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"Blueprint"YourPulverizerforImprovedPerformance
03/01/2009|RichardF.(Dick)Storm,PE

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Wecompleteourtwo-partseriesonpulverizerO&Mpracticeswithastep-by-stepreviewofimportantareaswherecloseattentiontodimensionsanddesign
featureswillincreasecoalprocessingcapacity.Thefirstpartofthisseries,publishedintheOctober2008issueofPOWER("FinessingFuelFineness"),exploredthe
importanceofbalancingthefuelandairenteringandleavingthepulverizertoachievegoodcoalcombustioninthefurnace.Inthisarticle,wefocusstrictlyon
pulverizerO&Mpracticesthateveryplantshouldbefollowing.

Manufacturingtolerancesweremuchlooseragenerationago,whichresultedinagooddealmorevariationinkeydimensionsthanwefindacceptabletoday.For
somereaders,theterm"blueprinting"willevokememoriesofhot-roddingaDetroitV8engineaftercarefullymachiningandassemblingittothemanufacturers
specificationsor"blueprints."Theexpectedresultwaspoweroutputgreaterthanthatofastockenginestraightfromtheshowroomfloor,andwewereseldom
disappointed.Wellusethesamevernacularinthisarticletorefertotheprocessofrestoringapulverizerormill(thetermsareusedinterchangeably)tobetter-
than-"showroom"performance.

BalancingAct

Pulverizedcoalgroundfinelyanddistributedtotheburnersisburnedinsuspension,muchlikenaturalgas.Tooptimizecombustioninthefurnace,theair-fuel
mixturecanbereadilydividedequallybetweencoalpipesleavingthemillandwillburnmuchlikenaturalgaswhenthecoalisgroundveryfinetoameanparticle
sizeofabout50microns.Keepinmindthatthedensitydifferencebetweencoalandairisabout1,000to1.Performingthisbalancingactefficientlyisagood
indicatorofexcellenceinpulverizerperformance.

Improvedpulverizerperformanceoftencanbeachievedbyblueprintingthetolerancesandsettings.Mostofthecoal-firedpowerplantswevisitusevertical-
spindlepulverizersorpulverizerswithaverticalshaftthatdrivesagrindingringortable."Verticle-spindle"isusedgenericallyintheindustrytoincludepulverizers
suchasMPS,MB,MBF,RP,RaymondBowl(RP),andothers.Interestingly,whenyoulookcloselyattwopulverizerssizedforagivenweightperhourthroughput,
manydesignandperformancefeaturesareverysimilar.Letstaketwodifferentoriginalequipmentmanufacturerspulverizerssizedforabout120,000poundsof
coalpulverizationperhour:oneanRPmilldesign(Figure1)andtheotheranMPSdesign(Figure2).

1.AtypicalRBpressurizedbowlmill,size983.Courtesy:StormTechnologies,Inc.

2.AtypicalMPS89pulverizer.Courtesy:StormTechnologiesInc.

Bothmillshaveverticalspindlesandhorizontalgrindingtablesorbowls.Inpartoneofthisseries,pulverizercapacityorthroughputwasdescribedasbeingnot
simplyastaticratingintonsperhour.Rather,asthatarticleexplained,thecapacityofacoalpulverizerisacomplexfunctionofthefuelfinenessdesired,thecoals
HargroveGrindablityIndex(HGI),andthecoalsrawfeedsizeandmoisturecontent(seeFigure3in"FinessingFuelFineness").Plantoperatorscanonlyimprove
throughputofagivenmillwithaparticularcoal(moistureandHGIaretypicallyoutsideoperatorcontrol)bysacrificingfinenessbyproducingacoarserproduct
fortheburners.

Thissituationisakintobeingbetweentheproverbialrockandahardplace.Changingfuelsorsuppliersmaynotbepossibletoimprovemillperformance,andin
manyplants,millthroughputproblemsaremorethanlikelycausedbyanewfuelsupplierprovidinglower-qualityfuel.Thatstherock.Thehardplaceisthefact
thatreducedfuelfinenesswilldirectlycontributetoincreasedNOxproductionandpoorerfurnaceperformance.Theonlyoptionavailabletomaintainmill
throughputinmanyplants,beyondburnertune-ups,airflowoptimizations,andcoalpipebalancingoraddingmoresootblowers,istooptimizeorblueprintthe
pulverizers.
AFour-StepPlan

Blueprintingapulverizerisntrocketscience,butitdoesrequirecloseattentiontothedetails.Hereisourfour-stepplantorestoreandimproveperformanceof
yourpulverizer,regardlessofitsage.

Step1.Ensurethatthegrindingelementsareingoodcondition.Makesurethatthegrindingsurfaceprofilesareoptimum.Thatmeansusingtheoriginal
designgrindingprofilesforyourmill.Themajorityofcoalpulverizerssizedaround120,000pphusethreegrindingelements,referredtoasjournals,rolls,ortires.
Forbestresults,allthreegrindingelementsshouldbereplacedinmatchedsets.Theconcentricity,physicaldimensions,andcontoursmustbeexactlythesame.
Thisisespeciallyimportantwhenmaximumpreloadpressureisrequiredtoproducemaximumcoalfinenessand/orwithlower-than-originaldesignHGI.Wehave
seenmillsassembledwithunmatchedsetsofthreegrindingjournalsusingmaximumspringpressure.Theresultofsuchsetups:Themainshaftsbreakbecauseof
theunbalancedload.Matchedsetsofgrindingelementsandexactlythesamesizerollswithexactlythesamecontourareimportantformaximumreliability.

Thegrindingsurfacesalsomustbeingoodconditionandparallel(Figure3).Dontexpectoptimumperformanceifthegrindingelementsarewell-wornorthetires
are"flat"(Figure4).Unusualwearpatternsareoftentheresultofunevenspringframetolerances,alignmentissues,pressurevariations,geometry,and/or
eccentricityissues.

3.Walktheline.Theprofileoftherollshouldbeparallelwiththegrindingringprofile.Courtesy:StormTechnologiesInc.

5.Perfectlyround.InanMPSmill,thetireandtableprofilesmustmatch,andthetiresshouldnothaveflatspots.Courtesy:StormTechnologiesInc.

Step2.Setthecorrectgrindingpressure.Checkyourmilltoconfirmthatthegrindingrollorspringframepreloadpressureissetcorrectly.Ourexperiencewith
bothRPandMPSpulverizershasbeenthatmillsdesignedforathroughputofabout120,000poundsofcoalperhour,anHGIofabout45to50,andcoalfineness
exceeding75%passing200meshwillrequireaboutthesameforceonthegrindingelements.Itisreasonabletoexpectthatgrindingcoalwilltakeaboutthesame
amountofgrindingelementpressureregardlessofthetypeofmedium-speed,verticalspindlepulverizersyouuse.

InourexperiencethespringframeofanMPSmilltunedformaximumtruecapacitywillbesetatabout20tonsminimumforceonthegrindingtires.Abowlmill
springorhydraulicpreloadforthissizeofmillwillalsobeabout20tonsofpressure.Lower-HGIfuelandgreaterthanpassingof200meshrequiresthemaximum
pressureofthegrindingelements.Keepinmindthatinoperationthereisnometal-to-metalcontact,andallcoalgrindingresultsfromthepressureappliedcoal
particletocoalparticleonabedofcoalsqueezedbetweenthegrindingelements.

Internalclearancesarealsoveryimportant.Forexample,abowlmillspringcanistercanbesettotheneededpreload,butifitisnotadjustedforthe"button"to
rollwithassemblyminimumclearance,thenthepreloadingdoesnotcomeintoplayuntiltherollridesuponadeeperbedofcoal(Figure5).Ensuringsufficient
grindingpressureisabsolutelyessential,anditbeginswithsettingthiscriticaltolerance.

5.Keepyourdistance.The"button"clearancebetweenthespringcanisterandthejournalassemblyisacriticaltolerance.Source:StormTechnologiesInc.
Foraspringframemill,thehydraulicpreloadmustbebalancedacrossthemillandthegrindingelementsperfectlycenteredintheassembly(Figure6).

6.Balancedload.TheMPSspringframehydraulicpreloadmustbecarefullybalancedandthespringframecenteredforoptimummillperformance.
Courtesy:StormTechnologiesInc.

Step3.Setthecorrectpulverizerthroatclearance.Anoversizedpulverizerthroatwillrequiremorethanoptimumprimaryairflowtominimizecoalrejects.The
pulverizer"freeannularjet"ofverticallyflowingairflow,inourexperience,mustbeadjustedforaminimumof7,000fpmundernormaloperation.Throatsthatare
oversizedwillresultineitherexcessivecoalrejects(nottrampmetalorpyrites,butrawcoal).

Compoundingtheproblem,highprimaryairflowisthemaincause,inourexperience,forpoorfuelfineness,poorfueldistribution,andreducedfurnace
performance.Right-sizingtheflowareaofthepulverizerthroatsandmatchingthemforcompatibilitywiththecoalpipesandburnernozzlesizesisessentialforthe
bestfurnaceperformance.Furthermore,rememberthattherewillbeminorvariationinmillcapacity,fuelquality,andmillinletairflowratesthatmustbe
consideredwhensizingthepulverizerthroatflowarea.

Theverticallyflowingairmustbeofsufficientvelocitytosuspendthegranularcoalbedinthegrindingzone.Somedesignsusemechanicalmeanstokeepthecoal
abovetheunder-bowlpyritesection,whileothersuseairflow.Reducingcoalrejectsbymechanicalmeansentailsincreasingtheheightofthe"bullring"extension
ringortheextensionofflatsurfacesabovetherotatingthroattotrapordamcoalparticlesmechanicallysothattheyremainabovethethroat.

Weprefertheoptimumthroatareafluidicsolutiontosuspendthecoalbedandreducethepotentialforfiresbeneaththebowlorgrindingtable.Keepinmindthat
ifthefuelisabove17%moistureandtheair/fuelratioisabout1.8,thentheunder-bowlprimaryairtemperaturewillbeabove450F.Anycoalthatfallsthroughthe
throatopeningwillcombustunlessitisremovedinmereminutes.Combustionofcoalparticlesbeneaththegrindingzoneisnotaseriousproblem,aslongasthe
millisinoperation.Butifamilltripsoraboilerhasamainfueltrip,thenfiresinthepyriteszone(beneaththegrindingzone)arethemostcommoncauseof
pulverizer"puffs,"inourexperience.Afirebeneaththegrindingzoneprovidestheignitiontemperaturetoinitiateamill"puff"whenrestartingamillafteratripor
restartingitafteramainfueltripwhencoalremainsinthebed.

Forsafetyaswellasforperformancereasons,properlysizingthemillthroatsisextremelyimportant(Figure7).Theoptimumthroatareaisdeterminedby
calculatingthefreeannularjetareawhenthedesiredair/fuelratio(usually1.8lbair/lbfuel)isknown.Also,thethroatareamustbeproperlydesignedtobe
compatiblewiththeflowareasoftheburnercoalpipesandcoalnozzles(Figure8).
7.Optimumdesign.Ensureoptimumarrangementofthemillthroatandthecoalflowpathtoimprovemillperformance.Source:StormTechnologiesInc.

8.Closetolerances.Pulverizedcoalmillswiththroatsthataretoowidewillhavecorrespondinglowthroatvelocityinthemillgrindingzonethatcontributesto
excessivecoalrejectsandfires.Thisisanexampleofanoversizedmillthroat.Courtesy:StormTechnologiesInc.

Step4.Properlymaintaintheclassifier.Oncethegrindingzoneisblueprintedandputinfirst-classcondition,thenextcomponenttoexamineistheclassifier.
Thebestfurnacecombustionperformanceisgovernedbyuniformcoalcombustionbytheburnersandsatisfactorycoalfineness.Adequatefinenessforboth
westernandeasternfuels(PowderRiverBasinorbituminous)isaminimumof75%to80%passing200meshandzeroto0.1%remainingona50meshscreen
(Figure9).Toachievethisfineness,thepressurizedmillclassifiermustperformtwofunctions:

Itseparatesparticlessmallenoughtobesuppliedtotheburners(meanparticlesizeabout40to55microns)fromlargercoalparticlesthatneedreturntothe
grindingzoneforregrinding.

Itbalancesthedistributionofcoaltoeachcoalpipe.
9.Whyuseaclassifier?Aclassifierrecirculatescoarsecoalinthegrindingzoneandbalancestheflowofcoaltoeachburnerlinetothefurnace.Source:Storm
TechnologiesInc.

Theflowofcoalparticlesthroughaclassifierisseveraltimestheamountofcoalflowingtotheburnersbecauseofthelargeamountofcoalrecirculatedwithina
pulverizer.Forexample,ifapulverizerisoperatingat100,000lb/hrcoalfeedtotheburners,asmuchas300,000lb/hrormoremaybeflowingthroughtheclassifier
forregrinding.Forthisreasonthesurfacesmoothnessandinvertedconeclearancesareextremelyimportantforgoodpulverizerperformance.

Ourexperienceovertheyearshashelpedusdevelopanumberofprovenminorenhancementsforachievingbestclassifierperformance.Thecriticaldimensions
indicatedinFigure10include:

Surfacesmoothnessoftheclassifiercone.

Synchronizedclassifierbladeanglesandlengths.

Invertedconetoclassifierclearances.

Classifieroutletcylinderlengthandflaredopening.
10.Betterthangood.Areasoftheclassifierwhereperformancecanbeimproved.Source:StormTechnologiesInc.

Otherimprovementsthatshouldbeconsideredwhenoverhaulingaclassifierincludethese:

Smoothsurfacesintheupperturretsectionforgoodfuelspinninganduniformdistribution(nosurfacediscontinuities,suchas"padeyes").

Ensurethefreemovementandclosureofthedischargedoors(tricklevalves).

Confirmthesoundandgoodconditionoftheclassifierconeassembly(noholesshouldbewornthrough).

Ensurethegoodmechanicalconditionoftheclassifierblades.
11.Milldesignguide.Aninternalviewofatypicalvertical-spindlepulverizerandspecificareaswherespecialattentiontodimensionaltolerancesandassembly
dimensionscanimprovemillperformance.Source:StormTechnologiesInc.

Figure11illustratesthelocationsofwhatweconsidertobethemostcriticalmeasurementsandtolerancesintheRPandMPSpulverizerdesigns.

RichardF.(Dick)Storm,PE(rfstormsea@aol.com('+String.fromCharCode(114,102,115,116,111,114,109,115,101,97,64,97,111,108,46,99,111,109)+'?'))issenior
consultantforStormTechnologiesInc.andaPOWERcontributingeditor.

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