Energy and Exergy Analysis of Clinker Cooler in the Cement Industry

Grate coolers which represent one of the pyro-processing units are extensively used in cement industries. The essential function of grate coolers is a waste heat recovery from hot clinker which leaves the rotary kiln. This paper presents an analysis of energy and exergy based on the clinker temperature profile. It focuses on the distributions of temperature, energy and exergy for cooling air and hot clinker along the grate cooler in cement industries. Consequently, this distribution allows predicting the temperatures of secondary air, tertiary air, and exhaust air, which will lead to estimation of waste heat recovery from the clinker cooler system. (paper)