Aplicação industrial do bagaço de cana-de-açúcar como fonte de energia alternativa na produção do cimento

Abstract

Among the costs involved in cement production, energy consumption deserves to be highlighted as one of the most relevant factors in the production cost. The search for fuel sources from alternative sources can be a solution to reduce dependence on the use of fossil fuels. The objective of this work was to study the feasibility of co-processing by burning sugarcane bagasse in a pre-calciner. Approximately 98 tons of sugarcane bagasse were used as an alternative fuel. The industrial-scale test was monitored for 16 hours. The average feed flow into the pre-calciner was approximately 6 tons per hour of sugarcane bagasse, combined with 7.8 tons per hour of petroleum coke. The results showed that the thermal replacement of part of the fossil fuel (17%) by sugarcane biomass did not have a significant impact on the quality of the material produced. The use of this residue as an alternative fuel enabled a reduction in costs related to fossil fuel of R$1,067/hour. Estimating that the equipment remains in operation for 10 months, this would represent savings of R$ 7.679.160/year. Sugarcane bagasse can be used as co-fuel in a pre-calciner, without reducing the performance of the equipment and without altering the properties of the flour, and as a consequence, the properties of the clinker and Portland cement produced.