DYNAMIC MODELING OF THE HEAT TRANSFER PROCESS IN ROTARY KILNS WITH INDIRECT OIL HEATING Parametric Analysis of Gypsum Calcination Case

Abstract

This work proposes a mathematical modeling and numerical simulation of a gyp-sum rotary kiln with indirect oil heating in a 3-D transient regime. The mathe-matical model was based on Fourier's law as a constitutive relationship and the principle of energy conservation, applied to a control volume in cylindrical co-ordinates. Furthermore, a bed homogenization model was used to represent the most realistic condition of the physical phenomenon since some rotary kilns have internal fins that aim at homogenizing the gypsum temperature during calcina-tion. This work intends to fill the gap found in heat transfer processes on rotary kilns in transient regime considering 3-D positions, to have an accurate projec-tion of the temperature profile of the kiln and also, given by the numerical model, the possibility of a tool that can be used to the optimization of the control system of rotary kilns considering the actual demand of the material in production, lead-ing to the best energy performance of the equipment's activation source, as well as reaching the temperatures and processing time of the product. The numerical simulation results revealed reasonable agreement with the experimentally deter-mined calcination process in rotary kilns. Furthermore, a parametric analysis of the influence of the mixture on the temperature fields and the calcination time was carried out to verify the energetic balance of the rotary kiln