The composition of non-recyclable waste wood today can vary greatly. This posed a challenge to A&S Energie, which produces green power from wood waste. The green power company engaged Lybover to optimise the supply and processing at its green power plant in Oostrozebeke. Four Lybover units joined forces, worked out and implemented a new concept for the existing plant. A complex project, but right up Lybover’s street.
We did not just propose a solution, but tackled the problem at source. This way, we optimised the entire process instead of just remedying the consequences. And that with a modern project approach based on 3D engineering and virtual reality. The result was an efficient installation in a limited intervention time.
From wood waste to energy
At its green power plant in Oostrozebeke, A&S Energie processes non-recyclable wood waste into green electricity for 55,000 families in and around the municipality. For biomass processing, the company deploys state-of-the-art technology that meets the strictest standards. A&S Energy has worked with Lybover AIR, METAL and BULK in the past. Lybover RECYCLING performed maintenance on Steinert machines and a PEINER grab there in the past.
Improving biomass supply and processing
“The green power plant in Oostrozebeke runs 24/7, more than 8,000 hours a year. If the supply and processing is not efficient and the plant stalls due to unplanned downtime, it costs A&S Energie money,” says Lars Van Volsem, Sales Engineer Projects at Lybover RECYCLING.
But the biomass supplied, non-recyclable wood waste in this case, has a variety of fraction sizes. Small and large fraction sizes in particular can cause problems. Too many fine materials and dust cause wear further down the plant. In turn, too large pieces cause blockages in the line. In the future, A&S Energie also wants to process even more fractions that are less well-defined.
The solution, the test, the confidence
Lars Van Volsem: “As the heart of the solution, we proposed integrating a 3D combi screen from our German partner Spaleck. After all, the existing disc bed could not handle large amounts of oversize. The new screen could solve both the wear and clogging problem due to the fine fraction: it removes both the fine dust and the oversized pieces from the process.” To convince A&S Energie, Lybover took the energy company to Germany.
Lars: “There, we conducted a test with A&S Energie’s material. This allowed the customer to get to know their product and see for themselves the actual biomass distribution. A real eye-opener that gave us the confidence to start optimising.”
Improve biomass feed and processing
The existing set-up consisted of two redundant feeding lines to feed the wood waste via conveyors to a main line (A) and a secondary line (B). There was also a C line for briquette transport that was no longer used. The new screen was one part of the solution. Because other optimisations of the existing plant were also necessary.
“The complexity was in integrating the new screen into the existing process,” Lars explains. “For that, we had to make some adjustments and add new components. Namely: extending the existing belts and diverter valves and adding new conveying systems, such as an additional conveyor belt, extraction bottom and screw. These were made to A&S standard with ceramic, wear-resistant linings. The decommissioned briquette line was revived and now disposes the fines. In this way, we make optimum use of the existing situation and the impact on logistics is minimised. Finally, additional piping and transition pieces ensure efficient dedusting.”
Clear picture thanks to 3D scanning
Working out a concept is one thing, but how do you convince the customer that it can also be perfectly integrated into his existing green power plant? Thierry Sabbe, Teamleader Projects Lybover AIR: “3D scanning makes it very visual and that was necessary because of the compact set-up. On top of that, we let A&S Energy employees walk through the facility with virtual reality. This allowed them to virtually walk to each hatch and check accessibility.”
Thorough preparation, short realisation time
Thierry is convinced: thanks to extremely meticulous preparation, Lybover managed to realise the optimisation of the green power plant in a very short space of time. “We had to respect a two-week factory shutdown. That meant shifts during the week for us.” Lars adds: “The tight two-week deadline was a challenge, so was the compact space in the facility, plus other maintenance work was taking place. Quite a stressful situation. But we are used to complex projects. And thanks to the complete preparatory work we had already done, the customer was confident that the conversion would go smoothly.”
Onestopshop: four Lybover units join forces
What also played in the favour of Lybover and the customer: this is an all-in project for which four Lybover business units worked intensively together – RECYCLING, AIR, BULK and INSTALLATION.
Thierry: “Our processes are geared towards collaboration. For example, we have a platform where we can work with technical designers from different units on the same drawings.” Lybover RECYCLING took the lead in this project and came up with a concept for screen integration. Thierry worked out the engineering with the other units. Lybover AIR was in charge of dedusting. An existing filter was reused for this purpose. Lybover BULK provided the conveyors and other mechanical transport solutions. Our own technicians from Lybover INSTALLATION took care of assembly on site.
Meanwhile, Lybover finished another project at the site in Oostrozebeke. “The housing of the 2 elevators that fill the day silos – both with a height of around 35 metres – were also renewed during a period of two weeks of production downtime. Again, a tough challenge in terms of planning. And perhaps the biggest confirmation: A&S Energy is looking at whether it can apply the optimisations of the facility in Oostrozebeke to other sites.”