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INFUB - 11th European Conference on Industrial Furnaces and Boilers, INFUB-11
INFUB - 11th European Conference on Industrial Furnaces and Boilers, INFUB-11
Mathematical model to investigate the influence of circulation
Mathematical model to investigate the influence of circulation
The 15thsystems
International onSymposium
the firing of ceramics
on District Heating and Cooling
systems on the firing of ceramics
a,
Tino Redemann
Assessing the feasibility of *, Eckehard Spechtaa
a, using the heat demand-outdoor
Tino Redemann *, Eckehard Specht
temperature function for a long-term district heat demand forecast
Otto von Guericke University, Institute of Fluid Dynamics and Thermodynamics, Magdeburg, Germany
a

Otto von Guericke University, Institute of Fluid Dynamics and Thermodynamics, Magdeburg, Germany
a

Abstract I. Andrića,b,c*, A. Pinaa, P. Ferrãoa, J. Fournierb., B. Lacarrièrec, O. Le Correc

Abstract
a
IN+ Centerlarge
Relatively for Innovation,
amountsb of Technology
exhaust gas andatPolicy Research - Instituto
low temperature level, Superior
especiallyTécnico,
from theAv. Rovisco
cooling Pais 1, 1049-001
of the ware, leave Lisbon, Portugal
the tunnel kiln
Relatively large amounts Veolia Recherche &low Innovation, 291 Avenue Dreyfous Daniel, 78520 Limay,ofFrance
and cause significant
c heat losses. This gas is normally used for drying purposes, but some studies recommend the decouplingkiln
of exhaust gas at temperature level, especially from the cooling the ware, leave the tunnel of
Département Systèmes Énergétiques et Environnement - IMT Atlantique, 4 rue Alfred Kastler, 44300 Nantes, France
and causeprocess
the firing significant
and heat losses.
drying processThisingas is normally
order to optimize used forseparately.
them drying purposes,
To reduce but the
some studies
heat lossesrecommend
and to improve the decoupling of
the efficiency
the firing
of the process
firing andthe
process, drying
heat process
transferin order tothe
between optimize
gas andthem separately.
the ware, To reduce
especially in the the heat zone,
cooling losseshas
andtotobeimprove
increased. the efficiency
of the firing process, the heat transfer between the gas and the ware, especially in the cooling zone, has to be increased.
Abstract a mathematical model is used to simulate the kiln process. Roof tiles are used as a reference product. Process parameters
Therefore,
Therefore, a mathematical
such as throughput, energymodel is used tomaterial
consumption, simulate the kiln process.
properties for tiles Roof tiles are used
and cassettes, as a reference
geometrical data ofproduct. Process
the furnace and parameters
the setting
are oriented on a real production line. Within the model the modes of heat transfer, consisting of forced convection, anddecreasing
District
such as heating
throughput, networks
energy are commonly
consumption, addressed
material in the
properties literature
for tiles andas one of
cassettes, the most
geometricaleffective
data of solutions
the furnace for and
gasthe the
setting
radiation
greenhouse
are oriented ongasa emissions
real from
production the
line. building
Within thesector.
model These
the
are considered to investigate the influencing parameters such as gas velocity. systems
modes of require
heat high
transfer, investments
consisting of which
forced are returned
convection, through
and gas the heat
radiation
sales.
are Due totothe
considered changed the
investigate climate conditions
influencing and building
parameters such as gas renovation
velocity.policies, heat demand in the future could decrease,
prolonging the investment return period.
Especially in the cooling zone, there is high potential to improve the convective heat transfer with circulation systems. In order to
The main scope of this paper is to assess the feasibility of using the heat demand – outdoor temperature function for heat demand
Especially
reduce in the cooling
the The
amount zone,gas
of cooling there is highand
radically potential
thinktoabout
improve the convective heat transferandwith circulation
process,systems. In order to
forecast. district of Alvalade, located into Lisbon a decoupling
(Portugal), of firing
was used as aprocess
case study.drying
The district istheconsisted
required mean
of 665
reduce
flow the amount
velocity throughof cooling
the gas should
setting radicallybe and
in theto think
range about
of 20 am/s
decoupling
for roof of firing process and drying process, the required mean
tiles.
buildings that vary in both construction period and typology. Three weather scenarios (low, medium, high) and three district
flow velocityscenarios
renovation through the setting
were should (shallow,
developed be in the range of 20 m/sdeep).
intermediate, for roof
Totiles.
estimate the error, obtained heat demand values were
© 2017
©compared The
2017 Thewith Authors.
results
Authors. Published by
from a dynamic
Published Elsevier Ltd.
heatLtd.
by Elsevier demand model, previously developed and validated by the authors.
© 2017
Peer-review
The The under
results
Peer-review Authors.
showed
under Published
responsibility
that when only
responsibility by
of Elsevier
of the
weather
the Ltd.
organizing
change
organizing committee of
of INFUB-11.
is considered,
committee the margin of error could be acceptable for some applications
INFUB-11
Peer-review
(the error inunderannualresponsibility
demand was of lower
the organizing
than 20%committee of INFUB-11.
for all weather scenarios considered). However, after introducing renovation
Keywords:
scenarios,Ceramic;
the error Tunnel
valuekiln; Heat transfer;
increased up toConvection; Circulationonsystems
59.5% (depending the weather and renovation scenarios combination considered).
Keywords: Ceramic; Tunnel kiln; Heat transfer; Convection; Circulation systems
The value of slope coefficient increased on average within the range of 3.8% up to 8% per decade, that corresponds to the
decrease in the number of heating hours of 22-139h during the heating season (depending on the combination of weather and
renovation scenarios considered). On the other hand, function intercept increased for 7.8-12.7% per decade (depending on the
coupled scenarios). The values suggested could be used to modify the function parameters for the scenarios considered, and
improve the accuracy of heat demand estimations.

© 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

* Corresponding
Peer-review author.
under Universitaetsplatz
responsibility of the 2, 39106 Magdeburg,
Scientific CommitteeGermany,
of The Tel.:
15th+49 391 67 58125.
International Symposium on District Heating and
* Corresponding
E-mail
Cooling. author.
address: Universitaetsplatz
tino.redemann@ovgu.de 2, 39106 Magdeburg, Germany, Tel.: +49 391 67 58125.
E-mail address: tino.redemann@ovgu.de
1876-6102
Keywords:©Heat
2017demand;
The Authors. Published
Forecast; Climatebychange
Elsevier Ltd.
1876-6102
Peer-review©under
2017responsibility
The Authors. of
Published by Elsevier
the organizing Ltd. of INFUB-11.
committee
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of INFUB-11.

1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Peer-review under responsibility of the Scientific Committee of The 15th International Symposium on District Heating and Cooling.
1876-6102 © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
Peer-review under responsibility of the organizing committee of INFUB-11
10.1016/j.egypro.2017.07.199
 Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627 621
2 T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000

Nomenclature

Symbol Index
M Mass flow rate, kg/s 0 Standard
Q Heat flow rate, W CONV Convection
R Resistance G Gas
T Temperature, °C or K RAD Radiation
c Specific heat capacity, J/kg/K S Solid
hu Lower heating value, J/kg f Fuel
k Node i Element
s Gap width, m p Heat capacity of a gas at
w Flow velocity, m/s constant pressure
 Difference
 Heat conductivity, W/m/K

1. Introduction

In industry, more and more effort has to be made to save energy. On the one hand, the consumption of energy has
to be reduced for economic reasons. On the other hand, the demands of European governments to reduce greenhouse
gas emissions must be met. The use of renewable energies and biogenic fuels does not appear to be viable in the long
term. The ceramic industry has already taken many energy saving measures in recent years [1-3]. Energy losses caused
by poorly insulated walls and ceilings could be almost eliminated. The historical firing curves with several hundred
degrees of temperature difference between the top and bottom of the tunnel kiln were successfully prevented by high
speed burners, hot and cold air injections. Flat settings, increasing throughput, good mechanical handling and low
vulnerability to failures make the tunnel kiln an ideal firing unit for coarse ceramics such as bricks or roof tiles.
However, a relatively large amount of exhaust gas remained at low temperature level. Actually, the entire hot air
generated during the cooling of the bricks is sucked out of the tunnel kiln and is transferred to the asynchronous
working dryer. This so-called combined air binds more than 50% of the primary energy in most cases, which is needed
for the kiln process as shown in Fig. 1.

Secondly, for the energy optimization of the dryer, the drying air temperature must have the highest possible values.
However, the cooling air does not have such high temperatures. If the dryer is operated autonomously, the drying air
can always be adjusted to the optimal condition by mixing with combustion air. The results are described in detail in
e.g. [4,5].

Fig. 1: Typical energy input and outputs of a tunnel kiln for production of building ceramics [6]
622 Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627
T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 3

With the decoupling of dryer and kiln, new possibilities arise for saving energy during the firing process, which
requires a major amount of the total energy. There is no minimum energy requirement for the firing process due to a
largely autarkic sintering process. As a result, the heat generated during the cooling process can in principle be used
to heat the products. Losses occur only because of a required temperature difference for the heat transfer and thus a
complete transfer of the enthalpy is not possible. A low energy demand for the firing process exists only if limestone
is present in the raw material. The calcination enthalpy of this fraction represents the minimum enthalpy.

2. Objective of the work

One possible solution strategy is to use circulation systems in the cooling zone to increase the convection in order
to reduce the amount of cooling air. Ideally, the cooling air then flows completely through the kiln and acts as highly
preheated combustion air. This eliminates the suction of cooling air and the dryer can be operated autonomously,
which allows optimum process control without dependencies in the composite of dryer and kiln. The reduction of the
quantity of cooling air leads to reduced energy consumption.

In addition, the required flow velocity, which will be generated in the tunnel by the circulation devices in order
to reduce the energy consumption significantly, has to be known. Existing circulating systems can then be used
optimally or the corresponding boundary conditions can be predefined for new developments in the field of
circulation systems.

3. Mathematical model

To investigate the influence of circulation systems on the kiln process, the preheating zone and the cooling zone
of a tunnel kiln are simulated using a mathematical model. Roof tiles with H-cassettes, which are approximated by a
plate system, are used as setting. Process parameters such as throughput, energy consumption, material properties of
tiles and cassettes, geometrical data of the kiln and the setting are oriented on a real production line. The axial profiles
of the gas, the ware temperature, and the flow velocity are calculated respectively. The model is one dimensional.
Therefore, homogenous conditions are assumed in the cross-section of the setting. Additionally, the axial profiles of
the heat transfer by convection and gas radiation are calculated.

3.1. Calculation scheme

The heating and cooling of the ware is based on the theory of the heat transfer in a countercurrent heat exchanger.
The previously mentioned axial profiles are calculable, when the kiln is divided into segments. Then, the mass and
energy balance can be solved for each segment i. Schematically, the calculation scheme is shown in Fig. 2. For each
segment i between the nodes k and k+1, the mixing temperature is determined from all the gaseous inputs. This
includes the axial gas flow MG k 1 , optional fuel supply M if , combustion air and air injections Miair as well as suctions.
Then, the mixing temperature can be used to calculate the heat QGS , which is transferred to the solid. Furthermore,
wall losses and losses to the kiln car are taken into account in the model.

This procedure is now conducted for all segments of the kiln, using the input variables of the considered element
before. Thus, the explicit Euler method is used for the numerical solution of the axial profiles.
 Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627 623
4 T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000

The heat is transferred from the gas to the solid. In order to be able to model the heat transfer mechanisms, such as
convection and gas radiation, the flow through the setting is described in the following.

Fig. 2: Calculation scheme around kiln segment i

3.2. Heat transfer

As already shown in the previous chapter, the use of circulation systems in the cooling zone of the firing channel
can save up to 50 % of the primary energy, if the heat transfer can be significantly improved. The question is, how far
the heat transfer has to be increased by convection in order to be able to reduce the quantity of cooling air. In the
following, the heat transfer between gas and solid will be described.

Fig. 3: Simplified flow through a gap inside the setting of roof tiles while heating
624 Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627
T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 5

Fig. 3 shows a standard gap somewhere inside the setting in preheating zone. The gap with the width s is flowed
through with combustion gas. The gas is at a temperature of T Gas and an average flow velocity w . The velocity of the
gas flowing through the setting and velocity of the gas passing by the setting is assumed to be equal due to same gap
widths in case of a setting with roof tiles. Using natural gas and an excess air number of 1.2, the combustion gas
contains about 16%vol of water vapor and 8%vol of carbon dioxide. For a setting with roof tiles, the gap width is
assumed to be 55 mm. If the gap is considered to be somewhere in cooling zone, combustion air is replaced by air.

The thermal resistances are shown in Fig 4. Convection and radiation are connected parallel and they are connected
in series with the thermal resistance by conduction inside the solid [7].

Fig. 4: Thermal resistances against heat transfer between gas and solid

The heat transfer by convection is approximated with known Nusselt functions for the flow through a rectangular
channel. A distinction is made between laminar and turbulent flow conditions. Furthermore, heat is transferred by gas
radiation. The radiative active gas components, carbon dioxide and water vapor, and their radiation behavior with
regard to temperature, partial pressure and beam length are taken into account.

4. Simulation results

4.1. Firing curve

The calculated axial temperatures of the gas and solid are shown in Fig. 5. In the preheating zone, the temperatures
rise almost linearly due to the air to brick ratio of one. During the fast cooling, large temperature differences occur
due to the injection of cooling air, so a relatively low air to brick ratio of about 0.5 is sufficient.

Fig. 5: Firing curve and mass-related gas to solid ratio

6 T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000
Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627 625

In the region of 580 °C, the cooling is slowed because of the quartz inversion. In the final cooling stage, large quantities
of cooling air are used in order to achieve rapid cooling to ambient temperature. This is a typical axial temperature
profile in a tunnel kiln. In the following section, the associated heat transfer conditions along the kiln are stated.

4.2. Effect of circulation

To illustrate the influence of an additional circulation in the region of the cooling zone, the axial profiles of the
convective and radiative heat transfer coefficients are shown in Fig. 6. The thermal resistance by conduction is almost
independent of the axial position and is therefore not indicated.

As the temperature in the preheating zone increases, the heat transfer generally increases. The heat transfer by
radiation dominates above 400 to 500 °C. Due to the absence of radiative active gases, heat is only transferred by
convection while cooling. This is compensated by high cooling air quantities as well as large temperature differences
between gas and solid. If the quantity of cooling air will be significantly reduced in order to use it in the firing zone
as highly preheated combustion air, an air to brick ratio of one is targeted in the entire kiln. Thus, the temperature
difference between gas and solid is nearly constant everywhere.

Fig. 6: Axial profile of heat transfer coefficient in a tunnel kiln with and without circulation in the cooling zone

The preheating zone and cooling zone are of different lengths, so the heat transfer area is different. Thus, the heat
transfer must be larger for a smaller area. An effective heat transfer is achieved during fast cooling and final cooling.
The length ratio of cooling to preheating is thus about 0.5. Thus, the heat transfer in the fast and final cooling stage
must be about twice as high as in the preheating zone. This situation shows the blue dashed line. With circulation, the
heat transfer coefficient must be increased accordingly.

The required flow velocity in the setting is shown in Fig. 7. Without additional circulation, the axial flow velocity
is in the range of less than 4 m/s. In order to meet the requirement of the heat transfer as mentioned above, 15 to 25
m/s are required during fast cooling and up to 10 m/s are required during final cooling. This result can be considered
as a rough estimation.
626 Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627
T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000 7

Fig. 7: Axial profile of the gas flow velocity in a tunnel kiln, dashed line shows required flow velocity

5. Conclusions

The use of circulation systems in the cooling zone to increase the convection in order to reduce the amount of
cooling air is a new concept. Ideally, the cooling air then flows completely through the kiln and acts as highly
preheated combustion air. This eliminates the suction of cooling air and the dryer can be operated autonomously. Both
processes, firing and drying, could be controlled separately under optimal conditions. The energy consumption of the
whole production line would decrease.

In order to meet these requirements, circulation systems have to generate high flow velocities up to 20 m/s for the
production of e.g. roof tiles.

Conventional circulation systems for tunnel kilns do not reach this flow velocity. These systems suck off the gas
and blow it back at other places. This causes a very high pressure loss inside the circulation system. As a result, only
relatively low volume flow rates are produced [6].
Therefore, a circulation system is proposed, which is already established in the aluminum and copper industry for the
convective heating of products [8]. For this purpose, the kiln ceiling has to be lifted. Radial fans are installed in the
free space above the setting, and the shaft of the rotor goes vertically upwards through the kiln ceiling and is driven
externally. As a result, the circulated gas remains completely in the kiln. The consequence is that very high volume
flow rates are generated in the cross-section at high velocity.

Further investigations have to show whether the flow velocity can be achieved with these systems. For this purpose,
a three-dimensional flow simulation of a kiln segment by means of Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) is provided.
The aim of the flow simulation is to determine the flow field, which depends on the power and the circulation rate of
the radial fan.

This study obtains a new concept how to separate the firing and drying process and gives some general ideas about
the energy saving potential and the required range of flow velocity inside the setting. Obviously, the model has to be
validated with a real kiln process. Then, an adequate study about expected quantitative impacts on efficiency and costs
of the proposed system compared to conventional kilns is possible.
 Tino Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 120 (2017) 620–627 627
8 T. Redemann et al. / Energy Procedia 00 (2017) 000–000

References

[1] Agrafiotis C, Tsoutsos T. Energy saving technologies in the European ceramic sector: A systematic review. Applied Thermal
Engineering. 21 (2001) p. 1231-1249.
[2] Gubbon R. Tile and brick manufacture – a decade of progress. Tile Brick Int.. 10 (1994) p. 155-158.
[3] Sladek R. Successful kilns for structural ceramics. Tile Brick Int.. 9 (1993) 209-211.
[4] Junge K. Energy demand for the production of bricks and tiles, Brick and Tile Industry International. 55 (2002) p. 16-24.
[5] Redemann T, Specht E, Rimpel E. Limitations of the use of circulation systems and their influence on the temperature and velocity
profile in tunnel kilns, Brick and Tile Industry International. (2015) pp. 6.
[6] Knüpfer U, Rimpel E, Specht E, Redemann T. Increased energy efficiency of tunnel kilns by increasing the convective heat transfer
through circulation systems and optimized setting. IGF 16997. 2015. pp. 99. (in German)
[7] Specht E. Heat and Mass Transfer in Thermal Process Engineering. Vulkan Verlag Essen, 2014. (in German)
[8] Bölling R, Lenz W, Perkowski D, Gruber J. Fans for high convective furnaces, in: Pfeifer H, Nacke B, Beneke F. Handbook of
Thermoprocessing Techniques, Volume 2: Plants, Components, Safety, 2. Edition.. Vulkan Verlag. Essen, 2015.