PREPARATION

AND START
OF LOESCHE MILL

I.

PREPARATION BEFORE START:

Before the mill is started it is of course a precondition that all

measuring instruments are correctly calibrated and all interlocking is
functioning through signal and/or sequence tests.
In addition all the alarm limits for temperature, pressure, gas, oil
and cooling water flows must be adjusted to the prescribed values.
Following points must be checked before start of the mill:

1) Oil level in the mill main gear box and separator gearbox.
2) Oil level in the hydraulic skids for the roller system and gear oil
supply system.

3) The filters for oil , gear boxes and hydraulics , are all to be
checked and cleaned , if necessary.

4) All stop valves in gear box lubricating station , roller tensioning

system and roller bearings lubricating station are in their correct
position.

5) Hot Gas Furnace, diesel tank, fresh air flaps, flexible hoses &
control panel indications.

6) All feed hoppers contain a suitable quantity of raw materials.

7) All manholes and inspection doors are closed properly.
8) Compressed air for bag filter purging & for reject valve is
present.

9) Check if bypass dampers 275.07 and 275.05 are closed.

10) The composition of the mill feed is chosen in accordance with
the instructions given by the laboratory.
Before the preheating of the mill begins the following auxiliary machines
are started:

Pump for hydraulic Roller system

Gear oil pumps for mill main gear box lubrication

II.

PREHEATING THE MILL:

When the cold mill has to be started it is necessary to preheat the mill for
one ~ two hours to prevent condensation in the system. In order to
protect the roller bearings and sealing it is necessary that the preheating
of the mill circuit is done at a suitably low temperature.
Heating up with Hot Gas Furnace:
1. The raw meal transport to the storage silo and the bag filter for dedusting the silo are started.
2. Start of the dust transport and electrostatic precipitator (ESP)
except the ESP high voltage (High Tension).
3. ESP Fan is started.
4. The rotor of the separator is turning in minimum speed, in order to
avoid unilateral deformation of these components.
5. ESP Fan damper is opened slightly. The mill outlet damper 275.11
is opened so much that the mill inlet pressure is : - 30 mm H2O.
6. Adjust the fresh air dampers and the system of firing for the Hot
Gas Furnace and start it.
7. By the adjustments of mill outlet damper 275.11 and ESP fan
damper as well as the oil amount to the Hot Gas Furnace, hot air is
drawn through the mill a span of 2 hours.
8. The temperature after the mill must be in the range of 100 ~120C
and the mill inlet pressure should be kept at - 30 mm H2O.

9. If necessary the mill outlet temperature may be lowered through

opening of the cold air damper.

III.

START OF THE MILL with Hot Gas Furnace:

Just before the start of the mill the gas dampers are opened in
such a way that the differential pressure is at least 900 mm H2O.
The fuel amount to the Hot Gas Furnace is slightly increased in order to
maintain the mill outlet temperature in the range between 100~ 120 C.

The rollers are lifted up from the grinding table. Pre-charge the mill
feeding system.
The starting up of mill main drive
rotating with lifted rollers.

and the grinding table is now

Next the mill feed is started with approximately 50 -60% of the

nominal production; 0.5 * 130 ~ 65 or 0,6 * 130 ~ 75 ton per hour
and rollers will be lowered.
Set point for hydraulic system ~ 1500 psi.
The amount of air passing through the mill is adjusted by means of gas
dampers and the mill differential pressure (~550 mm H2O) to avoid fall
through of material in the nozzle ring.
After working pressure adjustment the draught in the mill and the amount
of fuel to the Hot Gas Furnace are readjusted ( p = 70 mm H2O, Tout =
90 ~ 100 C), as the quantity of fresh feed increases the working pressure
increases in a range between 1800 2000 psi. To prevent damage to the
roller mill, the working pressure must not exceed 2300 psi . When this
pressure is reached, an alarm message is sent and when the pressure
reaches 2300 psi, the mill is shut down automatically.
The power consumption of the mill motor will go up as the grinding
rollers begin to compact the material on the grinding table. At the
same time the vibrations in the mill becomes more pronounced. The
mill outlet temperature will decrease.
If necessary, the fuel amount to the Hot Gas Furnace is readjusted or
the manual cold air dampers closed.
The desired operating temperature after the mill is kept constant by:

Stepwise increase of mill fresh feed

The working pressure adjustment
Quantity of air passing through the mill
The speed of the separator is adjusted within the range between 30 ~ 40
% from the maximum rotor speed (according to the fineness of the
product and the differential pressure within the mill system).

IV.

STOP OF THE MILL:

There are two types of mill stops:

1. The Provoked stops ; equipment faults , power failure,
instruments
malfunctioning
&
production
related
interruptions.
2. Planned stops; Full silos, preventive maintenance, Lack of raw
materials.
Only the planned stops will be treated in the following.
Before a planned stop of the mill, the fresh feed to the mill is
reduced to 60 % in order to reduce the amount of material over the
grinding table (inside the mill).
The grinding layer thickness will go down and the mill vibration will
increase.
The Hot Gas Furnace should be stopped.
The fresh feed to the mill, rollers lifted up, and main drive will stop.
Finally the raw meal transport to the homogenizing silo is stopped.
The fresh air damper and the fresh air fan for the Hot Gas Furnace must
continue to run for at least 1 hour in order to cool down the Hot Gas
Furnace and gas ducts.
In case of long lasting stop of the mill department the following machines
must be stopped as well:
1. The oil pumps for the hydraulic system for the grinding rollers
2. The gear oil pumps for mill gear box lubrication
3. Cooling water for gear box lubrication

V.

NORMAL MILL OPERATION:

In order to achieve a stable mill operation the mill fresh feed must be
as homogeneous as possible. That means it is very important that all
weighing feeders are running continuously and the stop of a weigh-feeder
for a main component will mean stop of the mill.

The fineness of the product is normally determined by the sieve residue

on the 90 microns sieve; 12 ~ 15 %.
If the fineness deviates from the desired fineness the setting of the speed
of separator rotor;
When the speed of the separator rotor increased the mill will
produce a finer product
When the speed of the separator decreased the mill will produce a
more coarse product
Finally the residual moisture content in the product is determined.
VI.

MILL VIBRATION:

During the operation the mill vibrations are measured continuously by

means of vibrometer which is placed on the mill gear box.
Whenever the vibrations exceed a preset upper limit, the mill motor trips
automatically in order not to cause mechanical damage of the grinding
parts, the hydraulic system and the main gear box.

The reason for the increased vibration level is normally caused by

too little material in the mill. Vibrations may, however, also be
caused by excessive quantities of Fine materials in the mill or in the
fresh mill feed.
When there is TOO little material in the mill resulting in a thin
layer of material between the rollers and the grinding table and a
LOWER differential pressure over the nozzle ring and the
grinding table, the mill fresh feed must be increased until the mill
operation becomes normal again.
If the vibration level increases very rapid the grinding rollers may be
lifted up away from the table for a short time.

When there is too much material circulating in the mill, the fresh
feed to the mill must be reduced. By decreasing the separator rotor
speed for a short time the level of material in the mill will be
reduced.

VII.

OPERATIONAL PARAMETERS AND THEIR CONTROL:

To ensure sufficient and reliable operational parameters for the mill

operator, it is necessary to equip the control system with adequate
instruments.
A. INSTRUMENTATION:
By instrumentation is meant both the equipment necessary to measure
and register different operational parameters and the equipment used to
change those parameters; Valves (regulating, solenoids, proportional),
dampers. This means that there are three different processes:
Measuring
Registration
Action
Measuring should be made at the most adequate point to give a reliable ,
stable and correct signal.
The signal passes to the control panel for registration in some form or
another, often after having been transformed. It may be registered in an
instrument giving the actual value, in continuous graphical form and in
accumulative form, or in case of a system, the three forms are
computerized.

The following
automation:

action

may

have

three

different

degrees

of

Manual action in the field or site

Manual action from the CCR

Automatic action from CCR

The following figure overleaf shows the instruments considered necessary
for good process control of mill. The list also indicates the type of
registration and the type of control considered necessary.

The list do not include instruments and equipment necessary for machine
safety, as for example temperatures in grinding rollers bearings and main
gear unit , separator gear unit , oil levels -----etc.

List of Instruments Necessary for Mill

Description
parameters

of

Registration

Control
Manual

Act.
value
Raw mix
Feeder

Cont.
graph

Accumulated
value

Field

Auto.

CCR

Weighing

tph

ton

Yes

Yes

Yes

High grate Weighing

Feeder

tph

ton

Yes

Yes

Yes

Sand

tph

ton

Yes

Yes

Yes

Total Feed

tph

tph

ton

Yes

Yes

Yes

Power
consumption
mill motor

KW

KW

KWh

Power
ESP fan

KW

Yes,
mechanicall
y
preadjusted

Yes

No

consumption

Power
consumption
separator drive

amps

Power
consumption
mill auxiliaries

amps

Grinding pressure

Mill Vibration

psi

mm/s

KWh

Temperature mill inlet

Yes

Temperature
outlet

Yes

Pressure mill inlet

mm
H2 O

mm
H2 O

Yes

Differential Pressure

mm
H2 O

mm
H2 O

Yes

Pressure mill outlet

mm
H2 O

mm
H2 O

Yes

Separator speed

rpm

No

Yes

Gas

Yes

Yes

No

outlet

Yes

Yes

No

Position
damper
Position
damper

Kiln

mill

mill

B. OPERATIONAL PARAMETERS:
The operational parameters are divided into:
1. Variables or parameters to be controlled
2. Control parameters
The variables are the parameters that must be kept as constant as
possible at an optimum values.
Control parameters are the parameters which are adjusted or altered to
keep the variables at their optimum values.
Auxiliary parameters are the parameters that does not influence the
operation directly but which help in the form of safety or statistics.
VARIABLES
1) Differential Pressure; p
The differential pressure is a measure of the conditions inside the mill.
It is showing the relation between the air volume passing inside the
mill and the amount of grinding material.

Dropping and rising values of differential pressure indicates that the

relationship is changing.
The differential pressure is measured at a point in the mill inlet gas
duct and at a point above the grinding rollers in the outlet gas duct
before the ESP. It is registered as actual value in mm H2O.
The control parameters for p are:
o The fresh feed to the mill
o The air volume passing inside the mill
o The speed of the separator (rpm)

o The grinding pressure (psi)

2) Mill Vibration:

The mill vibrations are measured by means of a vibrometer

placed on the mill gear box and is registered as actual value in
mm/s,
The control parameters for the mill vibration are
o The fresh feed to the mill
o The speed of the separator in rpm
o The grinding pressure in psi
o The gas flow through the mill
5) Power consumption of the mill main drive:

The power consumption of the mill motor is registered as actual

value in KW.
The control parameters affecting the mill motor KW are:
o

The fresh feed to the mill

o The speed of the separator in rpm

o The grinding pressure in psi
o The gas flow through the mill

6) Mill Inlet Temperature:

The mill inlet temperature is registered as actual value in C

.
The mill inlet temperature depends on the construction of the gas
ducts; and whether the gases derive from the Hot Gas Furnace or
from the kiln exit gases; Tinlet = ~ 250 C.
Generally, the mill inlet temperature is adjusted by the
temperature of the Hot Gas Furnace or in the case of kiln exhaust
gases by changing the position of the gate between the kiln and
mill.
In case there is false air, this will have much influence on the inlet
temperature.
7) Mill Outlet Temperature:

The mill outlet temperature is registered as actual value in C.

The mill outlet temperature depends on both the moisture content
of the mill fresh feed and volume of the hot gases passing
through the mill. It is also influenced by the actual quantity of
false air.
The control parameters for mill outlet gas temperature:
o Adjustments of the quantity and temperature of the hot
gases , i.e. fuel valves for Hot Gas Furnace & kiln exhaust
gas damper
o The ESP damper
o The cold air dampers for Hot Gas Furnace
8) Pressure Mill Inlet:

The pressure in the mill inlet is registered as actual value in

mm H2O.
The pressure must be kept slightly negative between -30 ~ 50, mm H2O in order to reduce the amount of false air.
The control parameter for the mill inlet pressure is the
adjustment of the ESP fan damper.

CONTROL PARAMETERS:
1) Mill Fresh Feed:

The total mill feed is registered as actual value in tph

Adjustments of the mill feed have direct influence on the
o Mill differential pressure
o Mill motor power consumption
o Mill vibrations
o Mill outlet gas temperature
Identically the total fresh feed influences
parameters in the grinding and drying process,

practically

all

2) Grinding pressure:
The grinding pressure is registered as actual value in psi,
Adjustments of the grinding pressure have major influence on
the mill motor power consumption, the mill
Vibrations, the grinding layer thickness, the mill differential
pressure and the mill outlet pressure.
3) Separator Speed:
The speed of the separator is registered as actual value in rpm.
Changes in the separator speed first of all imply a change in
the fineness of the product and secondly it will influence the
mill differential pressure, the mill vibrations , the grinding layer
thickness , the mill motor power consumption and the mill
outlet pressure.
4) Position of the Kiln Gas Damper

Adjustments of the kiln gas damper will result in changes of

the amount of hot gases to the mill. At the same time it will
change the mill inlet and outlet temperatures, the mill inlet
pressure and indirectly the mill differential pressure.

5) Position of the ESP fan damper:

Adjustments of the damper will change the volume of hot

gases passing through the mill. Changes of damper position
have direct influence on inlet and outlet pressure and also inlet
and outlet temperatures as well as the mill differential
pressure.
6) Position of the By-pass damper:

Adjustment of the by-pass damper will change the gas flow

through the mill and have a major influence on the mill
differential pressure, grinding layer thickness , mill vibrations
and minor influence on the mill inlet and outlet temperatures.

AUXILIARY PARAMETERS:
1) Feed of mix bed , limestone , sand:

Said feed parameters are registered in the actual value in tph.

The parameters are important for quality control, and for mill
operation.
2) Power consumption of separator and mill auxiliaries:

The power consumption of the separator and mill auxiliaries;

bucket elevator, rotary blowers, screw pumps, rotary air lock
feeders ------etc, are registered as actual value in amp.
Said parameters are mostly used as an indication of the load of
the mentioned machines.
3) Gas Temperature in ESP Outlet:

Said temperature is registered as actual value in C.

Heating up of the electrostatic precipitator is used during
starting of the mill circuit to avoid the risk of condensation in
the system, particularly in the ESP

CHANGES OF PARAMETERS:

The mill operator can change or adjust one of the

control parameters:

following

1) The amount of total fresh feed to the mill

2) The grinding pressure
3) The speed of the separator
4) The position of the ESP fan damper
5) The position of the by-pass damper

Direct Action
Control
parameters
INCREASE

Indirect Reaction Controlled Parameters or the VARIABLES

Bed
Thickness

Differential
pressure ,

Mill
Vibrations

Mill
Power
consumption

Mill
Outlet
Temp.

Product
Fineness

Prod.
Capacity

Total
Mill
Feed Rate

Grinding
Pressure

Separator
Speed

ESP
fan
Damper

By-pass
Damper

SYMBOLS:
+ : Increase

: Unchanged

- : Decrease

( ) : Small change

The effects of such changes / adjustments, provided that only one

parameter is changed or adjusted and that the remaining
parameters are kept constant.

Presuming the mill is in normal steady operation the consequences

to the mill characteristics resulting from changes of the directly
accessible control parameters can be described in a simplified way.
The principle is that adjustment of the directly accessible action
control parameters lead to a change of the indirect reaction
parameters or the variables.
The operator can only control the variables by regulating the control
or action parameters.