I BAU HAMBURG

A MEMBER OF THE HAVER ® GROUP

Information

Silo conversions
and modifications
for the cement industry
Silo Conversions

Introduction
The introduction of mod-
ern production techniques
has brought about a change
in the cement industry and
silo engineering. Large
numbers of different com-
ponents like ground blast
furnace slag, fly ash or
limestone meal as well as
finished products are pro-
duced.

These circumstances are useful

taken into account in new
plants, for example, by
building multi-compart-
volume
ment silos for cement dis-
patch. In existing lines,
the silos often no longer
match the current demand.

In addition, a longer oper-

ating period can often
cause problems with the
silo discharge or the
cement quality is impaired
due to seizures and lumps.
In such cases, silo conver-
sions can help.

Requirements
for Silo
Conversions
Modern discharge systems
thus require the re-equip-
ping of the existing
cement silos. Before
IBAU HAMBURG
launched their central
cone silo on the market in
1975, there had been vari-
ous different methods of
cement storage, with
regional peculiarities play-
ing a role to a certain
extent.

The central cone silo has

since become a worldwide
standard. The most com- Uneconomical silo design

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 Information

mon problems with

existing cement silos that
do not have a modern
IBAU discharge system
are that a silo capacity is
available only to a limited
extent and/or that there
are continuous discharge
problems due to seizures
and the formation of
lumps. The cement quality
is impaired, and a vast
amount of energy is
needed for fluidization.

In many cases silos can

only be operated with
core flow, and sometimes
even less than two thirds
of the nominal silo vol-
ume is available.

In such cases the silos

must be cleared manually
and the solidified cement
must be removed by
digging it out. Work of
this kind is dangerous and
can even lead to death as
some incidents in the past
have shown.

In general, with poor silo

availability, interruptions
in cement loading with
unnecessary waiting times
right up to production
stoppages are a major
problem.

Consequently, cement
buyers will favor
competitors that do not
have problems of this kind.

Alternatively, central cone

silos can be converted to
multi-cell silos for the
storage of various
cements. Such concepts
are designed for silo
diameters above 18 m.
Furthermore, conversions
of grain silos and oil tanks
have also been completed
for cement storage in port
I BAU -Central cone for complete discharge terminals.

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Silo Conversions

The
Most Important
Conversion
Built up
Concepts dead stock
in old design
First of all, the building
substance and silo static
must be checked in order
to convert or modernize
the discharge system of
an existing silo. Cracks in
the walls, which can be
caused by tension peaks
during eccentric unload-
ing for example, must be
analyzed very precisely Old discharge
before any silo conversion design
can be considered.

The possible conversion

designs result from
specific requirements,
planned investment
amounts, incorporation in
the plant as a whole, silo
size or the space condi-
tions in the silo and
the expense of removing
the piled concrete for the
existing silo base.

If the technical conditions

are given, the installation
of a central cone in the
flat-based silos is also
possible for silos with
a diameter larger than
12 m. Where the accumu-
lated concrete is hard to
remove and eccentric silo
discharges exist, other
solutions such as the
installation of a double
pitch roof are preferred.

As far as smaller silos are

concerned, it might not
be necessary to make any
alterations at all. Steel
bases with prefabricated
aeration units can be used
for base sections with
a diameter of 5 m and a
central discharge. Typical cement silos

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 Information

Silos with
Concentric
Discharge
The most common
conversion design is the
installation of a central
cone in an existing flat
based silo.

A typical example is the

conversion of cement
silos for HOLCIM
(Romania) in the Alesd
plant, where IBAU
HAMBURG has convert-
ed a large number of
cement silos and a fly ash
silo in several stages.

The silos with a diameter

of 15.7 m each were
equipped with new aera-
tion bases and were fitted
with a central cone using
steel construction.

Old Subsequent conversions

unsufficient of IBAU central cone
discharge silos have in recent years
device been carried out for
a large number of cus-
tomers.
Old and These include silo conver-
unrealiable sions for Duna Drava
loading Cement in Hungary,
systems Lafarge Mykolaiv Cement
in Ukraine, Fabrica
Cementa Novi Popovac in
Serbia and Rüdersdorfer
Zement in Rudniki,
Poland.

Via PSP Engineering

IBAU received an order
to convert a cement and a
slag silo at Rugby Cement
in Detmarovice, Czech
Republic. The silos with
a diameter of 12 m and
a storage volume of
1800 m3 each were desig-
ned with an identical con-
before conversion struction.

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Silo Conversions

At the Lengfurt plant of

HeidelbergCement eight
cement silos with a dia-
meter of 8 m were con-
verted with new aeration
units with a central dis-
charge. This silo base is
closely connected with
aeration units in which
the pipelines are integrat-
ed. This leads to very
small residual quantities
when operating the silo.
The conversions were New inverted
realized in pairs in four steel cone
construction sections to
interrupt the silo opera-
tion and cement loading
as little as possible.

A large number of silos

ranging from a diameter
of 8 to 12 m have aeration New aeration
units in a steel discharge surface
cone. The simplest way of
modernizing the discharge
system is usually to dis-
connect the existing cone
in the lower segment and
to replace it by a flat base.
At Lafarge Cement in
Westbury, UK, a respec-
tive prefabricated silo
base with aeration seg-
ments for a cement load-
ing silo was used.

Silos with
Eccentric
Discharge
In the case of silos with
an eccentric discharge,
the central cone version
and the version with a silo
cone are rarely/never
used. The number of ver-
sions here is much higher
than that with concentric
discharges. With the
increasing size of the silo,
suppression installations
are also used. In silos
with a diameter of 10 m Silo design after

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 Information

and a silo base version

such as that at Garadagh
Cement in Azerbaijan,
which is part of
the HOLCIM Group, the
cement is transported over
a 45° inclination and aera-
tion gullies to two trans-
verse gullies, and from
there to two discharges.
Conversion to another
discharge version or the
installation of depressure
systems is too complex
for silos of this kind. That
is why only a new aera-
tion system can be used.

At the Czech cement

manufacturer
New central Ceskomoravsky Cement,
bin with which is part of the
discharge gates HeidelbergCement Group,
six cement silos with a
diameter of 12.4 m each
were converted at the
Kraluv Dvur plant. Here
too, the silo base has a
45° inclination and two
gully transverse transports
for both discharge open-
ings. Double pitch roofs
as relief chambers are
located above the gully
New efficient transverse transports.
loading system The silo discharge with
a maximum of 300 t/h is
transported from the
openings via flow control
gates into a downstream
collecting gully which is
for three silo units each.

A system similar to that at

Ceskomoravsky was con-
verted at the Eclépens
plant at HOLCIM in
Switzerland, but the gully
inclination there was 15°
and the discharge capacity
was up to 400 t/h. IBAU
has received an order for
a further conversion of
this type at the Beli Izvor
plant (Holcim Bulgaria).
Here, the silo diameter is
conversion 15 m with a discharge

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Silo Conversions

capacity of 200 t/h.

Another silo base design
involves only one trans-
verse gully and two
eccentric discharges such
as that at the San Sebas-
tian plant of Cementos
Caribe. There, four
cement silos were modi-
fied and equipped with
new aeration systems.
Above the transverse
gully there is a double
pitch roof as relief cham-
ber. The downstream
cement transport includes
collecting screws and
bucket elevators.

IBAU
HAMBURG ,
the Specialist
for Silo
Conversions
IBAU HAMBURG has
become an expert in the
conversion and modifica-
tion of silos for the
cement industry. Only in
the past ten years more
than 250 conversions have
been realized. System
expertise is the basis for
simple, flexible and eco-
nomic solutions. Even
during the project plan-
ning and layout stages
customers benefit from
engineering services and
consultation opportunities.
The development of
system solutions together
with the customers has
a long tradition at IBAU
HAMBURG ; it is a key
component of customer
service. Engineering from
one single source is a
guarantee for unproblem-
atic interaction of all com-
ponents within the system. Silo floor with central

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 Information

outlet before modification

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Silo Conversions

Modification of a silo floor

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 Information

with steel cone and central outlet

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Silo Conversions

Floor aeration panels outside the steel cone

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 Information

Floor aeration panels under the steel cone

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Silo Conversions

Top view into a silo

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 Information

after modification

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Silo Conversions

Silo aeration panels during assembly

Pre-assembled silo bottom

16
 Information

After the first complete discharge

Pre-assembled bottom after first complete discharge

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Silo Conversions

Converted silo station for Lafarge Cement, Mykolaiv, Ukraine

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 Information

High efficient SIMPLEX truck loading system

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Silo Conversions

Silo type:
I BAU central cone
Silo modification into
a classic I BAU central
cone silo

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with a cen-
ter discharge and a diame-
ter of > 12 m and with
existing partial flat bot-
toms. At least 4 or more
silo outlets and 8 or more
aeration sections are
planned, depending on the
silo diameter. The dis-
charge and the aeration
take place in intervals.

Advantages:
• easy modification work
• small aeration surfaces
• very high degree of silo
emptying
• low power consumption
• high working reliability
(many silo outlets)

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• PJSC Sukholozhsk
Cement, Russia
• Duna-Drava Cement,
Beremend, Hungary

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 Information

Silo type:
Depressure
chamber
Silo modification into
a depressure chamber

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with a con-
tinuous flat bottom, a cen-
ter discharge and a diame-
ter of > 12 m. The flat
inclined bottom below the
depressure chamber and
outside of the depressure
chamber is divided into
aeration sections, which
are aerated in intervals.

Advantages:
• easy modification work
• good degree of silo
emptying

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• Holcim, Alesd,
Romania
• HeidelbergCement,
Burglengenfeld,
Germany
• Lafarge, Malogoszcz,
Poland
• HeidelbergCement,
Zlatna Panega, Bulgaria

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Silo Conversions

Silo type:
Depressure
chamber with
side discharger
Silo modification into
a depressure chamber
with silo side discharge

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with flat
bottoms, a side discharge
and a diameter of > 12 m.
The flat inclined bottom
below the depressure
chamber and outside of
the depressure chamber is
divided into aeration sec-
tions, which are aerated in
intervals.

Advantages:
• relatively easy modifi-
cation work
• good degree of silo
emptying

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• Lafarge, Le Cric,
Reunion
• Duna-Drava Cement,
Vac, Hungary (18 silos)

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 Information

Silo type:
Tunnel discharge
Silo modification for
silos with existing closed
tunnel

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with a con-
tinuous closed tunnel. The
modification takes place
with a minimum of
change of the concrete
surfaces. The existing silo
outlets in the tunnel area
are used. For each silo
outlet 2 aeration sections
are assigned. The dis-
charge and the aeration
are taking place in inter-
vals.

Advantages:
• very easy modification
work
• good degree of silo
emptying
• high working reliability
(many silo outlets)

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• Cemex, Pertigalete,
Venezuela
• Dyckerhoff, Lengerich,
Germany
• HeidelbergCement,
Pula, Croatia
• Irish Cement, Limerick,
Ireland

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Silo Conversions

Silo type:
Flat bottom
Silo modification without
depressure chamber

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with a center
discharge and a diameter
of < 10 m. The flat
inclined bottom is divided
into aeration sections,
which are aerated in inter-
vals.

Advantages:
• very easy modification
work
• good degree of silo emp-
tying

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• HeidelbergCement,
Lengfurt, Germany
(8 silos)
• Ciment de Bizerte,
Bizerte, Tunisia
• Dyckerhoff, Beckum,
Germany

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 Information

Silo type:
Silo bottom
with strongly
inclined bottom
Silo modification with-
out depressure chamber
with strongly inclined
bottom

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with a cen-
ter discharge and a steel
cone arranged on the con-
crete bottom. The steel
cone is dismantled and
replaced by a flat inclined
bottom. This flat inclined
bottom and the existing
cone surfaces are divided
into aeration sections,
which are aerated in inter-
vals.

Advantages:
• easy modification work
• acceptable degree of
silo emptying

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• Novoross Cement,
Russia
• Lehigh Cement, Union
Bridge, USA

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Silo Conversions

Silo type:
Depressure hood
Silo modification with
depressure hood

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with contin-
uous flat bottoms with
two outlets and a diameter
of 10 - 14 m. A depres-
sure hood above the outlet
is arranged from silo wall
to silo wall. Inclined bot-
toms are created parallel
to the depressure hood.
The surfaces outside and
inside of the depressure
hood are divided into aer-
ation sections, which are
aerated in intervals.

Advantages:
• relatively easy modifi-
cation work
• acceptable degree of
silo emptying
• good working reliability
(2 silo outlets)

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• Holcim, Cementos
Caribe, Venezuela

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 Information

Silo type:
Double depressure
hood
Silo modification with
two depressure hoods

This silo modification is

intended to be used for
existing silos with several
strongly inclined concrete
surfaces and 2 resp. 4 silo
outlets and a diameter of
10 - 14 m. Above the silo
outlets, i. e. the concrete
depressure hoods are
arranged. The existing
strongly inclined concrete
surfaces are covered with
aeration sections. The
downstream concrete
receives a new layer of
concrete with flat inclined
surfaces. The aeration
takes place sectional in
intervals.

Advantages:
• easy modification work
• short time of modifica-
tion
• acceptable degree of
silo emptying
• good working reliability
(2 to 4 silo outlets)

These modifications
were e. g. supplied for:
• Ceskomoravsky
Cement, Kraluv Dvur,
Czech Republic

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 Silo conversions

Customised terminal solutions for loading

and unloading cement,
lime and gypsum

Ship loading station for CIVIL AND MARINE High-capacity ship unloader for CONTINENTAL
SLAG CEMENT , Port Talbot, UK FLORIDA MATERIALS, Port Canaveral, USA

High-capacity mixing plant for HOLCIM , Multi-compartment silo in honeycomb

Antwerp, Belgium design for EKOCEM , Katowice, Poland

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FAX +49 (0) 40 36 39 83 · Email: [email protected] · Internet: www.ibauhamburg.de
01/07