Milling efficiency and technology

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://elibrary2.sugarresearch.com.au/handle/11079/13845

Research outcomes: Optimised mill transport and logistics. Mill capacity and efficiency is optimised through improved processes, technology and value chain coordination and collaboration.

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Start date: 2020

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Now showing 1 - 4 of 4
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    Optimising productivity and variety recommendations through analysis of mill data : Final report 2016/32
    (Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2021) Stringer, Joanne
    The annual productivity of the Australia sugarcane industry fluctuates significantly across most sugarcane growing regions. Although some of this regional variation can be explained by extreme weather events or disease incursions it is important to identify those causes which can be controlled in order to increase profitability for industry. Development of innovative tools to analyse and summarise mill data within a region can be used to identify those farm production units performing below potential and the factors associated with this. An increased understanding of these factors will broaden the adoption of improved farming practices by working with local industry to enable more appropriate selection of varieties to match field conditions, addressing impediments to farm productivity and Nutrient Management Planning.
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    Evaluate the performance of the falling film tube evaporator at Bingera Mill : final report 2019/201
    (Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2020) Sichter, N; Zahn, R; Kumar, S; Broadfoot; Adbi, I
    For the 2018 season Bundaberg Sugar installed a 4000 m2 falling film tube evaporator (FFTE) of the BMA design at No 1 evaporator position at Bingera Mill. This was the first installation of a FFTE into the Australian industry. An evaluation program was undertaken during the 2019 season to assess the performance with respect to heat transfer efficiency, effect of scaling rates on heat transfer, deentrainment efficiency of the juice droplets from the vapour outflow stream and the general operational performance. As well tracer studies were undertaken to determine the distribution of residence times for juice in the evaporator. Measurements were also undertaken to determine the extent of sucrose degradation occurring within the evaporator. Overall the evaporator has performed well with respect to the above list of test parameters. However, the effect of scaling on heat transfer efficiency was only able to be evaluated for typically 120 hours of operation as the mill was restricted to 5 day crushing operations each week due to the small drought affected crop. A chemical clean of the evaporator was undertaken on shutdown each week.
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    Reducing in surging in shredders : final report 2019/204
    (Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2020) Arzaghi, E; Kent, GA; Chohan, P
    Cane shredders and the level of cane preparation achieved by them play a significant role in the performance of every mill’s extraction train. The application of feeder rolls to shredders has a twofold objective of increasing the angle of wrap and maintaining a uniform feed of cane into the shredder. In addition to these improvements that were observed in several experiments across the Australian mills, there have been reports on other benefits of using feeder rollers including reduction of deterioration in shredders. Feeder rolls are currently installed in half of the Australian sugar mills. However, there exists several challenges with operating feeder rolls including inconsistency in feeding rate. Limited research effort has been made to identify a design and setting which yields adequate feeding consistency. Most of the previous research focused on feeder rolls dates back to the 1980s and 1990s confirming that the influence of geometric factors on feeding behaviour is well worthy of investigation.
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    Evaluate the suitability of the fixed element crystalliser for widespread adoption in Australian sugar factories : final report 2019/202
    (Sugar Research Australia Limited, 2020) Gregg, M; Lowrey, M; Broadfoot, R; Abdi, I
    The fixed-element design of a horizontal cooling crystalliser is relatively new to the Australian industry and the installation at Broadwater Mill for the 2017 season proved to be an economical solution to refurbish the mill’s first unit in a continuous-flow station of three crystallisers. The crystalliser consists of 12 fixed cooling elements and 14 rotating paddles. A variable-speed drive was installed to allow a rotational speed of the paddles up to 1.45 r/min, depending on the massecuite viscosity and imposed torque. Apart from fabrication of the fixed elements, the mill’s staff undertook the complete installation. During the 2019 season, trials were undertaken which demonstrated good overall performance with respect to heat transfer, residence time distribution and molasses exhaustion. The good performance is attributed to the paddles providing strong flow of massecuite transversely and also longitudinally to generate flow across the cooling surface. Torque control of the variable speed drive is recommended as this allows rotation of the paddles at maximum speed for the prevailing viscosity of the massecuite, while limiting the stresses on the drive components.