Revisiting rapid recovery and repair

Who would have thought that one year later the industry at-large would be facing problems with raw material procurement, fossil fuel supplies, temporarily closed industries, and a completely uncertain future? Things that many took for granted are becoming luxuries, and the refractory industry, with all of the industries both upstream and downstream of it, is also facing major challenges. This article will revisit some of the points made in an article published in the September 2021 issue of World Cement, and will also report on REFKO’s experiences working with the material over the past two years.

A safely operating rotary kiln over the course of several months, for the best part of a year, within the scheduled inspection periods, is certainly the ambition of every cement producer. Unscheduled shutdowns cause high costs due to production losses and are, of course, anything but beneficial for the refractory material used. Unfortunately, unplanned emergency stops cannot always be avoided due to various factors. This is exactly where the REFKO Recovery system and in particular the concrete REFKO Recovery MG 78 comes in. This product was developed to repair damage in the lining, especially on old MgO/Spinell bricks. In the best case scenario, the kiln should continue to run safely and trouble-free until the next scheduled annual shutdown.

Preparatory work

Preparatory operations before any installation are mostly the same. The areas to be repaired must be cleaned and free of loose material from the old brickwork. The rubbish must be removed from the kiln so that it does not roll over the fresh lining during the rotation of the kiln during installation. An appropriate bond preparation of the surface is recommended. The spray application is carried out with a standard dry spraying machine/rotor spraying machine in combination with a booster pump and high-pressure membrane spray nozzle or ‘REFKO nozzle’. The company also recommends a field division of four quarters, which can vary in width, but should be based on the joints of the old brick lining. To date, widths up to 100 cm have been undertaken. The widths are also dictated somewhat by the format of the bricks.

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Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/special-reports/16012023/revisiting-rapid-recovery-and-repair/