A Structured Approach To Sugar Factory Design
A Structured Approach To Sugar Factory Design
A Structured Approach To Sugar Factory Design
net/publication/311607593
CITATIONS READS
4 5,032
4 authors, including:
All content following this page was uploaded by Steve Peacock on 13 December 2016.
Abstract
Over the years, a number of computer models have been developed and refined by Tongaat-
Hulett Sugar for use in sugar factory design. These models are used for greenfield projects,
factory expansions, rehabilitations, de-bottlenecking and the integration of new processes
such as back-end refining, ethanol production and co-generation. Based on practical
experience, a structured approach has been developed that integrates and orders all of the
steps necessary for an effective and comprehensive design procedure. The steps include
agreement on basic design data, cane supply and throughput strategy, selection of process
technology, a boiling house balance, an overall steam and energy balance, detailed
evaporation plant and juice heating modelling, equipment sizing and plant layout. Project
requirements generally have a number of interdependent objectives that need to be satisfied
and this leads to the design procedure involving a number of iterative steps, as the basic
design is refined and improved, which are catered for in the structured approach. The paper
discusses the design procedures, the models used in the process and the current structured
approach that is used by Tongaat-Hulett Sugar.
Keywords: factory design, modelling, mass balance, energy balance, equipment design
Introduction
The effective design of a sugar factory requires a properly structured and comprehensive
process design procedure. Because of the complex interactions between the various sections
of a sugar factory, the design procedure cannot be a simple ‘once-through’ linear process.
Rather, to accommodate these interactions, the procedure needs to be to be iterative and
requires the careful use of engineering judgment to make appropriate assumptions that avoid
excessive reiteration of the design.
A well thought-out design, finalised as early as possible in the project, is critical in ensuring
that a project meets the standard requirements of cost, performance and timing.
The design must be based on a set of process data that is agreed to by all relevant parties.
This set of data will include:
• Total quantity of cane to be crushed in a season and length of milling season (LOMS) for
crushing the cane. Obviously the total cane crush requirement, allied with the number of
weeks available in the season and the projected overall time efficiency, will determine the
weekly, and therefore also daily and hourly crush rates required.
• Required process performance of the factory (sugar quality, sugar recovery, energy
utilisation). Whilst the basic sugar process remains the same, differing performance
requirements will result in subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) changes to the process.
Low steam % cane requirements, for example, will probably result in large amounts of
vapour bleeding at the evaporator station, with resultant increased heating surface areas
down the tail. Low sugar colour requirements may require differing magma systems or
even ‘double-curing’ installations.
• Future expansion plans. It is imperative that future expansion plans are communicated to
the designers of the plant. Cognisance of these requirements will often result in the design
of plant the role of which may change in the future. This can result in the installation of
slightly oversized equipment in the short term, where the duty will change at a later
expansion. For example, a slightly oversized second effect evaporator may become a first
effect in a later expansion.
Throughput strategy
Using the agreed process data, a throughput strategy will be developed. This strategy adjusts
the cane input to the factory (on a monthly basis) to take account of the varying cane quality.
Typically, at different times of the season, the throughput of a sugar factory will be
constrained, either by a maximum fibre rate (determined by the sizing of the extraction plant),
a maximum sucrose rate (determined by the sizing of the high grade portion of the boiling
house) or by a maximum non-sucrose rate (determined by the sizing of the low grade portion
of the boiling house). In developing a cost-effective process design for a greenfields facility,
the factory throughput should ideally be limited for approximately equal periods of the
season by each one of these constraints. This objective is achieved by appropriate sizing of
the relevant factory equipment. For the expansion of an existing mill, the capacity of the
existing installed equipment will determine how closely this goal may be approached.
The overall throughput strategy, and the proposed month-by-month crush budget which is the
result of this strategy, forms the basis for formulating the factory mass and energy balances
and prevents the over-sizing of certain portions of the plant to cope with peak loadings that
are well above the average loading and of short duration.
Before proceeding with the development of mass and energy balances, there must be
agreement on the major process technologies to be used in the factory (e.g. the use of either
milling or diffusion for extraction, the use of continuous or batch pans in the boiling house, or
the choice of decolourisation processes to be implemented in the back-end refinery). Once
this has been agreed, an overall process flow sheet for the entire factory can be drawn up.
Using the overall process flow sheet, it is then possible to develop detailed process flow
diagrams for individual items of plant. These process flow diagrams form the basis for mass
Because of the complexity of the sugar factory and the need to iterate designs in terms of
process performance and equipment requirements, it is necessary to use a number of separate
mass and energy balances of varying levels of detail and sophistication to achieve the final
design. In general, balances that cover larger areas of the plant will include less detail, and
balances specific to smaller areas of the plant will be used to confirm the details of the plant
in that area.
Major types of balance used are discussed below. Note that, for consistency, all balances
presented refer to a recent expansion exercise at a Tongaat-Hulett mill in Moçambique.
The model used calculates two simultaneous mass-balances, which allows various scenarios
to be directly compared; for example, a mass-balance at the peak brix period of the season
can be compared to a mass-balance for the peak non-sucrose loading period. Alternatively,
the effects of improved performance – such as increased A-exhaustion – can easily be
compared in a single model.
The model is based on the traditional three boiling system (A, B and C massecuites);
however, any combination of magma systems can be employed (B-magma to A-seed, C-
magma to B-seed, or both, or no magma usage at all, with graining for all three boil types).
An annexed (or back-end) refinery can also be modelled, with between one and four white
boilings. All or part of the raw sugar produced in the raw-house section of the model can be
‘dispatched’ to the refinery. Raw sugar imports from other factories can also be
accommodated.
The model calculates expected equipment sizing of major plant items. Examples of these
major items are pans (vessel capacities in m3), crystallisers (vessel capacities in m3),
centrifugals (massecuite handling capabilities in m3 massecuite per hour), tanks (m3),
remelters (m3), and sugar drying capacity. The capacity calculations are obtained using
standard norms for equipment sizing. For example, in calculating pan capacities, empirically
determined pan time indices (Archibald and Smith, 1975) are used. Crystalliser volumes are
obtained using predefined retention times.
In greenfield designs, preliminary sizings for major items are thus immediately generated.
For expansion exercises, the sizes of currently installed plant are input into the model. The
model then compares installed plant capacities with the expected capacities after the
expansion, allowing problem areas to be easily identified.
Figure 1 shows the monthly brix, non-sucrose and fibre loadings at the given cane quality.
The limiting of the throughput for the brix, fibre and non-sucrose constraints can be seen.
Monthly crush
up to constraint
Input constraints
Figure 2 depicts a section of the basic factory mass balance showing the two side-by-side
mass balances, one for the peak brix period for the proposed design and the second showing
the conditions for a planned future expansion of the factory (also at the peak brix loading
period).
The Dual Mass and Colour Balance model is quite flexible, and various processing subtleties
can be handled. Examples of these are:
• Mud recycle to the diffuser station
• Double curing of C-massecuites
• Dispatch of B-sugar (either all or part) with the A-sugar
• A-sugar affination within the rawhouse.
These options have been built into the model and are easily activated through the setting of
‘flags’.
Figure 2. Dual Mass and Colour Balance – factory mass and colour balance calculations.
Proc S Afr Sug Technol Ass (2005) 79, page 277
Calculated capacity
requirements for the
Currently installed scenarios considered
capacities
Figure 3. Dual Mass and Colour Balance – extract of equipment sizing section.
Lime
2
Slurry
Flash
Mixed Tank Clear
1 3 4
Juice Juice
Cl arifier
CaO Dosage = 0,06% on cane
Pre-Flash Temperature = 102,9oC
Bagacillo 6
Wash
7
Water
Rotary
Filtrate
V acuum 8
Return
Filter
Filter
9
Cake
Bagacillo % cane = 1,0%
Fil ter Wash Index = 103,0%
Making use of the inherent flexibility of the computer model, the design of any proposed
evaporator station can be optimised in terms of heating surface requirements, steam economy
and operability. The sensitivity of the design to changes in its operating conditions may also
be investigated (for example, see Love et al., 1999). Any changes to the configuration of the
evaporator station which result from the modelling investigations need to be incorporated in
the overall energy balance of the factory, with iteration of the two models as necessary, so
that the effect of such changes on the vapour bleed requirements from the station can be
accounted for properly. An example print-out from the evaporator model is presented in
Figure 5.
Heater calculations
Because the amount of sensible heat required for juice heating in a sugar factory is
substantial, the vapour bleed requirements for mixed juice heating and for clear juice heating
(if carried out) are of critical importance to the overall energy balance of the facility. Juice
heating operations may be modelled using heat transfer and fluid flow fundamentals, as
shown in the model output for a mixed juice heater simulation which is presented in Figure 6.
As with the detailed balance of the evaporator station, any change to the configuration of the
juice heaters at this stage of the design process needs to be incorporated in the overall energy
balance of the factory. Iteration of the models (the energy balance, evaporator balance and the
heater balances) may be necessary in order to ensure that the effects of such changes on the
steam balance of the mill are fully accounted for.
VAPOUR FLOWS:
Flow rate (t/h) : In : 63.0 46.5 4.0 5.7 9.1
: Out : 63.2 47.1 5.7 6.4 9.9
Pressure(kPa abs):In : 200.0 150.9 68.9 56.4 36.5
:Out : 150.9 124.7 56.4 36.5 16.0
Temperature(°C) : In : 120.2 111.5 89.5 84.3 73.7
: Out : 111.5 105.9 84.3 73.7 55.3
JUICE FLOWS:
Flow rate (t/h) : In : 165.0 101.8 54.8 49.0 42.6
: Out : 101.8 54.8 49.0 42.6 32.8
Brix (°Bx) : In : 13.5 21.9 40.7 45.4 52.2
: Out : 21.9 40.7 45.4 52.2 68.0
Temperature(°C) : In : 115.0 112.2 107.7 86.2 76.1
: Out : 112.2 107.7 86.2 76.1 59.5
PERFORMANCE OF UNITS:
Hydrostatic Head (m) : 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3
Hydrostatic Temp.Rise(K): 0.6 0.8 1.5 2.2 4.7
Boiling Point Elev. (K) : 0.7 1.8 1.9 2.3 4.1
Overall dT (K) : 7.4 3.1 1.8 6.1 9.6
Calandria Area (m²) : 2000 4023 703 402 877
Calandria HTC (kW/m²C) : 2.6 2.3 2.0 1.5 0.7
Calandria Heat Flux (MW): 38.5 28.7 2.5 3.7 5.9
Area²/(Flux/HTC) (m²/K): 270 1296 392 66 92
"LOOK-UP" DATA
Material Mild Steel
Thermal conductivity kW/m°C kw 0.0429
Roughness m R 0.0000457
Fouling factor shell-side kWm2°C hs 11.63
Velocity heads/pass Nh 2.5
Fouling factor tube-side kWm2°C ht 2.1
CONSTRUCTION TUBES
Horizontal/Vertical (H/V) V Effective tube length m L 3.960
No.of tube passes Np 14 Tube OD m D 0.04
Entry pipe ID m Di 0.200 Wall thickness m t 0.0015
Exit pipe ID m Do 0.200 Total no. of tubes N 434
Heat transfer area m2 A 216.0 Velocity m/s u 1.76
Pressure drop kPa Pt 115.10
Figure 6. Example of the model output from the juice heater design model.
As mentioned previously, the Dual Mass and Colour Balance calculates preliminary sizes for
major items of plant, based on their required capacities. These preliminary results can be
supplied to equipment suppliers/manufacturers for the obtaining of budget quotes.
As the final design is honed, more accurate vessel designs are obtained from equipment
specific models.
In some cases it is necessary to take account of future capacity plans when carrying out a
process design, such as when carrying out an intermediate phase in a stage-wise factory
expansion or when installing a back-end refinery at a mill where a future expansion of
capacity is planned. Under these conditions, the design process may be constrained by the
need for the installed equipment to be compatible with the future expansion plans. It may
even be necessary to undertake a preliminary design for the expanded case in order to ensure
that the right decisions are made at the intermediate stage of the project.
A brief example of a process design to take account of future expansion plans is the
intermediate expansion of the evaporator station shown in Figure 7 to a factory throughput of
150 tons of cane per hour. Under normal circumstances, the existing second effect Kestner
vessel would have been transferred to first effect duty and the first effect Robert vessel
transferred to second effect duty. Additional surface area of around 2000 m2 would have been
necessary in the second effect of the station in order to provide the required capacity for the
expanded case.
New
Kestner
2500 m 2
F irs t Effe ct Sec on d Effe ct Th ird Effec t F ou rt h Eff ect Fif th Ef fect
Figure 7. Evaporator configuration for the intermediate expansion stage (150 TCH).
However, taking into account the planned expansion of the mill to 250 tons of cane per hour
in the longer term, this process design was modified as is shown in Figure 7. A new Kestner
vessel of 2500 m2 was installed in the second effect, with the existing vessels retaining their
positions in the layout. This configuration is somewhat unconventional, in that it has a Robert
vessel as a first effect and two Kestner vessels as second effects. However, this intermediate
layout is more compatible with the long-term design of the station (which is more
conventional in configuration), as illustrated in Figure 8.
N ew Existing Existin g
Clear
Ro bert Ro bert Robert Syrup
Juice 2000 m2 703 m2 877 m 2
New N ew New
Kestn er Ro bert Rob ert
2500 m2 2000 m2 600 m2
F irst Effec t Seco nd Ef fec t T hir d Eff ect Fo ur th Ef fect Fif th Ef fect
Figure 8. Evaporator configuration for the final expansion stage (250 TCH).
As of the writing of this paper, the intermediate expansion phase of 150 tons cane per hour
has been in operation for one full season and the evaporator station has operated completely
trouble-free at the required throughput.
Using the preliminary plan sizes, a preliminary plant layout can be developed, taking into
account both site and operability requirements. This plant layout will give preliminary
requirements for factory buildings and steelwork. The plant layout will also define much of
the requirements for piping and pumping. In carrying out expansion projects, a consideration
of the existing factory layout can often have a substantial impact on the design which is
finally implemented.
At this stage there is sufficient information to proceed with preliminary costing based on the
factory layout and a list of all the major plant items required.
In some cases, the design process may result in two or more feasible options for the
installation which need to be evaluated to determine which is the most cost effective. An
example of such a scenario is the installation of clear juice heaters in a new or expanded
sugar mill, which may ultimately be more expensive than installing a larger first effect
evaporator vessel which accommodates the extra surface area required for juice heating
within the evaporator itself (Peacock and Love, 2003). At the preliminary costing stage, the
various available options may be evaluated based on their total installed cost and a decision
made as to which of the alternatives to install.
Conclusions
Because of the complex interactions between the various operations in a sugar factory, the
procedure used for the design of a greenfields factory or for an expansion project cannot be a
simple ‘once-through’ process. In order to accommodate the interactions, the procedure used
by the design team needs to be iterative in nature and requires the use of engineering
judgement to make appropriate assumptions, thereby avoiding excessive iterations of the final
design.
A properly structured and comprehensive design procedure has been presented which allows
a well thought-out design to be finalised early in the project, thus meeting the standard
requirements of cost, performance and timing. The design is based on an agreed-upon set of
basic design data, a cost-effective cane supply and throughput strategy, the appropriate
selection of process technology to be used and the detailed modelling of the various unit
operations in the sugar production process, as well as of the overall factory design which is
proposed.
REFERENCES
Archibald RD and Smith IA (1975). The effect of low juice purities at Darnall on boiling
house capacity. Proc S Afr Sug Technol Ass 49: 63-73.
Hoekstra RG (1981). A computer program for simulating and evaluating multiple effect
evaporators in the sugar industry. Proc S Afr Sug Technol Ass 55: 43-50.
Hoekstra RG (2000). The use of linear programming in power generation decisions. Proc S
Afr Sug Technol Ass 74: 267-273.
Love DJ, Meadows DM and Hoekstra RG (1999). Robust design of an evaporator station as
applied to the Xinavane rehabilitation project. Proc S Afr Sug Technol Ass 73: 211-218.
Peacock SD and Love DJ (2003). Clear juice heaters - Do we need them? Proc S Afr Sug
Technol Ass 77: 452-462.
Rein PW and Hoekstra RG (1994). Implications of cane diffusion for energy economy in a
sugar mill. Proceedings of an ISSCT Combined Workshop on Efficient Production and
Utilisation of Steam in Sugar Factories, Pune, India, pp 347-348.
Determination of
• Season length details
• Cane quality
• Overall time efficiency
Determination of
• Process requirements
• Expansion plans
Iterations to finalise
design and obtain
internal consistency
Steam and Energy Balance
• Match energy
requirements to fuel
supply
• Preliminary evaporator