Cement, Energy and Environment July-Sep 2002

( INNOVATIVE LEVEL MEASUREMENT Dagmar 0 'Beirne and Willi Schrank. Endress+Hauser Gmb!-I+CO. KG. Mau/burg, Germany. No maintenance in ultrasonic measurement A spec iall y designed se lf– c leaning se nsor diap hragm was developed for Endress+Hauser' s Prosonic. Triggered by ultrasonic pulses. this particularly plane diaphragm start to vibrate. The constant movement and the stnooth, Teflon-coated su rface prevents bui ldup, thus ensuring absolutely reliable measurement, which covers the entire range of the si lo. Furthermore, the sensor diaphragm is protected by a horn simu lt aneo usly ampl ifyi ng th e ultrasonic signals. Reliable measurement with TDR Ult ra soni c sensors, which reliably measure up to a temperature of 150"C and are not destroyed by possible temperature fluctuations. The non-invasive measurement method is insensitive to changing product properties and, in addition, covers a measuring range of 70m. Electromagnetic pulses with a high frequency are radiated on to the surface of a rope probe. The pulses follow the rope until they hit the surface ofthe medium and the signal is reflected. The distance between the process coupling (flange or thread) and the surface of the bulk solids can be determined by the time interval between the signal and the reflected pulse. Thi s meas uring principle ts extremely reliable and safe to use in powdery and fin e-grained bulk solid s. Even during fil ling , the equipmenr is not affected even by extreme case of dust generation or noise. The ultrason ic and guid.ed microwave rad ar Time Domain Reflectometer (TOR) methods are particularly suited to continuous level measurement in dusty and granu lar solids. Both measuring principles have recently set new milestones and ideally complei11ent each other in the cement industry. The maintenance free diaphragm of th e ultraso ni c sensor and the perfected rope construction in the case of TDR , ensure safe measurements for users. Courresy: World Cemenr Jun. 2002, Pp 54-56, Enquily No.9, Fax: +44 (0) 1252718992 E-mail: mail@ lvorldcemenl. com Web: 11'111\V. worldcemenl. com CHARACTERISATION OF CEMENTITIOUS MATERIALS Laforge Research & Technical Centres The proven advantages o f X-ray diffraction in comb ination with Rietveld analysis have been extended to blast furnace slag and fly ash. These materials require the development of new. solutions due to their high content of amorphous solution. This article describes the application ofX-ray diffraction with Ri etveld analysis to meas ure the amorphous content of slags and flyashes. The study was aimed at developing an easy-to-use quant ificat ion suitab le for an industrial environment. Th is is Part III of reports first published in ICR January and June 2001. Courtesy:International Cement Review. July 2002 P4 7, £-mail: il~fo@CemNer co.uk Web site: CemNer. co. uk SNAPSHOTS & FISIIBONES Dr. Michael Clark Every month people ask the Technica l Forum for advice because some part of the cement manufacturing process is be ing disturbed or interrupted. Currently there are a spate of these questions relating to (i) ring formation s in the ki ln inlet, (ii) brick infiltration and shell co rro sion , (iii) snowman formation , and (iv) ceme nt mi ll cooling and ventilation. We do our best answer these questions and g ive advice but there is always a need to study the underlying reasons for the problem on s ite. The complexities of these investigations are not to be underestimated and thi s month we desc rib e a methodology of how to carry them out. Defining the datasets is the first step, automatically recordi ng the 'snap-shots' is the second step. The third step of these process investigation s is condu cting the analysis of he recorded 'snap-shots' . With the assigned reasons for the disturbances an Ishikawa or 'fishbone' diagram can be built up. This ·allows cause and effect of the disturbances to be li nked. The most frequent causes of disturbance can be identified and using the 80:20 rul e effort s can be focused to eliminate the most common causes disturbance. Courres : lmernarional Cement Review/ Aug. 2002, P 56, rax: +.J.J(O) 1306 7-10660. £-mail: i4o@CemNer. co.uk Web: Wll'll'. CemNer. com m