While the primary purpose of the calciner in a cement plant is to aid decomposition of calcite from the preheated raw meal, the need to lower CO2 emissions and the introduction of alternative fuels has broadened the range of requirements that modern-day calciners need to address. By Dr Heiko Schürmann and Norbert Streit, KHD-Humboldt Wedag GmbH, Germany.
The main purpose of a calciner is still the decomposition of calcite from the preheated raw meal. This is the most energy-intensive process during the production of clinker in a cement plant. The use of calciners results in a considerable reduction of the kiln’s thermal load, enabling much higher clinker capacities with the same kiln size.
