling time 3 hrs - Massecuite brix 92 - 93 - Massecuite purity 86 - 88

A- BOILING
CONDENSATE Wash Water A-MASCT A- MASSECUITE CENTRIFUGING

A-SUGAR -Maximize throughput

SUGAR DRYING

- Moisture 0.1 % - pol 99.5%

A-MOLASSES STORAGE
VAPOUR 2 - Boiling time 4 hrs - Massecuite brix 94 - 95 - Massecuite pty74 - 76 CONDENSATE

B-GRAIN BOILING
pty 78 - 80

SUGAR STORAGE

B-BOILING

B-GRAIN STORAGE

- Weigh accurately - Countercheck the weights

SUGAR WEIGHIN
- 50.00 KG - 25.00KG - 10.00KG - 05.00KG

SUGAR BAGS LABELLING

- Correct labelling

B-MASSECUITE Brix 94 - 95 Purity 74 - 76

Wash Water
- water - syrup B-MAGMA B-SUGAR DILUTION B- MASSECUITE CENTRIFUGING - Maximize throughput

BAG STITCHING

- Fold before stitching

B-MOLASSES Brix 80 - 82 purity 54 - 56 purity (64-66) C-GRAIN BOILING VAPOUR 2 C-GRAIN STORAGE CONDENSATE -Boiling time 5-6 hrs - Massecuite Brix - Massecuite purity -Brix 96-98 -Purity 58-62 SUGAR LOADING - Load the right number of bags B-MOLASSES STORAGE STACKING AND STORAGE

- Uniform arrangement of bags in the store - Avoid damage to bags

C-BOILING

C-MASSECUITE COOLING CRYSTALLIZATION

- Temperature 35 - 40C - Retention time 36 Hours

water, sweet water Clarified juice, C-MAGMA pty 85-86 C-MELT (B-MELT) (Brix 65 ) MELTING DILUTION

MASSECUITE PREPARATION

- Temperature 45 - 55C

SUGAR WEIGHING

- Counter check weight against number of bags

Wash Water
C-SUGAR C-CENTRIFUGING - Maximize throughput

SUGAR DISPATCH

FINAL MOLASSES
- Brix 85 - Pol 29 - 31 - Purity ~ 35 - 36%

Figure 25: NZOIA SUGAR COMPANY FLOWSHEET

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PROBLEMS ENCOUNTERED AT THE FACTORY.

i. More noise caused by machine due to lack of ear shields especially from the pressure venting from the boiler as well as from the cogeneration plant. ii. The metal chips after turning, facing and milling operations are not recycled hence wastage. iii. Regular breakdown of the fibrizor swing hammers leading to loss of production time. iv. Spills of cane juice, massecuites and both wet and dried sugar thus leading to massive loss of sugar through these spillage

SOLUTIONS TO THE ABOVE PROBLEMS

i. The factory should coordinate well with the maintenance section to promote daily or regular servicing and maintenance to avoid breakdown of the machines thus promote production to the factory. ii. iii. The factory should come up with a furnace to recycle the waste chips and materials. Automatic level controller should be installed in all juice and massecuite receiver tanks to avoid unnecessary spills. iv. Ear muffs and safety glass should be provided to workers at the boiler section

RECOMMENDATION
a) The company should promote full maintenance in all machines in all sections by employing more skilled labour so that the plant is serviced with a lot of accuracy to avoid losses. b) Constant condition monitoring of the plant should be done in an accurate manner and by qualified personnel and using accurate instruments c) The university should be providing the students with the schedule of expectation in the company so that it will ease the section of importance in the company and hence ease for the trainer to draw the time plan for the all period of attachment.

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CONCLUSION
In conclusion, an industrial attachment is an important exercise to a student since it enables one to appreciate theoretical work done in class and to bridge between theory and practice. The vast experience gained during this period is of great value in which one can challenge his/her capability. The systematic approach on various processes on diagnosing faults taught me a great value on patience during problem solving.

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REFERENCES
1. Companys operational and maintenance manuals. 2. Sugar technology and engineering notes by BOSCH projects. 3. www.wikipedia.com

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