To improve the availability of grate coolers

Mechanical equipment, hydraulic components, its control as well as the process design, all play an important role in the reliability of the clinker cooling system. Only by optimizing all of them can the performance and the availability be optimized. In addition to new design features like the anti-riddling side plates or the aerated beams it is shown that a new solution for the cooler inlet section, called the cross motion grate (CMG), is applied. The aim is to widen-up the grate at increased throughput capacities of up to 15000 t clinker/day and to equalize the clinker distribution actively instead of randomly as in the case of fixed inlet grates. The CMG design reduces the frequency of strokes and the wear rate respectively. Furthermore more attention has to be paid to the movement characteristics generated by the hydraulic drive. Any sharp and discontinuous motion has to be eliminated for reducing the mechanical stress in all components and avoiding the wear-intensive slipping of clinker as far as possible. In the 'competition' of thermal efficiency, power consumption and availability the latter seems to be the most attractive one in the long term, because it combines low maintenance costs with steady product quality and attractive return on investment.