PROCESSING Photos: Bühler Group Figure 1 Energy savings achieved with Granulex 5 and 0.80 mm round hole screens compared to reference installation Figure 2 Energy savings achieved with Granulex 5 and 1.00 mm round hole screens compared to reference installation Significant energy savings of 25% Significantly increased throughput Significant to 40% energy for pet savings food applications generally absorb less motor The significantly load during lower For energy many consumption manufacturers, achieved the CO2e of In 25% a configuration to 40% for with pet a food 0.80-millimeter grinding (mm) round than formulas hole during with a the high tests grain thus argument leads to a is very likely impressive to gain importance, applications sieve, combined with a precisely determined content. number of increase in throughput, both which in the averages marketing about of products 25% to end In a configuration with a 0.80-millimeter hammers, not only were all quality parameters met, but with 0.8 mm round hole consumers sieves and about as part 40% of sustainability with (mm) round hole sieve, combined with a However, further optimizations an average energy saving of 25% was also achieved, 1.0 mm round to the hole sieves reporting, (measured which is by increasingly the motor demanded precisely determined number of hammers, entire fine grinding system depending on the recipe used (see Figure 1). current can of target the and main motor), by investors if the and equivalent regulators. model not only were all quality parameters met, achieve higher throughput DFZX-230 performances is used. but an average energy saving of 25% was for grain-free formulas in the future. The second-best solution used 1 mm round hole sieves Technical background for the also achieved, depending on the recipe improvements with the same number of hammers. Here, an average However, it should be noted that not all formulas (e.g., used (see Figure 1). Value creation The energy savings and throughput energy saving of 45% was achieved (see Figure 2), with those without grain content) can be regulated in the Significantly less energy or greatly increases are the result of many innovative the caveat that for one recipe, the D50 value achieved same way, depending on the load, because they generally The second-best solution used 1 mm increased throughput combined with improvements to the machine, in round was hole slightly sieves above with the the same specified number target a value. very narrow and very fine absorb particle less size motor conjunction load during with grinding Bühler’s than engineering formulas affects with a the high total grain content. expertise in designing the entire fine of hammers. Here, an average energy distribution significantly saving of 45% was achieved (see Figure cost of ownership (TCO) of the Granulex 5. grinding system. 2), with the caveat that for one recipe, the D50 value achieved was slightly above the specified target value. However, further optimizations to the entire fine grinding While the very fine grinding system results can have target a and achieve higher throughput performances the final product for grain-free Machine formulas innovations the future. direct, positive impact on quality, the increase in productivity by Significantly increased throughput an average of 25% also has a monetary impact. Thus, a pet food manufacturer can grind on average 25% more product with the same energy expenditure and machine footprint, thereby potentially foregoing a The significantly lower energy consumption achieved during the tests thus leads to a very impressive increase in throughput, which averages about 25% with 0.8 mm round hole sieves and about 40% with 1.0 mm round hole sieves (measured by the motor current of the main motor), if the equivalent model DFZX-230 is used. grinding line in larger facilities. Significant energy savings of 25% to 40% for pet food However, it should be noted that not all formulas (e.g., those without grain content) can be regulated in the same way, depending on the load, because they This significantly reduces the cost per ground tonne, and in such a case, the investment in the Granulex can amortize in a few years. Moreover, the impact of the energy savings per tonne on the CO2e footprint should not be underestimated. Here, savings amount to an average of 403 tonnes of CO2e (assuming a production quantity of 96,000 tonnes per year). Regrinding chamber: Three U-profile-like indentations in the grinding chamber ensure that the rapidly rotating ground material is decelerated, thus returning it to the area of the beaters for further grinding. This approach leads to more efficient grinding, so that the energy introduced is used optimally. Modular machine configurations: 3 The Granulex 5 series is available in four different sizes, with main motor sizes up to 450 kW, and by optimizing the modular elements such as individual hammer patterns can be configured to meet the 22 Technology & Marketing
the result of many innovative improvements to the machine, in conjunction with Bühler’s engineering expertise in designing the entire fine grinding system. PROCESSING Figure 3 Regrinding Chambers of Granulex 5 (marked green) Figure 4 Granulex 5 with 1, 2, 3 and 4 chambers Figure 5 Hammer cages that allow hold up to 7 hammers granulation requirements with reduced energy consumption. 4 User-friendliness: Features such as large sliding doors and a simple quick-release system for screens enhance ease of use. Additionally, an intelligent hammer changing process with newly developed hammer cages that hold up to seven hammers, allowing them to be changed together instead of individually. This reduces maintenance effort and minimizes downtime. Larger total screen area: While the predecessor model was equipped with a screen area of up to 2 m², due to changed geometry the equivalent Granulex 5 model has a screen area of 2.4m². The larger screen area helps to achieve higher throughput. Furthermore, Bühler has expanded its hammer mill portfolio with two additional sizes and even larger main motors, so that with the largest model, fine grinding capacities of 30 t/h can be realized. Explosion protection: Machines and systems must be safe in pet food production. For this reason, the new fine grinding systems have been thoroughly scrutinized. The goal was to evaluate the characteristics of various pet food mixtures that are important for protecting the system from explosion. Based on the analysis of various raw material mixtures, the optimal explosion protection was developed. This increases Granulex® 5 The hammer mill for high economic efficiency and low CO2e emissions the safety for the plant and employees while also meeting local regulatory requirements. Round hole screens: In addition to the larger, absolute screen area, round hole screens are now exclusively used. These have a larger open screen area than finely perforated screens (commonly known as “Conidur”), which were often used in the predecessor model. This can, for example, double the open screen area with consistent granulation – an outcome that was not possible with the predecessor model (DFZC) due to the different machine setup required for very fine grinding. The larger open screen area causes the ground material to heat up less during grinding compared to a finely perforated grinding screen. This can be critical, especially in the fine grinding of animal meals, due to the increased fat content. Another major advantage of round hole screens over finely perforated grinding screens is the maintenance costs, which can be significantly reduced since round hole screens tend to be cheaper to purchase. Technology & Marketing IFFA May 3-8 Frankfurt Hall 12.0 Booth C80 Figure 6 Screen area of one Chamber (green marked) Larger total screen area: While the predecessor model was equipped with a screen area of up to 2 m², due to changed geometry Issue the equivalent 2 2025Granulex 5 model has a screen area of 2.4 m². The larger screen area helps to achieve higher throughput. Furthermore, Bühler has expanded its Figure 7 Round hole screens compared to perforated screens (commonly known as “Conidur”) Round hole screens: In addition to the larger, absolute screen area, round hole screens are now exclusively used. These have a larger open screen area than finely perforated screens (commonly known as “Conidur”), which were often used in the predecessor model. This can, for example, For more information www.buehlergroup.com 23
