Basalt Continuous Fiber (BCF) production techniques - Industrial equipment.

Basalt Continuous Fiber. Industrial equipment.

At the present time “BASALT FIBER MATERIALS TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT CO., LTD” mastered production of TE BCF 1500-2000 processing line, which is developed on the basis of BCF new series installations.

Modular installations of ТЕ BCF 1500 - 2000 Processing line

TE BCF 1500-2000 processing line

TE BCF 1500-2000 processing line is designed for industrial production of BCF with the low energy consumption. The line with 16 units (bushings) has a capacity of 1,500 tons a year, the line with 22 units – 2000 tons a year.

* Notes. The actual productivity depends on the quality of basalt raw material and qualification of the operators of the processing units.

Performance Specifications of the BCF Modular Production Units and the TE BCF 1500-2000 Processing Line:

• Metal construction platform for 16- 22 BCF modular production units of the TE BCF 1500-2000 Production line, each unit with a bushing-assembly (16-22 pcs.)
• 16-22 winding units with control and monitoring equipment ;
• The equipment for charging basalt and the system for controlling charge of basalt into melting furnaces;
• The system for recovering heat of exit gases, the smoke removal system;
• The air supply system and the gas supply system;
• The electric equipment of the processing units and the production line;
• The system for controlling process parameters of the processing units and the production line;
• The section for lubricant preparation and the system for feeding lubricant to devices for applying lubricant to basalt fibers;
• The water-cooling system;
• Driers for dry of primary fiber and BCF roving;
• Equipment for rewinding basalt continuous fiber into bundles of basalt fiber roving;
• Cut machines for cutting of primary fiber and BCF roving;
• Handling trolleys, spool holders and auxiliary equipment

TE BCF 1500 – 2000 processing line is complicated by main and auxiliary equipment for producing of marketable BCF products, such as BCF roving, BCF chopped fiber. At the client’s requirements TE BCF 1500 – 2000 technological line can be complicated by machines for twisted thread producing.

BCF manufacturers with annual output of 3 000, 5 000, 10 000, 15 000 tons of BCF are created on the basis of the TE BCF 2000 processing lines.

Advantages of TE BCF 1500 – 2000 processing line

TE BCF 1500 – 2000 production lines consist of modular BCF units of new series. The main constructive advantages of the BCF installations are:

• Different design of the melting furnace that has a high temperature melting zone, zone of homogenization of basalt melt, zone of preparing the basaltic melt for pulling of filament from melt, feeding zone;;
• Special recuperation system for energy saving melting furnace;
• High effectively gas burners of new design;
• More productive slotted bushing assemblies having weight of 1500-1650 gram; these new bushings are characterized by higher productivity and lower weight;
• Special electric transformers, coolers for the bushing assemblies and other new developments.

New generation of the processing equipment developed by the BFMTD provides the possibility to reduce consumption of energy (natural gas in 3-4 times and electricity in 6-7 times), increase productivity at 2 times, and, accordingly, the production cost value of high quality basalt fiber be significantly reduced.
Melting furnaces of each modular unit are operating offline, separately each from other. At the same time it is possible to produce BCF of various characteristics by means of setting of operation mode of each modular unit. In whole this design makes operation of the technological line more dependable and sustained.

Control and Monitoring Systems for Basalt Melting Furnaces and Basalt Fiber Production Line

The control and monitoring of the equipment of the basalt melting furnaces and BCF processing units is important for ensuring the proper operation of the equipment and maintaining optimal parameters of the production process.

The control and monitoring system of the production line and processing modular units is developed as a two-level system.
At the first control level, the system provides the measurement, control, and monitoring of the primary process parameters. The values of the parameters are displayed at the control panels of the operators of the melting furnace and of the operators of the production unit. The control panels with controls and indicators are installed at the workstations of the operators of the melting furnace and production units.

Control panel of the operator of the modular melting furnace of the BCF 1NG production unit Control panel of the operator of the BCF 1NG production unit

The analog output signals of temperature transmitter, temperature transducers, pressure transducers, timers, current meters, tachometers and other devices are converted into the corresponding digital signals that are used as input signals of the central computer at the second control level. The central computer provides the display and storage of the data on the parameters of the production process and the equipment of the production line TE BCF 1500- 2000.

Control panel of the fiber winding unitThe control panel at the second level of the control and monitoring system

Preparation, Installation, and Commissioning of the ТЕ BCF 1500 - 2000 Production Line

The works for the preparation, installation, and commissioning of the ТЕ BCF 1500 - 2000 production line shall be performed in two stages.

The first stage

• Selection of basalt raw materials for the production of basalt continuous fiber;
• Developing of Requirements to production premises and engineering communication, needed to organize BASALT CONTINIOUS FIBER (BCF) and Materials on their basis production, design of BCF project. Author's support and participation in designing and construction of BCF plant;
• Preparation of production facilities and engineering services for installation and commissioning of the equipment. Build a new premises or carry out of reconstruction of already available industrial premises for accommodation of TE BCF 1500-2000 technological line, supply of engineering communication;
• Manufacture, supply, installation, and commissioning of the first priority equipment of the TE BCF 1500-2000 production line rated at the productivity of 500-1000 ton of basalt continuous fiber per year, and complex equipment for production of the finish BCF products, including: driers for primary continuous basal fiber and basalt fiber roving, rewinding units for BCF roving, and units for cutting basalt fiber roving into chopped fiber;
• Start of BCF production, producing of pilot batch of BCF, train of personnel operate of technological equipment;

Period of completion is 7-8 months if production premises and engineering utilities will be ready to set up equipment.

After launching the first BCF-1 installation the final selection of basalt breed is to be made, and technological modes of BCF production are to be worked out. Technicians and operators are trained on BCF-1 installation as well. At the same time BCF-1 installation allows to begin BCF production. Thus, after 5 months small volumes of BCF can be produced, this time can be used as a preparatory period for marketing. Simultaneously with launch of first priority equipment of the TE BCF 1500- 2000, the company begins spade-works of the second stages.

The second stage

Upon request from customers the BFMTD delivers equipment and technological lines for BCF materials production, including: twisted thread and BCF articles, such as: BCF rebar, basalt mesh, composites of various shape, pipes, rods and others based-BCF materials.
Execution of the design supervision by BFMTD specialists. Creation of the Standard Specification for the production of basalt fiber, BCF roving, and chopped basalt fiber; transfer of others technological and technical documentation required to operate of the equipment and produce marketable BCF products.

Before the installation of the equipment, the customer should prepare production facilities and engineering services required for the production

After commissioning the first production units of the production line start training the operation and maintenance personnel. The first priority production units provide the possibility to start the production of basalt continuous fiber after 5 months from the start BCF project. Technological modules are installed step by step – this approach allows starting production immediately after the module’s installation. The supply and installation of the first priority production equipment shall be accomplished at the first stage of works to be performed for the preparation, installation, and commissioning of the ТЕ BCF 1500-2000 production line. In this case, the installed modular production units will be used for the production of fiber without delay. So, the fiber is produced concurrently with the supply and installation of the second priority equipment. When the second phase is finished, technological line starts to work with total designed output of 1500-2000 tons of BCF per annual.

* Productivity of the bushing assembly depends on the quality of basalt raw material, operator qualification and quantity of draw holes of the bushing assemblies.

Analysis of data presented in table 1 show that the new generation of equipment allows to reduce consumption of energy (natural gas at 3-4 times and electricity at 6-7 times), increase productivity at 2 times, and, accordingly, the production cost of high quality of basalt fiber to be significantly reduced.

BCF-1GM Modular gas-electric installations; it’s main application is working though the operating modes of BCF production, researching of fusion processes of various basalts types, fiberization properties of basaltic melt, selection of basalt raw material, working at melting furnace design.

BCF-2G, BCF-2G Modular installations use for industrial BCF production.

Work at design of modular BCF techniques started in Ukraine and were continuing in PR China under conditions of expensive energy in China, where cost of natural gas and electric power sometimes is higher than in some European countries,

Development of technologies and equipment for BCF production. Patents and “know how”.

Before wide application of BCF materials stopped by complexity and novelty techniques for industrial BCF production. Last years BFMTD Company continued works in development of technologies and equipment for industrial production of basalt continuous fiber. The goal of these developing are increase of productivity of industrial equipment, reduce consumption of energy, reform quality, strength properties, and elasticity of basalt continuous fiber. Now this goal achieved, the new series of energy-saving technological equipment for industrial production of high quality BCF were developed.

New generation of equipment allows to reduce consumption of energy (natural gas at 3-4 times and electricity at 6-7 times), increase productivity at 2 times, and, accordingly, the production cost of high quality of basalt fiber to be significantly reduced.

The production processes and processing equipment for basalt fiber production are protected by the following patents: