Energy consumption and CO2 and NOx emissions minimised in an intermittent ceramic kiln – “ECONOMICK kiln”

Abstract

ECONOMICK LIFE project developed an innovative shuttle kiln for ceramic production, which consumes about 47% less energy than actually existing ones and, so, allows the industry to reduce costs, CO₂, NO_x, HF, SO_x and dust emissions, and raw materials. A patented technology is used to recover heat from flue gases to pre-heat combustion air. Significantly, this technology does not use flues or other pipes and above all does not alter the fluid dynamics of the flue gases in any way, which therefore remain identical to those of a traditional shuttle kiln. This advantage, with the possibility of adjusting the flame speed, is important as it optimises the flue gas/piece thermal exchange and does not affect either uniformity of firing or energy savings at low temperatures. This patented technology allows to use preheated combustion air and to reduce max temperature in the burner body, adjusting flame speed. Further, a specific software allows to preserve a preselected air/gas ratio and to use different values in function of the firing cycle. A careful selection of the refractory materials, resulting in a lining that minimises thermal inertia and at the same time allow a cool wall temperature of below 50°C.