Calcined clay cooler

Abstract

A calcined clay cooler 100 having a rotatably supported clay conduit, the clay conduit having a clay conduit wall surrounding a clay conduit volume having an upstream clay inlet and a downstream clay outlet, the calcined clay cooler provides improved coolant handling and reduced operating costs where the clay conduit wall includes at least one coolant channel having a channel wall surrounding a channel volume and defining a channel inlet and a channel outlet.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the manufacture of a pozzolanic or hydraulic material for use in replacing cement clinker, such as for use in the manufacture of Portland cement. More specifically, the present invention relates to a calcined clay cooler. The calcined clay cooler has a rotation axis and at least one clay pipe. The one or more clay pipes may each have a clay pipe wall that surrounds a clay pipe volume having an upstream clay inlet and a downstream clay outlet. The clay pipe is rotatably supported to rotate relative to the rotation axis. Background Art

[0002] Cement clinker is a recognized concrete ingredient, but its production is accompanied by a large amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. In order to reduce the amount of CO2 released per ton of concrete, it is proposed to replace at least a portion of the clinker with a material similar to pozzolanic ash. For example, natural pozzolanic ash and fly ash. In addition, potential hydraulic materials such as ground granulated blast furnace slag have also been proposed as clinker substitutes. Unfortunately, the availability of these materials is limited, and so-called artificial pozzolanic ash has been proposed. These artificial pozzolanic ash can be made by calcining clay, usually calcined between 600°C and 800°C (see, for example, Rodrigo Fernandez, Fernando Martirena and Karen L.Scrivener:The origin of the pozzolanic activity of calcined clay minerals:Acomparison between kaolinite, illite and montmorillonite; Cement and Concrete Research, Vol. 41, 2011, pp. 113-122). Tobias Danner, Reactivity of Calcined Clays, PhD-Thesis, 2013, Trondheim University (ISBN 978-82-471-4552-4) also reports industrial-scale experiments. At present, on an industrial scale, clay is heated by a clay furnace ("calcined", see below) and then cooled by means of a calcined clay cooler. This calcined clay cooler is a rotating drum with a spray-cooled drum shell. Water is sprayed on the outer peripheral surface of the drum as a coolant (Luiz Felipe de Pinho and Roberto Campos: Claying it all on the line; World Cement, Vol. 4, 2021, pp. 35-38, see the last few figures), and the calcined clay is transported to the cooler outlet in the rotating drum.

[0003] US Patent 11,530,881 B2 proposes a bulk material cooler having an open transport conduit to indirectly transport the material to be cooled. The transport conduits are arranged around the axis of rotation and are each adjusted to be commonly filled with the material to be cooled via a conical filling area. Each transport conduit is concentrically arranged in a respective cooling conduit. The cooling conduits are connected to a single coolant conduit via supply conduits arranged in a spoke-like manner, wherein a cooling medium is supplied to the coolant conduit and flows into the cooling conduit via the supply conduit.

[0004] These fired clays are called "calcined clays", although calcination, literally meaning the thermal decomposition of calcium carbonate (CaCO3), has not taken place. It is assumed that the term "calcined" is used only because of the analogy with the cement clinker process: limestone is rendered hydraulic by heating it above the calcination temperature, and clay is rendered pozzolanic by heating it. Both materials can be "enabled" for use in the concrete industry, so to speak. In other words, the term "calcined clay" refers only to clay that has been subjected to a heat treatment designed to render the clay pozzolanic and / or the clay hydraulic. Summary of the invention

[0005] The problem underlying the present invention is to improve the cooling of calcined clay supplied to a cooler from a clay furnace, for example from a rotary clay kiln.

[0006] The solution to this problem is described in the independent claim. The dependent claims relate to further developments of the invention.

[0007] The calcined clay cooler has a rotation axis and at least one clay pipe. The at least one clay pipe is preferably supported to rotate around the rotation axis, and each of the at least one clay pipe may have a separate pipe wall that surrounds a separate pipe volume. The at least one pipe volume can be approached by an upstream clay inlet and a downstream clay outlet. In other words, the pipe volume has a clay inlet and a clay outlet that can be defined by corresponding openings in the pipe wall. Although a single clay pipe may be sufficient, two or more clay pipes are preferred. Each of the at least one clay pipe is preferably rotatably supported to rotate relative to the same rotation axis. Of course, the calcined clay cooler may also include a non-rotating component, such as a support base that provides a rotationally invariant surface (or a portion of a rotationally invariant surface) that at least indirectly supports the at least one clay pipe. The at least one support base may rotatably support at least one roller, preferably at least two rollers. At least one roller may at least indirectly support the at least one clay pipe, for example via at least one support ring. For example, at least one clay pipe may be attached to a support wheel. At least two support wheels may be attached to each other via a support housing. The tire ring may be on an outer peripheral surface of the support housing. The tire ring may be rotatably supported relative to the support base via at least one roller, preferably at least two rollers.

[0008] At least one clay pipe may be part of a rotating part of the calcined clay cooler. The rotating part may be rotatably supported by a stationary part, wherein the term "stationary" only means that not the entire stationary part moves. Of course, the stationary part may include, for example, rollers or the like, which allow the rotating part to be rotatably supported. The drive device may be coupled to the rotating part, for example via an optional transmission device, to drive the rotating part.

[0009] Preferably, each of the clay pipe walls comprises at least one coolant channel having a channel wall that surrounds the channel volume and defines a channel inlet and a channel outlet. These coolant channels are capable of effectively cooling the calcined clay transported from the clay inlet of the clay pipe to the clay outlet while reducing the consumption of coolant and being capable of recovering the heat energy removed from the calcined clay. Rotating the clay pipe during the cooling process enhances the transfer of heat energy from the calcined clay via the pipe wall to the coolant in the coolant channel. The coolant may be water or other fluid, wherein "fluid" means that the coolant is in a fluid phase (i.e., liquid or gas phase) under the operating conditions (pressure and temperature) of the calcined clay cooler. The term "fluid" also includes granular materials that can fluidize or flow like a fluid when the sliding angle is exceeded.

[0010] Preferably, the calcined clay cooler has more than just a single clay pipe, for example two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine or ten clay pipes. In theory, there is no limit to the number n of clay pipes, but if a maximum value must be limited for formal and / or legal reasons, 800 or 1000 clay pipes can be considered as a maximum value (n≤1000). The exact maximum value depends on a number of factors. One factor is the diameter of the calcined clay cooler, other factors are the particle size of the hot clay to be cooled, the tendency to agglomerate and the viscosity of the coolant. In general, increasing the number of clay pipes increases the heat transfer surface separating the clay and the coolant, and thus increases the heat transfer. On the other hand, increasing the number of pipes while keeping the size of the clay cooler essentially constant reduces the pipe diameter. Therefore, in the case where the free diameter of the clay pipe is too small so that the fired clay cannot be reliably transported through the clay pipe, a limit to increasing the number of clay pipes is obtained.

[0011] For a given total clay flow through the clay cooler, increasing the number of clay pipes increases the surface available for heat exchange. Therefore, the cooler can be designed to be shorter (for a given calcined clay flow) without significantly increasing the diameter of the track defined by the rotation of one or more clay pipes. In addition, thermal energy losses can be reduced (i.e., improved thermal energy recovery) and the footprint of the calcined clay cooler can be reduced. Reducing the footprint of the calcined clay cooler is an important advantage when renovating existing plants. The preferred number n of pipes is between 4 and 8 (4≤n≤8). Within this range, personnel can still approach the pipes from the inside, while the ratio of the outer peripheral surface to the volume of the clay pipe is relatively high to promote high heat transfer rates and shorter calcined clay cooler lengths. Increasing the number n of pipes is possible and further enhances the heat transfer from the calcined clay to the coolant, but has the disadvantage of being more complicated to manufacture, maintain and inspect.

[0012] One or more clay pipes are preferably arranged symmetrically with respect to the axis of rotation. This symmetrical arrangement minimizes static imbalance and uniformizes the torque required for the rotating part to rotate. In this context, symmetrical arrangement means that, in a preferred example, assuming that the center of the clay pipe has the same radial distance from the axis of rotation, the clay pipe is rotated around the axis of rotation by 2π / n=360° / n to map the corresponding clay pipe to its adjacent clay pipe, where n is the number of clay pipes. In practical applications, deviations from the preferred angle 2π / n can be expected. In the case where the tolerance range of these deviations must be limited, we recommend a tolerance range of ±30°, ±20°, ±15°, ±10°, ±5°, ±1°, where a smaller tolerance range is preferred. In another example, for each first clay pipe, there is at least one second clay pipe, and the first clay pipe can be mapped to the second clay pipe by rotating the first clay pipe by 2π / (m+1), where m is the number of second clay pipes. If the number of second clay pipes is greater than 1 (m≥2), another rotation of 2π / (m+1) maps the first clay pipe to the position of another second clay pipe. This can be repeated until the first clay pipe is mapped to its initial azimuth position.

[0013] In a preferred example, the calcined clay cooler may further include an inlet section. The inlet section may include an inlet pipe having a pipe inlet. In addition, the inlet section may include a plurality of pipe outlets. Each of the pipe outlets is preferably in fluid communication with the pipe inlet. The number of pipe outlets preferably corresponds to the number of clay pipes. For example, if the number of clay pipes is 4, the inlet section may preferably have four pipe outlets. Each of the pipe outlets may be connected to the clay inlet of the corresponding clay pipe. For example, the first pipe outlet may be connected to the first clay inlet of the plurality of clay inlets, the second pipe outlet may be connected to the second clay inlet, and so on. More generally, the i-th pipe outlet may be connected to the i-th clay inlet, where i is an integer, 1≤i≤n, and n is the number of clay pipes. In the example of n=2, the inlet section may include a pipe having a bifurcation that connects the pipe inlet to each of the clay inlets. Or more generally, the pipe is divided into n pipe sections. As already apparent, in a preferred example, the inlet segment is a separate tube which is in fluid communication with the clay inlet of the clay pipe. The separate tube may be bifurcated or multifurcated, or simply terminate as a single tube directly in front of the clay inlet of the clay pipe. The inlet segment and the clay pipe may be attached to each other at least indirectly, for example via a support housing, thereby ensuring that the inlet segment rotates with the clay pipe. The inlet segment allows the hot calcined clay from a single outlet of the clay kiln to be distributed to n clay pipes. Furthermore, the inlet segment homogenizes the material to be cooled, for example calcined clay, which homogenizes the material to be evenly distributed to the clay inlets of the respective clay pipes.

[0014] The inner surface of the inlet section is preferably protected (and / or provided) by a refractory substance.The inlet section need not necessarily be actively cooled, but at least a portion of the inlet section may be in thermal contact with a coolant flow through the optional inlet section coolant passage.

[0015] Preferably, the connecting ramp has a connecting ramp end that can extend into the pipe inlet. It is preferred that the annular gap is located between the pipe inlet and the ramp end, and the inlet section can be allowed to rotate relative to the connecting ramp. The annular gap can be sealed by a gasket. In a preferred example, at least one fluid pipeline can have at least one nozzle opening that faces the annular gap and / or terminates in the annular gap and / or terminates in a closed structure of the annular gap. In other words, the nozzle opening is preferably configured to provide a fluid flow into the annular gap. In addition or alternatively, the pressure in the inlet section can be optionally lower than the ambient pressure. Therefore, a fluid, such as air, can be sucked into one or more clay pipes via the inlet section and further enhance the cooling of the calcined clay. Other exemplary fluids can be steam and / or carbon dioxide (CO2), nitrogen (N2), as is apparent, and these exemplary fluids are preferably provided to the annular gap via at least one fluid pipeline. The advantage of using a fluid and / or a gasket to seal the gap is that less hot gases transported with the calcined clay escape via the annular gap into the environment, which could lead to energy losses and unpleasant odors.

[0016] Additionally or alternatively, the chute and / or the inlet section may include a water injection lance, which allows the still hot calcined material to be treated with water and / or steam. For example, the lance may be attached to the chute and terminate in the inlet section, or otherwise configured to provide a fluid flow (e.g., a water flow and / or a steam flow) into the inlet section via at least one lance nozzle.

[0017] In a particularly preferred example, the coolant channel volume is defined by the clay pipe wall and the channel wall. During operation, this measure provides a direct heat exchange between the coolant flowing through the coolant channel and the pipe wall, which is particularly efficient. In addition, the amount of wall material can be reduced because the pipe wall is also used to define the coolant channel volume. In a preferred example, the channel wall surrounds at least a portion of the pipe wall, preferably the entire pipe wall. In this case, in a cross-sectional view, at least a portion of the channel wall can be regarded as a ring around the pipe wall. Each of these measures allows increasing the heat transfer between the coolant and the pipe wall, and therefore increasing the heat transfer between the calcined clay and the coolant. For a given calcined clay flow rate, the occupied area of ​​the calcined clay cooler can be further reduced while increasing the amount of recovered thermal energy.

[0018] For example, the channel wall can radially and / or anti-radially support the pipe wall while allowing the pipe wall to float in the axial direction. Thus, stress caused by different axial thermal expansion of the channel wall and the pipe wall can be reduced.

[0019] In general, "radially" means that the vector points away from the respective axis. Correspondingly, "anti-radially" means that the vector points towards the respective axis. This means that the starting point and the end point of the radial vector and the anti-radial vector differ only in their distance from the respective axis. The azimuthal coordinate and the axial coordinate are identical. Unless otherwise specified, the respective axis of the pipe is the pipe axis. In the case of non-straight pipes, a cross section may be considered and the center of the pipe in the cross section is regarded as the starting point of the radial direction or the end point of the anti-radial direction, respectively.

[0020] Preferably, the calcined clay cooler comprises at least one support profile having a first leg, an intermediate leg and a second leg. As the term implies, the intermediate leg is located between the first leg and the second leg and defines an offset between the first leg and the second leg. The first leg may be attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe wall or to the inner surface of the channel wall. The second leg may maintain the corresponding other wall in its radial position. For example, the second leg may have a flat support surface that contacts the outer peripheral surface of the pipe wall and the inner surface of the channel wall. Therefore, if the first leg is (firmly) attached to the outer peripheral surface of the pipe wall, the flat support surface of the second leg may contact the inner surface of the channel wall. Alternatively, the first leg may be (firmly) attached to the inner surface of the channel wall, and the flat support surface of the second leg may contact the outer peripheral surface of the pipe wall. The intermediate leg may provide a radial offset between the surface to which the first leg is (firmly) attached and the flat support surface. Preferably, each clay pipe of the calcined clay cooler comprises at least three of these support profiles, wherein these support profiles are preferably at least substantially evenly distributed with respect to the azimuthal direction (e.g. evenly distributed within ±45°), thereby defining the position of the respective clay pipe in the radial direction. The middle leg of the support profile can be made of an elastic material, such as steel, and thus compensates for the different radial thermal expansions (and thermal contractions) of the pipe wall and the channel wall, while maintaining the two walls in a relative position with respect to each other. In an example, the two walls can be kept at least substantially concentric while still allowing compensation for axial stresses, such as those arising from the different thermal expansions.

[0021] Merely to provide examples, the first leg may be attached to the corresponding wall by welding, brazing, riveting, gluing, etc., or may even be integral with the wall to which the first leg is attached.

[0022] Preferably, the calcined clay cooler comprises a coolant line, wherein the coolant line extends parallel to the axis of rotation, preferably concentrically with the axis of rotation, or more generally along the axis of rotation. The coolant line may comprise a connection port in the downstream half of the calcined clay cooler, and the coolant line is fluidly connected to the upstream end of at least one coolant channel. The coolant line allows the rotary coupling to be positioned in the cooler end of the calcined clay cooler, thereby reducing thermal stresses. This construction may be cheaper and at the same time more durable and easier to maintain.

[0023] By setting the counterflow of coolant and calcined clay, the energy recovered can be increased and the length required for the calcined clay cooler can be minimized. However, this may require very expensive materials at the upstream end of the pipeline. This can be avoided by the parallel flow of coolant and calcined clay. In a preferred example, one or more coolant channels have two sections, a first upstream section and a second downstream section, wherein the upstream and downstream refer to the flow direction of the calcined clay. In other words, the upstream section is closer to the clay inlet than the downstream section of the coolant channel, and the downstream section of the coolant channel is closer to the downstream clay outlet. First, the cold coolant is provided to the upstream section, thereby keeping the pipeline wall below a given temperature. In one or more upstream sections of one or more coolant channels, the coolant can flow parallel to or anti-parallel to the calcined clay in the clay pipeline. From the end of the upstream section, the preheated coolant can be provided to the downstream end of the second section. From the downstream end of the second section, the coolant can flow to the upstream end of the second part of the one or more coolant channels, that is, in countercurrent with the calcined clay in the corresponding tube. This configuration makes it possible to keep the upstream part of the pipe wall sufficiently cool while still increasing the amount of energy recovered. As is already apparent, upstream and downstream in this context refer only to the transport direction of the calcined clay.

[0024] For example, the calcined clay cooler may include a coolant cooler having a hot coolant inlet and a cold coolant outlet, wherein the coolant channel inlet is connected to the cold coolant outlet, and the channel outlet is connected to the hot coolant inlet. The coolant cooler may be a heat exchanger configured to extract heat energy from the coolant and provide the heat energy to a heat carrier, such as a heat carrier fluid. The coolant cooler allows the use of the coolant to be kept low by cooling the coolant. In addition, the recovered heat energy can be used as process heat energy, such as for drying or preheating raw clay and / or for (preheating) heating steam boilers and / or driving an ORC process (organic Rankine cycle process). In short, the cooler can help reduce CO2 emissions and reduce operating costs. In general, the coolant cooler may include a cold heat carrier fluid inlet and a hot heat carrier fluid outlet. The hot heat carrier fluid outlet of the coolant cooler may preferably be connected to the heat inlet of the heat sink via a hot heat carrier fluid pipeline. Similarly, the cold thermal energy carrier fluid inlet of the coolant cooler can be preferably connected to the cold thermal energy carrier fluid outlet of the heat sink via a cold thermal energy carrier fluid pipeline. Examples of these heat sinks include, but are not limited to, raw meal dryers, boilers (e.g., steam boilers, ORC boilers), district heating equipment, combustion air preheaters, oxygen preheaters, chemical reactors, etc.

[0025] The coolant cooler may also be omitted: for example, the coolant may be air or another oxygen-containing fluid. The oxygen-containing fluid is heated while passing through the coolant channel and may subsequently be used as a source of oxygen for the calcined clay kiln or any other furnace or kiln, thereby improving the efficiency of the corresponding plant. For the sake of avoiding ambiguity only, the calcined clay cooler may also include a coolant cooler and may use an oxygen-containing fluid as a coolant at the same time. The oxygen-containing fluid may, but need not, be supplied to the furnace or other reactor as a source of oxygen, and the heat energy transferred by the oxygen-containing fluid may therefore be used as process heat. In this example, at least one hot coolant line connects at least one coolant outlet of at least one coolant channel to the reactant inlet of the reactor so that at least a portion of the coolant reacts. A typical example of a reactor is a furnace, such as a clay furnace. In another example, a portion of the heated coolant may be cooled in a coolant cooler, while another portion may be provided to a furnace or other type of reactor. In yet another example, at least a portion of the heated coolant can be cooled in a coolant cooler, and at least a portion of the cooled coolant can be provided from a coolant outlet of the coolant cooler to a reactant inlet of a reactor (e.g., a furnace). All of these examples can be combined.

[0026] In a preferred example, one of the two connections is provided by a coolant line. For example, the cold coolant outlet can be connected to at least one channel inlet via a coolant line. Alternatively, the hot coolant inlet can be connected to at least one channel outlet via a coolant line.

[0027] If the calcined clay pipeline includes a stirring member and / or a conveying member, the cooling can be enhanced by mixing the calcined clay, and the stirring member and / or the conveying member extend from the inner side of the pipeline wall into the pipeline volume. In addition, the conveying of the calcined clay can be improved. For example, a protrusion extending from the inner surface of the pipeline wall into the pipeline volume can stir the calcined clay while the pipeline rotates. By tilting the surface of the protrusion relative to the longitudinal direction of the pipeline, the conveying can be controlled. For example, at a given pipeline rotation speed and pipeline horizontal orientation, tilting the surface of the protrusion in the conveying direction can increase the flow rate of the calcined clay to the clay outlet, while tilting the surface of the protrusion opposite to the direct conveying direction can reduce the average speed of the calcined clay flowing to the clay outlet. These two alternatives can be used to adjust the time that the calcined clay is cooled in the cooler, and thus adjust the temperature of the calcined clay at the clay outlet.

[0028] The calcined clay cooler may also include one or more support wheels having at least one through hole. An example of a support wheel is a support disc, wherein, unlike mathematical definitions, a disc shall mean a circular (preferably flat) structure with a finite thickness. The disc may have through holes, or be simplified to spokes, etc.

[0029] At least one channel wall and at least one pipe wall may extend through a through hole in one or more support wheels. At least one channel wall may be radially supported by the support wheel. In a preferred example, the calcined clay cooler has a plurality of support wheels. These support wheels are preferably spaced apart along the axis of rotation. Each of the support wheels may contribute to maintaining one or more pipe walls and / or one or more channel walls and / or one or more coolant lines in a predefined azimuthal position and a predefined radial position relative to each other. In a simple example, the support wheel may be a disk with a plurality of through holes, wherein at least some of the through holes have an edge that may support the pipe wall and / or the channel wall and / or the coolant line or any other component that extends along the axis of rotation and that rotates around the axis of rotation together with the one or more clay pipes.

[0030] In the case where the calcined clay cooler includes two or more support wheels, a support wall can be attached to at least two of the support wheels to surround at least a portion of the rotating portion of the calcined clay cooler. The support wall provides additional stability, protects one or more coolant channels and one or more clay pipes from damage, and enhances the safety of personnel near the calcined clay cooler. In addition, heat energy losses can be further reduced.

[0031] The term "connected" means a functional connection. For example, if the inlet of a first tube is connected to the outlet of a channel, the connection provides fluid communication. The various connections mentioned in this article can be direct connections or indirect connections. This means that in this article, "connected" can be replaced by "direct connection and / or indirect connection". If two parts touch each other, the two parts are in contact. For example, two flat bearing surfaces in contact with each other allow the corresponding parts to move (e.g., translate or rotate). The term "attached" means mechanical fixation. If one part is attached to another part, the two parts are attached to each other. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] Hereinafter, the present invention will be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, without limiting the general inventive concept, by way of example only.

[0033] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a calcined clay production line is shown, the calcined clay production line having a calcined clay cooler.

[0034] Figure 2 A side view of the rotating portion of a calcined clay cooler is shown.

[0035] Figure 3 A partial cross-sectional view of the rotating portion of a calcined clay cooler is shown.

[0036] Figure 4 A partially mounted rotating section of a calcined clay cooler is shown.

[0037] Figure 5 Shown along Figure 2 Cross-sectional view of the cooler taken at section CC in FIG.

[0038] Figure 6 Shown along Figure 2 Cross-sectional view of the cooler taken at section BB in FIG.

[0039] Figure 7 Details of the calcined clay pipe are shown in cross-section.

[0040] Figure 8 Another detail of the calcined clay pipe is shown in cross-section. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] Figure 1A calcined clay production line is shown. Clay is provided to a clay pretreatment station 10, for example, by truck or any other means of transport. In the pretreatment station 10, the clay can be ground, mixed and / or dried. From the pretreatment station 10, the pretreated clay is provided to a heating device 30 (e.g., a rotary kiln 30) via an optional preheater 20 for heating the clay to a predefined temperature. The kiln outlet 39 (more generally, the outlet of the heating device) is connected to the upper end of the connecting chute 105. Via the connecting chute 105, the calcined clay can be provided to the inlet section 110 of the calcined clay cooler 100. As can be seen, the optional inlet section 110 may include an inlet pipe having a pipe inlet. In addition, the inlet section may include a plurality of pipe outlets. In the example shown, the inlet section is cylindrical (at least substantially cylindrical), but other shapes are also possible. However, the cylindrical shape shown improves the homogenization of the calcined clay that is subsequently fed into the clay pipeline 160. This homogenization improves the heat recovery and reduces the power requirement of the rotary cooler. Furthermore, conditioning in the inlet section, for example using water lances and / or steam lances, is more efficient because the residence time is maximized.

[0042] In the calcined clay cooler 100, the calcined clay is cooled and the coolant is in turn heated. An exemplary coolant may be water, but other coolants may also be used. The heated coolant may be provided to a coolant cooler to cool the coolant again and thereby recover the heat energy previously extracted from the calcined clay. For example, this heat energy may be used, for example, in the pre-treatment station 10, for example, to dry the raw clay; and / or in the preheater 20; and / or in a power plant. Figure 1 As shown, the calcined clay cooler 100 may have a stationary portion 101 which rotatably supports a rotating portion 120 .

[0043] like Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the rotating part 120 can have a support wall 125. On the support wall 125, there can be at least one support ring 126, which has a rotationally invariant outer peripheral surface. These support rings 126 can also be called tire rings 126 or simply tires 126. The tires 126 are used to rotatably support the rotating part 120, for example, rotatably support the rotating part 120 on rollers of the stationary part 101. The axis of rotation is indicated by the reference numeral 102. Inside the support wall 125, there are preferably a plurality of support wheels 140 spaced apart along the longitudinal axis 102 (see Figure 4). The number of 126 can be only one, but can also be more, depending on the size of the calcined clay cooler. The support wheel 140 can have through holes, which are bounded by edges, that is, by surfaces that bound the respective through holes. These edges can support a number n of clay pipes 160 (n=4 clay pipes 160 are shown, but other numbers are also possible), which have pipe walls 162. Each pipe wall 162 encloses a separate pipe volume 168 (see Figure 6 and Figure 7 ). Figures 3 to 7 As becomes apparent, the pipes 160 are arranged symmetrically with respect to the axis of rotation 102. In the example, there are four pipes 160 (n=4). The centers of the pipes 160 are spaced 2π / 4=π / 2=90° apart, and thus a rotation of the pipe by π / 2 maps the center of the pipe onto the center of an adjacent pipe. In the example, the pipes 160 have at least substantially the same shape, and thus each rotation of π / 2 maps the contours of the pipe walls 162 onto each other. In this regard, it should be noted that this number n of pipes 160 is only an example and may be changed in accordance with the above. In this case, the azimuthal offsets between the centers of the pipes are preferably adjusted accordingly. Again, it should be noted that in practice, deviations from the perfect discrete rotationally symmetric azimuthal spacings of the pipes 160 may have to be accepted, as indicated above. In the example shown, the centers of the clay pipes 160 have the same radial distance from the axis of rotation, but again it should be noted that this is only a preferred example. As can be seen from Figures 1 to 3 As will become apparent, the inlet segment 110 and clay pipe 160 are preferably attached to each other at least indirectly, such as via at least one of the support housing 125 and the support wheel 140. Attaching the inlet segment 110 to the clay pipe 160 ensures that the inlet segment and the clay pipe 160 rotate in phase.

[0044] In this example, each clay tube 160 has a coolant channel 180 having a channel wall 182 surrounding the tube wall 162 (see Figures 6 to 8 The space between the outer peripheral surface 164 of the duct wall and the inner surface 186 of the channel wall 182 is the coolant channel volume 188 (see Figure 8 ), through which coolant can flow from the channel inlet to the channel outlet. A protrusion 170 can extend inwardly from the inner surface 164 of the conduit wall 162. In operation, the optional protrusion 170 improves heat transfer from the hot calcined clay to the conduit wall 162 and simultaneously agitates the calcined clay. Figure 3 In order to simplify the drawing, only a single optional protrusion 170 is shown for each clay pipe. However, any other number is also possible.

[0045] like Figures 1 to 7 As shown, the coolant line 190 may extend along the rotation axis 102 and may be connected to a coolant inlet of the coolant channel 180, for example, via a connecting conduit 195 (see Figure 6 From the coolant inlet, the coolant can flow into the downstream end 109 of the calcined clay cooler 100 parallel to the effective conveying direction of the calcined clay (see Figure 2 and Figure 3 ). From the downstream end 109 , the coolant may flow into the coolant cooler and, after being cooled, flow back to the coolant line 190 .

[0046] Figure 8 A detail of a clay pipe 160 is shown, wherein the pipe wall 162 is surrounded by a channel wall 182. Attached to the inner surface 186 of the channel wall 182 may be a first leg 210 of a profile 200. The optional profile 200 may include the first leg 210 and a second leg 220, wherein an intermediate leg 230 is provided between the first leg 210 and the second leg 220. The flat support surface 228 of the second leg 220 may contact the outer peripheral surface 164 of the pipe wall 162 and thereby support the pipe wall 162. Thus, the profile 200 may radially support the pipe wall while providing a linear flat support, enabling the pipe wall 162 and the channel wall 182 to expand differently in the axial direction. Furthermore, the profile 200, by its elasticity, may also compensate for different radial expansions or radial contractions between the pipe wall 162 and the channel wall 182, which may occur when starting up or shutting down the calcined clay plant, respectively. The outer peripheral surface 164 of the duct wall 162 can have at least one stopper attached to the duct wall 162 that limits movement of the flat support surface 228, for example, in an azimuthal direction and / or in an axial direction. In another example, the first leg 210 can be attached to the outer peripheral surface 164 of the duct wall 162, and the flat support surface of the second leg can counter-radially support the channel wall 182. Figure 8 As shown, the longitudinal extension of the first leg 210 and / or the second leg 220 can be substantially parallel to the azimuthal direction (relative to the pipeline axis). Alternatively, the longitudinal direction of at least one of the first leg 210 and the second leg 220 is at least substantially parallel (including anti-parallel) to the longitudinal axis and / or the rotation axis.

[0047] Reference numerals list

[0048] 1 Calcined clay factory

[0049] 10 Pre-treatment station (optional)

[0050] 20 Preheater (optional)

[0051] 30 Heater for calcining clay, e.g. rotary kiln (optional)

[0052] 39 Calcined clay heater outlet, e.g. rotary kiln outlet (optional)

[0053] 100 Calcined Clay Cooler

[0054] 101 Stationary part (optional)

[0055] 102 Rotation axis

[0056] 105 Connecting ramp (optional)

[0057] 108 Upstream end of calcined clay cooler

[0058] 109 Downstream end of calcined clay cooler

[0059] 110 Inlet section (optional)

[0060] 120 Rotatably supported portion / rotating portion

[0061] 125 Support wall / support housing (optional)

[0062] 126 Support ring / tire ring / tire

[0063] 140 Support wheels (optional)

[0064] 160 Clay Pipe

[0065] 161 Clay inlet of clay pipe

[0066] 162 Pipe wall

[0067] 164 Outer surface of the pipe wall

[0068] 166 Inner surface of pipe wall

[0069] 168 Pipeline Volume

[0070] 169 Clay outlet of clay pipe

[0071] 170 Protrusion / Agitating member (optional)

[0072] 180 Coolant channels (optional)

[0073] 182 Channel wall (optional)

[0074] 186 Inner surface of channel wall

[0075] 188 Coolant channel volume

[0076] 190 Coolant line (optional)

[0077] 195 Connecting tube (optional)

[0078] 200 Support profile (optional)

[0079] 210 First Leg (Optional)

[0080] 220 Second leg (optional)

[0081] 228 Flat support surface (optional)

[0082] 230 Middle Leg (optional)

Claims

1. A calcined clay cooler (100), the calcined clay cooler (100) having a rotation axis (102) and at least one clay pipe (160), wherein: Each clay pipe (160) of the at least one clay pipe (160) has a clay pipe wall (162), Each of the clay pipe walls (162) encloses a clay pipe volume (168), Each of the clay conduit volumes (168) has an upstream clay inlet (161) and a downstream clay outlet (169), Each clay pipe (160) of the at least one clay pipe (160) is rotatably supported to rotate relative to the rotation axis (102), It is characterized in that Each of the clay pipe walls (162) includes at least one coolant channel (180) having a channel wall (182) that encloses a channel volume (188) and defines a channel inlet (181) and a channel outlet.

2. The calcined clay cooler (100) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The at least one clay pipe (160) is at least two clay pipes (160) and / or includes at least two clay pipes (160), and the at least two clay pipes (160) are symmetrically arranged with respect to the rotation axis (102).

3. The calcined clay cooler (100) according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The calcined clay cooler (100) further comprises an inlet section (110), wherein the inlet section (110) comprises an inlet pipe having a pipe inlet and a plurality of pipe outlets, wherein the number of the pipe outlets corresponds to the number of the clay pipes, and the pipe outlets are each connected to the clay inlet of the corresponding clay pipe.

4. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that The calcined clay cooler (100) further comprises a connecting chute (105) having a connecting chute end, and the connecting chute end extends into the inlet pipe, thereby defining an annular gap between the connecting chute and the inlet pipe.

5. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The coolant channel volume (188) is defined by the clay tube wall (162) and the coolant channel wall (182), wherein the channel wall (182) surrounds at least a portion of the clay tube wall (162).

6. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that The channel wall (182) radially and counter-radially supports the pipe wall (162), and floatingly supports the pipe wall (162) in the axial direction.

7. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The calcined clay cooler (100) further comprises at least one supporting profile (200), the supporting profile (200) having a first leg (210), a middle leg (230) and a second leg (220), wherein: - the intermediate leg (230) is located between the first leg (210) and the second leg (220) and defines an offset between the first leg (210) and the second leg (220), - the first leg (210) is attached to the outer peripheral surface (164) of the duct wall (162) or to the inner surface (186) of the channel wall (182), and the second leg (220) has a flat bearing surface (228) that contacts the respective other of the outer peripheral surface (164) of the duct wall (162) and the inner surface (186) of the channel wall (182), - The offset is measured radially relative to the longitudinal axis of the pipe axis, said pipe axis being defined by said pipe wall (182).

8. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that At least one of the at least one first leg (210) is attached by welding, brazing, riveting, bonding, or is integral with the wall (162, 182) to which the first leg (210) is attached.

9. Calcined clay cooler according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The calcined clay cooler (100) further comprises a coolant line (190), wherein the coolant line (190) extends along the rotation axis (102), and / or the coolant line (190) has a connection port at a downstream half of the calcined clay cooler (100), and / or the coolant line (190) is fluidically connected to an upstream end of the at least one coolant channel (180).

10. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The calcined clay cooler (100) comprises a coolant cooler having a hot coolant inlet and a cold coolant outlet, wherein the channel inlet (181) is connected to the cold coolant outlet, and the channel outlet is connected to the hot coolant inlet.

11. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to the preceding claim, characterized in that The coolant cooler includes a cold thermal energy carrier fluid inlet and a hot thermal energy carrier fluid outlet, and the hot thermal energy carrier fluid outlet of the coolant cooler is connected to the thermal energy inlet of the heat sink through a hot thermal energy carrier fluid pipeline, and the cold thermal energy carrier fluid inlet of the coolant cooler is connected to the cold thermal energy carrier fluid outlet of the heat sink via a cold thermal energy carrier fluid pipeline.

12. The calcined clay cooler (100) according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that: The cold coolant outlet is connected to at least one of the channel inlets (181) via the coolant line (190), and / or the hot coolant inlet is connected to at least one of the channel outlets via the coolant line (190).

13. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The clay pipe (160) includes agitating and / or conveying members extending from the inner surface (166) of the pipe wall (162) into the pipe volume (168).

14. Calcined clay cooler (100) according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that The calcined clay cooler (100) further comprises a support wheel (140), and at least one of the channel walls (182) and at least one of the pipe walls (162) extends through a through hole in the support wheel (140), wherein at least one of the channel walls (182) and / or the pipe walls (162) is radially supported by the support wheel (140).

15. The calcined clay cooler (100) according to claim 14, characterized in that: The calcined clay cooler (100) includes at least two supporting wheels (140), and a supporting wall (125) is attached to the at least two supporting wheels (140).

Images