Pulp and paper plants are faced with heightened global competition, as well as mergers and acquisitions, such that plants with limited capacity, low or inconsistent quality, questionable reliability and safety, or which experience loss of talent, are being forced to close. The remaining plants are vulnerable if they do not make changes to address these problems.

Even though paper has been made since the days of the ancient Egyptians, solids handling continues to be much less reliable than the handling of liquids and gases. The reason is solids are much more complicated than liquids and gases, yet most engineers get training in only fluid mechanics. Wood chips, paper pulp, and the various chemical powders used or produced in a pulp and paper plant can exhibit basic flow problems such as arching (bridging) and ratholing. These problems can lead to costly consequences such as unreliable discharge from bins and silos. Plants that produce lime as a feedstock can encounter serious flow, safety and structural problems around the storage and handling of the hot, and often sticky, material. Uncontrolled flow (flooding) of fine powders, such as lime, is also possible. Wood chips present a special challenge because of their anisotropic behavior. The silo geometry and type of feeder become very important in these cases. Flow problems during manufacture may result in excessive downtime, extra labor, inefficient operation and even off-spec product — all of which are costly.

If you are currently experiencing solids handling difficulties, Jenike & Johanson can help you eliminate them. Or, if you are planning a plant expansion or developing a new product, we can utilize our industry-leading technology to help you avoid production mishaps in the future.

KEY ENGINEERING SERVICES

• Uniform packing/filling of wood chips in a reactor vessel
• Uniform steaming of wood chips in a digester
• Hot lime storage bins and feeders
• Pre-steamers
• Digester filling systems
• Increase live capacity wood chip/sawdust storage structures and silos
• Reactor vessel design
• Conveying systems
• Chute systems

In order to formulate an approach to solving or preventing a problem, we need to learn as much as possible about your application to ensure that handling problems do not occur with the new equipment.

TYPICAL PROJECT APPROACH

• Plant visit for troubleshooting, understanding plant requirements, and process auditing
• Flow property testing of bulk solids
• Root cause analysis of handling/feeding/conveying/processing problems
• Functional design of solids handling equipment
• Detailed engineering design of equipment
• Supply of custom designed equipment

For over forty years, our team of experienced engineers has been providing proven technological solutions that are cost-effective and safe. Contact Jenike & Johanson to help you solve and prevent bulk solids handling problems.