Clinker Cooler Bypass Air Supply for Chamber Failure Backup

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Solution Overview

Problem

Cooling devices for hot bulk materials, particularly cement clinker, face issues with plank surface degradation due to thermal and abrasive stresses, and malfunctions in cooling gas supply units lead to unplanned downtime and damage to the cooling grate.

Innovation Solution

A cooling device with a cooling grate that includes a secondary cooling gas supply unit with a bypass gas line, allowing automatic diversion of cooling gas from adjacent chambers in case of a failure, ensuring continuous cooling even if one cooling gas supply unit fails.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If a cooling gas supply unit fails, then the affected chamber receives too little or no cooling gas, leading to temperature increase and potential damage to the cooling grate and planks, but providing backup cooling systems increases device complexity

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveoperational reliabilityVSAvoiddevice complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent merges the cooling gas supply functions of multiple chambers by providing bypass gas lines that connect adjacent chambers. When one cooling gas supply unit fails, the bypass lines enable adjacent chambers to share their cooling gas supply, combining their functions to ensure continuous cooling without requiring separate backup systems for each chamber.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #5Merging (Combining)

Solution Approach 2:

The bypass gas lines act as intermediary connections between adjacent chambers. These intermediate pathways enable the transfer of cooling gas from operational chambers to failed chambers, mediating the cooling function distribution and ensuring system continuity without direct dependency on each individual supply unit.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Productivity

If planks have a smooth surface to reduce material accumulation and movement resistance, then conveying efficiency improves, but thermal stress on the planks increases due to lack of autogenous protective layer formation

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveconveying efficiencyVSAvoidthermal stress resistance
Core Design Contradiction:
ProductivityVSStrength

Solution Approach 1:

The patent applies preliminary anti-action by implementing a protective coating or surface treatment on the planks before they are exposed to hot bulk material. This pre-applied protective layer prevents direct thermal contact and abrasive wear, counteracting the inherent vulnerability of smooth surfaces while maintaining conveying efficiency.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #9Preliminary anti-action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent employs composite materials by combining the smooth plank surface with a protective coating layer. This composite structure maintains the low-friction properties needed for efficient material conveyance while the coating layer provides thermal and abrasive protection, resolving the contradiction between smooth surface requirements and stress resistance needs.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #40Composite materials

Applied Scientific Principles

This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.

Function Achieved in This Case

Prevents damage to the cooling grate and reduces operational risks by maintaining cooling efficiency, even in the event of a cooling gas supply unit failure, thus enhancing operational reliability and safety.

Implementation Method 1

cooling gas is supplied from below the grate. The cooling gas, typically cooling air from the area below the grate, rises through the cooling grate into the bed of bulk material, thereby cooling it

Methodology Applied
Scientific EffectHeat transfer: Conduction (thermal)

Data Source

PatentEP4671655A1Device for cooling hot bulk material, in particular cement clinker, with a cooling gas
Publication Date: 2025.12.31 CLAUDIUS PETERS PROJECTS
  • EP4671655A1 patent drawingFigure 1~3
  • EP4671655A1 patent drawingFigure 4~6
  • EP4671655A1 patent drawingFigure 7~9

AI summary

Device for cooling hot bulk material, in particular cement clinker. Cooling gas (80) from a grate lower chamber (4) divided into several chambers (41-46) flows through a cooling grate (3) which transports a layer of bulk material in the conveying direction (14). The chambers (41-46) arranged one behind the other in the conveying direction (14) are each supplied with cooling gas by their own associated cooling gas supply unit (81-86). Immediately adjacent chambers are separated from each other by a chamber partition (47). The cooling grate (3) is a conveying grate with several planks (34) arranged side by side, which move forward and backward in the conveying direction, wherein at least two adjacent planks (34) move simultaneously in the forward stroke and asynchronously in the return stroke.According to the invention, a group comprising at least two chambers additionally has a secondary supply unit (6) for cooling gas, comprising a bypass gas line (60) which is closed during normal operation and automatically opens in the event of a failure of the cooling gas supply unit (81-86) of one chamber, so that cooling gas from one of the other chambers of the group flows into this chamber. This provides emergency cooling for the chamber affected by the failure.